Add Another Dimension to Your Winter Ski & Snowboard Holiday

I love to ski & snowboard so I can’t imagine spending time on my well earned break doing anything else. But having enjoyed a number of full winter seasons in the Alps and Canada I started to explore alternative activities and found that these can be as rewarding as landing a backside 360… well maybe a switch 180… so here are some alternative activities that you might like to have a go at on your next winter break.

// Snowshoeing to a back country hut

Before you even consider snow shoeing out into the back of beyond you must take all necessary precautions.  And if you do not know what they are you need to ask a professional guide. So let’s assume you have spoken to a guide and they have advised you on the risks; you have booked your overnight stay in the hut; hired your snow shoes; packed your rucksack and attached your snowboard… you are ready to go.  This is pretty much what I did with two other friends one season in Canada. We had just completed our avalanche awareness course in Canmore so we were keen to use our newly acquired knowledge.  We set off from Sunshine Village early one morning in February with a map and compass in hand and we hiked solidly until we reached the hut around 20:00.

If you are looking for a great mini adventure which encompasses amazing scenery; untouched powder; brewing up tea in an isolated hut; an odd bloke that had lost his ski in an avalanche (not guaranteed) and two very good night’s sleep due to exhaustion… then you should consider it.

// Ice Diving

I tend to enjoy diving in warm water and this is probably partly why I have shied away from ice diving.  Or it might be the thought of getting lost and then ascending to find a solid sheet of ice and not a hole. So I shall pass on what a friend of ours said about the experience… “It’s very cold” … and? “it’s amazing” … it was like pulling teeth but it may be because he had mild case of hypothermia… anyway… the upshot of it all was that you descend down a line which you do not let go of… you shine a torch underwater and the light refracts off the ice creating amazing colours and shapes… and it wasn’t that he had hypothermia it was because he was still suffering from a headache caused by the night before.

// Ice Climbing

‘Experience a full day ice-climbing adventure - no experience necessary’ … was the slogan I read outside the small booth situated in the centre of the French resort of Morzine… it sounded great, so without giving it a second thought I booked in... and it turned out to be awesome. You get kitted out like a true mountain adventurer with harnesses, helmets and axes, which in itself was good enough for me.  Using the ice-axes and crampons you ascend frozen cascades & glacial walls surrounded by truly stunning mountain scenery. The whole adventure was absolutely safe as it was managed by very experienced super hero mountain guides… who gained much attention from the female fraternity.

Many holiday companies can organise these activities for you but why not try a small independent like rudechalets you can base yourself in their morzine accommodation