Normally at the start of April I'd be posting hundreds of images of happy, sunburned skiers sweating in their winter clothes under a brutal Alpine sun. And that's exactly what we were doing last week in Meribel. We had a massive dump of fresh powder - in April! - and we were loving it, whooping down the un-skied areas down the sides of the pistes and generally getting it. Then I took a nasty tumble just off the edge of the Jean Pachot red run, pulling my right calf muscle and twisting my left knee. I bravely skied to the nearest mountain restaurant, where a demi of the local muscle relaxant seemed to work its magic, but it was clear I'd have to head home. By the time I got back to the chalet I could hardly walk, so the next (and last) day was going to be a write-off. First whole day I've missed my whole ski career I think.
Friday, of course, is the day we all have lunch together, I bring the cameras out, and we all goof about a bit and I get some nice pictures. That's wasn't going to happen, so Tim and I took up position in a nice bar overlooking the ronde-point - more muscle relaxant - and waited for everyone to come back for lunch. A nice boozy lunch, as it turns out, and nice enough to persuade a few others not to head back out into the deepening afternoon slush. So we ended the day - and the trip - on a bit of a pub crawl, toasting each other, injuries, the sunshine and the snow. Not so much of a write-off after all.
