Canada - Day 9 - 29th June

The day started quite early as we have our drive up to Jasper ahead of us. The weather was again, blue sky and sunshine. We drove through amazing scenery. Everything is BIG here including the mountains and the rivers and the glaciers.

We stopped off on highway 11 at a helicopter tour company and took a 20 minute flight op over the local lake, up the river bed and on up and up and up into the mountains and above some of the frozen lakes and amazing glaciers.

There were just three of us in the helicopter, me, Fiona and a Chap from Scotland who had married a Calgary gal and now lives in Calgary. His wife was not happy to fly in the helicopter.

Due to the hot weather, air was rising out of the valleys and causing us to move both up and down and from side to side. The pilot, a very young lady, assured us this was quite normal!!

We came back in over the lake and landed with out and mishaps. An amazing experience, which showed off the vastness of this part of Canada.

After the flight, we continued the breath taking drive to Jasper, passing the famous Columbia ice fields. We were going to stop but it looked busy.

We eventually arrived in Jasper at about three PM. We were too early to book in, so we went down town and found a nice bar with air conditioning as the temperature was up in the high twenties. We had a cold drink and a good chat to a couple of Canadians from Toronto.

We came back to our room later and settled in. This place is not bad at all with another great lake view.

We went down to town for a nice meal and then came back and chilled out on the sunny veranda. We got chatting to the Americans on the level below us. They were having a BBQ, playing a mouth organ and singing!!!

Canada - Day 8 - 28th June

The sun was up early today, thanks to the endless blue sky. We had a good nights sleep in the massive bed.

After breakfast we decided to take a hike to Hamilton Lake, high up above Emerald Lake. The couple from Texas had already told us this was a tough, challenging track, so we just had to do it.
The route up was very steep in places, with many fallen trees across the path. After about two hours hiking, we hit some snow fields. John had his Merrell walking sandals on which did not protect against the cold of the deep snow.

After half an hours of walking in and out of snow fields, we reached the lake. Wow!! Two thirds of the lake was still frozen. We were the only people there and the silence was simply wonderful.

We sat on a large flat rock and had lunch. We saw some Marmot’s on the other side of the stream as well as numerous red squirrels.

After lunch we began our decent back through the snow fields and down to Emerald Lake. In all the hike took just over five hours and was well worth the effort.

After a quick shower, we took a canoe out on the Emerald Lake. The lake is so named due to it’s amazing colour, caused by the microscopic rock dust the is constantly washed down from the rockies. The water was calm and the breeze helped to take the edge off the high temperature.

After the canoe trip, we still had itchy feet, so decided to walk around the lake. This took just over and hour and took us through all types of terrain.
Emerald lake is fabulous, amazing scenery, good food and very peaceful. We are leaving tomorrow for our next destination, Jasper.

Canada - Day 7 - 27th June

Today started with sparkling blue sky and sunshine. We had an early breakfast, packed the car, checked out of Buffalo Lodge and popped down to Banff town to get a few photo’s in the sun.

We said goodbye to Banff and began our journey to Emerald Lake, not too far away from Lake Louise. The trip was problem free and within an hour and a half we arrived at Emerald Lake Lodge.

We tried to check in, but we were too early, having arrived at 10.30 AM. So, we left some bags at check in and drove to Takawka Falls. These are the second largest water fall in Canada and was very spectacular. The melting snow helped to put on a good show.

Lake Louise was next on our list, as we had planned to check this place out as a potential ski venue for next year. When we arrived the temperature had gone through the roof. We took a look around and decided to walk the 6 Glacier trail. The route goes down the right hand side of the Lake and then high up to the end of the valley, where there is a tea house.

The walking was quite challenging with some wonderful waterfalls and a few, small snow fields. The rock faces were vertical along the side of the lake and several climbers were doing their stuff. After two and a half hours of solid up hill walking we came to the tea house. This small chalet served very nice, cold lemonade!!

We discovered you could take an additional 1.6 km track to the very base of the glaciers and we could not resist. The views of the glaciers and of Chateau Lake Louise on the Lake were wonderful and well worth the extra hiking.

It took another few hours to get back down to the car park. We arrived back at Emerald Lake Lodge tired but exhilarated. The lodge itself is wonderful. We have a lake side room with amazing views. This place is quiet, stunning and just about perfect.

