Thought I'd make another early start but didn't get to the slopes until 8.50.

I had to drop the boy off early for his ski but to the Alps so decided to take advantage of the early start to do some cross country skiing and cover a bit more distance.

Return to St Hilaire du Touvet for a few runs after it had been shut for a couple of years due to lack of snowLargely seemed to be locals up on the plateau des Petites Roches.

Last cross country ski this Christmas. I wanted to try out some Atomic Gen skis - these are shaped cross country skis a bit like cross country carving skis.

A plan so cunning you could stick a tail on it and call it a Renard.

I wanted to take advantage of the good weather and snow. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? The trails were open on the traverse down to the 4 chemins with good snow, quite rare recently.

Got up early - 9.15 to get a space at the trailhead car park. There is only room for half a dozen cars. Already some people skiing when I arrived.

Valmorel is a ski resort in the Tarentaise Valley, located in the communes of Les Avanchers-Valmorel and La Léchère, in the Savoie department of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in France.

The avalanche risk finally dropped enough to open the Beldina nordic ski area; part of the 7 Laux ski area.

We decided to head up to the 7 Laux for Christmas day on the grounds that the locals would be eating their Dinde aux marrons and otherwise occupied. It turned out to be a good plan.