sentier du forestier

I had originally (a few weeks ago) thought we might do this stunningly scenic trail on snow shoes - but the lack of recent snowfall combined with the relatively warm temperatures meant that whilst we crossed a few small snow patches we were just in walking shoes. The route wound in & out of the trees and crossed what will soon be pistes as we made our way from Le Bettex to St Niklaus - but the real reason for taking this route is self evident in today's blip - every clearing offers the most amazing views of the haute montagne.
As ever when faced with this view my eye was drawn to the stunning ridge line of the Aiguille de Bionnassay. I climbed this is 2012 - the cornices at the top are notorious - and looking at it now I can still feel the sense of drop as we chose our path across - its not a mountain with many other footprints to follow.

Was also very impressed today to see that St Gervais continues to improve its facilities, this year there are now 30 new snow cannons creating a 3km run down to the base station so you don't need to ride the gondola down anymore.