Brevent-Flegere, fog and flakes

Our last day of skiing/boarding in Chamonix (..this time)! This area is incredibly beautiful and I can't imagine not coming back to explore it again in winter or summer. There is an overland track between the top of Grand Montet and Zermatt that takes 6-7 days - I've put it on my list of things to do when the kids are a bit older and more robust. Rock climbing here would be unbelievable with climbs everywhere. It apparently gets so busy with climbers that you might actually have to wait in line to climb! After a morning session of U/S in which Auntie Pinny kindly offered her abdomen as a specimen ( no suprises found - and a very nice looking gallbladder) we shuttled the kids out to their last lesson and test for la premier etoile (first star) award. Pinny, Jen and I headed to the local hill behind our hotel for one last chance of actually seeing its terrain as last time visibility was virtually nil. It was touch and go to start as appearances up the lift suggested we were in for another whiteout. Fortunately the fog wasn't too thick and what previously felt like a vertical wall of snow turned out to be not so bad with some nice fluffy coating. I was struck by how different each of the ski areas in Chamonix seem to be, each with their own distinctive terrain - some with wide well prepped slopes, trees and a few narrow runs, others wide open and exposed. Like all areas we seem to visit, each seems to have a sense of place - a certain 'je n'ai sais quoi' which makes it feel completely different - affected by its specific terrain or topography. In the afternoon Mormor took Pinny's place and the boys joined in for a few runs on the same mountain. Jen led the troupe while I was relegated to the caboose/ clean up position - apparently I go too fast and this causes some lack of control issues with the boys. While Cole had another small yard sale, discovering the complexity of deep snow on a pair of planks, Aidan switched on the whine and indecisiveness, making our last couple of runs somewhat strained. We made it back down for a swim and then had the kids help out for some more U/S practice sessions at the conference venue. Piper was transfixed by the U/S screen and looking at her insides! Today we're off to Zermatt in Switzerland where the Mattehorn sits in all its glory. In reading about it last night I was amazed to find out that both Winston Churchill and Franklin D Roosevelt climbed it in their day! Might have to put it on my list of things to do as well!