Trockener Steg 2,929 Meters

One last day of skiing for me at Zermatt today. Snow was beautiful, in fact it kept snowing as I was skiing. Most the day was mixed sun, clouds, and snow. Went to the top, Matterhorn glacier paradise (3,883 m -- the highest point in Europe accessible by cable car) but the runs and conditions were better between Trockener Steg (2,929) and Furggsattel (3,365 m) so I kept taking that chair. Our season started on December 7 in Sainte-Croix and ended on May 4 in Zermatt - five months later. Of course you can continue to ski at Zermatt all summer long, albeit on a very reduced area. Maybe if I get the itch in July...

I posted a video below of the cable car ride to Matterhorn glacier paradise from YouTube (not taken by me) to give you a sense of the ride up.

2009 World Ice Hockey Championships

Attended the 2009 World Ice Hockey Championships held in Bern and Zurich Switzerland. We saw two games on consecutive weekends: USA vs. Latvia on April 25 in the preliminary round and USA vs. Russia on May 2 in the qualification round. Both were very exciting contests with USA beating Latvia 4-2 and Russia beating USA 4-1. USA eventually played Russia again in the semi-final round, losing 3-2. Russia continued on to beat Canada in the finals 2-1.

Top of the World, Ma...

Since we were unable to make our annual trip to Gore Mountain in the Adirondacks, we spent a few days at Zermatt, Switzerland. It is about 2.5 hours from our home and is known for the famous peak "the Matterhorn", which you will see in a lot of these pictures. It is not the highest peak in Europe, but it is the most dramatic. In Zermatt, I believe you can see 10 of the 11 highest peaks in Europe. The highest we skied was at 3800 meters, and top to bottom it is about a 13 kilometer ski.

Sensational Samoëns.

Was very fortunate to be invited by my neighbor to a ski weekend in Samoëns, France. The weather was perfect with tons of snow. And the area is one of the most secenic in the Alps; perfect for both winter and summer sports and hiking. Pictured here is my neighbor Barrie, on the left, his college buddies, and me on the right.

Sledding at St. Cergue

If you received a Holiday card from us, the picture of Max, Ali, and Daniel was taken during this sledding excursion in St. Cergue, which is just 14 km from our apartement in Nyon. The kids had a lot of fun, as you can see; they even met some English-speaking friends.

One of the differences between the weather here vs. back in upstate New York, is that the temperature is relatively mild in the valley where we live in Nyon. There is no snow on the ground and the temperature is about 0° to 5° C (hovering around 32° F) at this time in early December. Yet, anytime we want to play in the snow, just go up in the mountains and it is a winter wonderland.