We had a very good meal in the main restaurant preceded by a drinkie in the sun on the lakeside.

After dinner, we sat in the outdoor fire pad, where we got chatting to some Americans who were toasting marsh mellows on the open fire. They were a nice couple from Texas, who loved Paris!!

Canada - Day 6 - 26th June - Organised Trail Walk

We were booked on a organised trail walk in Banff National Park today.

We were picked up at 08:45 - there were already 2 people on board - two women (in their 50's) from the Midlands - thay were doing Canada some what chepaer than us - they were staying in youth hostils - sounded really awfull - 30 women per dormatary.

We were 11 people in all - we picked up 6 people from the Fairmont banff spings which is a really posh looking Hotel - they all worked for Oracle and were on a sales reward jolly. We walked up to a Stanley glacier - the walk was about 1 1/2 hours - not the most exciting we have done - all the trees had been burned in a recent fire and no wild life - the weather was OK but really cold and windy - it reached a peak when we stopped for lunch.

After about 15 mins everyone was so cold we headed back down to the bus. We got chatting to a an australian girl who was really nice and lived in Camberra - she told us about all the snakes ans spiders ehy get - so we are not going there in a hurry.

When we got back to the bus the hike leader decided to take us to another walk up to a waterfall - it took us about 30 mins - the water fall was very impressive. On he way back to banff we saw 2 deers and a cayote.

We got back at about 16:30.

We walked into Banff for a drink - we went to an Irish pub which had lots of atmospher and had dinner at Tony Ramanos (John's choice of more ribs) - they were very nice. John tried an Oyster as they were offering them free at the pub. General impression? Not Impressed!!

Tomorrow we are off the Emerald Lake which looks great - the weather also looks to be improving over the next few days.

Canada - Day 5 - 25th June

Today started quite cloudy. After a healthy breakfast, we drove to the bottom of Sulphur Mountain, so named due to the numerous natural sulphur hot water springs on the mountain. These springs were the very reason that the Banff National Park was established in the first place.

We decided not to take the gondola up to the top, but to walk the trail instead. It was a great walk, not too steep, and with some great views and wild life to see. We came across some chip monks and ground squirrels, very cute.

Once at the top, the temperature dropped to just five degrees. We walk to the weather station at the very top where the views were spectacular. We also came across some mountain goats and very tame chip monks.

We then walked back down to the base, the walk took four hours in total and definitely burned a few calories off.

We had a very tasty elk burger for lunch in a restaurant in town, recommended to us by one of the waitresses in our lodge.

By now the clouds were evaporating and the sun getting nice and hot. So, we decided to go back to our lodge and take advantage of the sun loungers and enormous hot tub. We chilled for a couple of hours before getting ready for our organised evening nature tour with a company called Discover Banff Tours.

The bus trip took us a little further into the national park and we saw some bird life, ground squirrels, chip monks, elk, mountain sheep, coyote (Wild dog) and a golden eagle. We were just beginning to travel back to town when a chappie stopped his van next to us and told our English tour guide that a large grizzly bear was just down the road. Within a few minutes, there he was!! He was huge and was initially very nervous of us. However, once we had been there a few minutes he settled back into munching flowers.

We were so lucky to see him. There are only 60 in the entire park, which is huge. Our tour guide had been doing this job for over two years and this was the first time he had seen one this close.

We went back down to town for a healthy dinner of Sushi. A great day!!

Canada - Day 4 - 24th June

Today was spent driving from Calgary to Bamff. The drive up was fine as the early heavy rain in Calgary had passed over and the sun began to peep through. As we approached the rockies, the scenary changed dramaticlly, with steep mountain walls, water falls and lakes.

We arrived in Bamff at approximately 1 pm. Our room was not ready until 3, so we visited the town centre and had the smallest bowl's of soup imaginable!!

We then visited the various tourist info outlets, planning our rockies agenda.

Once back at our lodge, we arrived at our room and immediately asked if we could change our room. They were fine with this and we moved to a nicer lodge.

After settling in, we went to the sun terrace for a wee drinkie. The wine here is very good but also expensive.

We had a good evening meal at the lodge. Great cheese board and wonderful Salmon.

We have planned some good walks for tomorrow and the weather is looking good.

Canada - Day 3 23rd June

Had a much better sleep and we both feel more human, the weather was also great, sunny and pure blue sky. We decided to hire bicycles to see more of the city.

