Ski Tripping in Chamonix

Blue skies, fresh powder, warm temps and a camera full of tape and batteries - what more is there in life? Donning 50 sun block to keep the burn to a minimum; Steve, myself, a gal from Russia and Jackie, our guide, head for the hills early this morning to tackle Grands Montets.

Grands Montets is part of the Chamonix Mont Blanc ski zone with a height of 4,810m it's the highest in the Alps. It's a world renown ski destination with spellbinding vertical drops and glorious pistes. The area has 5 glaciers, a couple of them skiable like The "Mer de Glace" (sea of ice), also the second largest glacier in France. The mountain remains open for only a few more days but still has several feet of the soft stuff.

Yours truly made a definite mockery of herself - falling flat on my face, back and derriere every few feet. I could almost hear the mountain Gods roaring with delight. After shaking myself free of snow and presumption we dined at a restaurant/hotel that Mary Shelly vacationed at to write Frankenstein. Due to the scary sounds of avalanches, breaking ice and howling winds she was inspired to write one of the best known novels ever.