European snow adventure trip review
I wonder how much time is spent de-icing those lifts (just looking at those trees)
Even on cold days like that -35 at the top in Canada we would just run the lift on super slow and make sure it turned properly. Don’t think there was too much de-icing most times.
Jeremy I would highly recommend it! I’m keen to come back but I think next time I’d aim for March rather than January so it’s not as cold and the days are longer.
I was in East Finland area over the xmas break as it got to -23 for a few days. I would have to say you really need some serious gear for them conditions. I wore my thermals, trackies, snowboard pants, jump, tees, jacket, beanie, face mask, neck warmer etc etc..couldn’t feel my feet after 15mins out.
Be sure to lap and warm up. Have a couple of Minttu’s for me!
Haha sounds like us. Yesterday I had 2 pairs of thermal pants, snow pants, thermal top, t-shirt, fleece, hoodie, jacket, neck warmer, face mask and helmet. I was actually pretty warm at times, but frozen feet was definitely the biggest issue! Can’t wait to get to the French alps for some warmer snowboarding conditions!
Haha I’d be rocking some underpants and a tee under my jacket and pants…
#WhatIsCold? #nojez
#nojez ?
Last day in Ruka
For years I have wanted to go dog sledding and yesterday I finally got to do it. Apart from the cold it was awesome fun. After sledding we got to meet all the puppies.
It was nice being around dogs since we haven’t seen ours in nearly 4 weeks and were having dog withdrawals.
Who wouldn’t miss this face?
One of the best things about ruka is the variety of things to do. Snowboarding, dog sledding, snow mobiles, ice karting and northern lights. Unfortunately we didnt get to see the northern lights or do a few other things we had planned but it just gives us an excuse to come back in the future.
In the afternoon we headed out for one last snowboard in Finland. There was part of the park with 4 boxes one after the other and Warren and I nailed them all on our last lap through the park which was a good note to end on. After that we called it a day as neither of us could feel our feet.
Today we fly back to Helsinki and then back to Paris Thursday. Then on Saturday we head down to manigod in the French alps for a week so expect more snow pictures to come!
Manigod - French Alps
Yesterday afternoon we arrived in the French alps. This would honestly have to be my favourite place in the world. This is my third trip and I am just as blown away by how beautiful it is as I was the first time I came.
We had lots of snow yesterday and woke up to clear blue skies today. Making the most of the weather we are going to go up the aiguille du midi to see Mont blanc. Tomorrow we will head out snowboarding!
The view from our chalet..
French alps
Finally back in Paris with some decent internet so I thought I’d share some pictures from Manigod. Manigod is a small ski area in the Rhone-Alpes, about 70km from Chamonix and very close to Geneva. Manigod is made up of two ski areas, col de Merdassier and col de le Croix Fry. We mainly stick to Merdassier but headed over to le Croix Fry on a few occasions as well (the traverse back to Merdassier is a nightmare!!).
The weather was a bit mixed. We had two days with pretty shocking visibility, one day of snow, a cloudy day and one of beautiful sunshine!
Here are some pictures from the week..
Monday; hardly anyone around. One of the perks of a smaller resort.
After Finland it was so awesome to snowboard and be warm! Temperature was only about -2℃
Cloud rolling in on Tuesday afternoon.After a few blind runs we called it a day around 3pm.
Perfect weather on Wednesday! This was from the top of the highest run. The views were incredible!
at the top of Merdassier looking across to le Croix Fry
Low cloudy rolling into the valley near our chalet..
All in all it was a pretty awesome week! Can’t wait to go back again next time I’m in France! I have some more photos on my camera to share but will wait till the weekend when we are back in Australia with a proper computer and internet!
Looks awesome so far, Erin. How was France? I can’t wait to hear about the snowboarding in Finland. Enjoy!
Our friend just did a season in French alps, val thorens & surroundings, & said it was pure perfection!
We just did snowbombing in Austria, amazing festival on and off the mountain during spring snowboarding.. Well worth it!
Mayrhofen