We decided to follow the River Bow cycle path around the city of Calgary – the girl in the shop said it would be about 60km. We set off (10:30) and it was really pleasant - nice scenery and really warm. The path went through various areas some very green others through housing areas. After about 2 hours we stopped to check where we were on the map – a local gave us some help and said that the path we planned to do was blocked due to severe flooding a couple of years ago so gave us another path to follow. The path weaved through various housing estates until it eventually reached a park with a massive reservoir. By this time we are feeling pretty tired and our botties are starting to get a little painful. The cycle path back to our hotel from the reservoir was really nice and followed the river – there were some really fab looking houses – the trip back seemed really long as we were starting to get really tired by this point – we eventually got back to the cycle shop at 15:30.

We went to a recommended restaurant for our evening meal called “The Keg”. John had fancied some ribs, and this place was supposed to specialize. The restaurant itself was pleasant enough, if a little dark. Everything was going well until John tucked into his second rack of ribs, which were stone cold. He sent them back. The manager came over and apologized and said he would not charge for John’s meal. 20 minutes later, the ribs had still not arrived. The manager came over and apologized, saying they had now burnt the ribs. The good news is that our entire meal, wine included, was now to be on the house!! The ribs eventually arrived back hot-ish!!

The evening finished with a wee glass of wine over a video, back at the hotel, which we did not see the end of, due to continuing jet lag.

Canada - Day 2 - 22nd June

We woke up really early (05:10) and went for breakfast at about 07:00.

After that we decided to go for a walk along the main river in Calgary (Bow River) – suffice to say there weren’t many people out at that time – some of the walk is very pretty and some goes through some dodgy parts of Calgary – they seem to have a real problem with down and outs.

We saw loads of ground squirrels – they look really cute but are apparently a real nuisance. They also have loads of other squirrels which are also cute and very black in colour.


We then wandered into the main town of Calgary where they have lots of shops and restaurants – the sun came out and was very pleasant - we stopped at a restaurant and both had a really nice ceasar salad. After lunch we then went up the Calgary tower which looks like the BT tower in London and is 530 Feet tall. The 360 degree view is amazing. Part of the floor is glass and you can stand on it looking down to the street below – its really scary.




We then went back to one of the parks near our hotel and took in the sun – there was lots going on to keep us amused.

At night we went to an Indian restaurant –the food was wonderful but the service really bad, they had a real problem getting stuff out (took them hours to get us 2 glasses of wine – took 3 attempts to get them) – I think it was cos they were doing so much carry out business. John said the curry was up there with his University experiences in Bradford.

We then went back to the hotel has a night cap and watched a video.

Canada - Day 1 - 21st June

After a some what wild dinner party at Shauna’s house on Friday night, we made our way to the airport for our flight to Calgary.

The flight was pretty good and on time, when we arrived in Calgary it was nice and warm.

We are staying at the Sheraton suites in Calgary centre which is very nice – for some reason they thought we were a loyalty card holder so they upgraded our room to a suite which was great.

We arrived at night so went straight to bed but sleeping was a little challenging the great effects of jet lag.

French & Italian Adventure May 16thy - June 16th

Day 1
Day one was spent driving from home to a little hotel just south of Boulogne. This Best Western hotel was very good for the money and we had a good evening meal and breakfast. When we arrived the weather was OK, with quite warm temperatures. During the night thunder storms rolled around and by morning it was raining and cold.

Day 2
We drove through rain and cloud for most of the day, arriving at our next Best Western hotel, this time on a golf course and in the town of Beaune. Fiona had stayed here many moons ago with Simon and Shauna. As the evening approached the weather improved and we had another nice meal at a local restaurant. However, they were very busy and they crammed us in between other punters.

Day 3
Weather wise, today started well and we drove out of Beaune towards some smaller towns. This is a big wine producing area, so we found a small town, booked into a cheap hotel and then found some good walking amongst the vines. We also drove around a few of the well known villages that produce well known wines including Mulionay Montrachet. That evening we had a cheap but good meal in town and then retired to bed. Unfortunately, the hotel had a party in full swing until midnight which kept us awake. The church clock kicked in at seven in the morning.

Day 4
We decided to head off further south as the morning brought colder and rainy weather again!! We headed for various towns but eventually ended up in a little known place called Florec. This small town was highlighted in the Lonely Plant “Walking in France” guide. We found a very good hotel which also provided apartments with full kitchens. We bagged one night and then decided to book for the whole week as the village has a great feel to it and the walking looks excellent. We had a fantastic pizza and bottle of local cheapy rose, which was very good indeed, even Fiona liked it!!

Day 5
Today started well, we found a couple of walks and mode the most of the weather. The temperature was good for walking and we completed the first walk in a couple of hours. We are still in spring time and the flowers are out the grass is still very green. We returned to the town square for a coffee where the day took a dramatic turn for the worse. John checked his phone messages. Susan had called to say that Adrian (Fiona’s Dad) had been taken into hospital with a suspected heart attack. We went for another walk to take our minds off the situation whilst waiting for some news. We phoned Andy and Joy who kindly looked up flight options from this part of France as we needed to get Fiona back to Edinburgh ASAP. It turned out that a flight would leave Nice on Tuesday morning flying direct to Edinburgh. We spoke to Susan (Fiona's Sister), booked the flight and booked the only hotel we could get in Nice. The Monaco Grand Prix is only a week away and the Cannes film festival is still in full swing. We stayed in another hotel for the night as our favorite one could not put us up.

Day 6
Today we drove from Florac to Nice. It was a five hour journey and when we got to Nice the weather was cloudy with spots of rain. We checked into the hotel, the room was so small you could hardly swing the dog!! After checking in we walked around Nice, bought some bread, cheese and ham for tea and then went back to our room. After a we drinkie, we went back out for another walk and then hit the sack.

Day 7
Today we had some very expensive breakfast in the hotel, took Heather for a walk and then drove to Nice airport. We checked Fiona in quickly as she only had hand luggage. We then said our good byes and Fiona headed off back to the UK. Heather and l then drove around the local coast (St Raphael, Agay) stopping off at a local cove to dip our feet in the sea. We the drove to Montpellier and then eventually on to Florac via the most amazing route up and over the mountains. We decided to stay at the local camp site. Putting up the tent was a long drawn out affair as Heather, try as she might, was not much help. Eventually everything slotted into place and John went off into town to revisit the excellent Pizza house and sink a carafe of rose wine. The weather was a lot colder than expected and the new sleeping bags were not up to much as they were for warmer weather.

Day 8
Today was a slow start, warming up took a while, however, the sun was out but John had managed to pick just about the only camping lot not in the sun!! After a locally ordered breakfast of Pain Au Raison, John chatted to his neighbors, a couple from Newcastle who now live in Chamonix running trekking holidays for UK clients. We then tackled the 17 kilometer walk called in Stephenson’s footsteps (John Louis Stephenson – the chap who invented railways). The walk was good but the weather was not so great, dry but cloudy and chilly in the wind. Still the walk was great, even though the books directions were not all that accurate at times. On the way home, we popped into the local supermarket and bought sausages, cheese and tomatoes. That was tea!! After that, John wrote this blog and then had an early night. Fingers crossed that the weather improves tomorrow.

Day 9

Today was not so good on the weather front but was dry if a little cold. John and Heather went walking again and then visited the local supermarket to buy some dinner. The tent had dried out and we had local frankfurters with bread. The evening was finished off in the tent playing Monopoly on the PC. That night the weather was very cold and l had to put the gas ring on inside the tent in order to warm up. Heather had her doggy duvet on so was nice and warm. It was a long night!


Day 10
The previous night was so cold, l packed up the tent as quickly as possible and headed down to the Riviera (Antibes), as Russ had said l could pick up the keys from Lynne’s parents (Dave and Barb) early. The trip down was fine (almost 6 hours) and when l arrived the Antibes the weather was warm and sunny (at last). I unpacked the car, dried out the camping equipment, and repacked the car. Heather was not so impressed with the lovely beach front apartment! Still we had a nice day relaxing in the sun.

Day 11
Today was a great day for weather and the and the day that Russ and Lynne were arriving from the UK for 4 days. Heather and I had some great walking along the coast and were back in time for Russ and Lynne to arrive. Russ and I went to buy some groceries and then we all headed off to a great breach front restaurant to meet Bruno, a business associate of Lynne’s. During lunch we met Richard and Judy from channel 4. We had a good chat about their book club.

Day 12
The weather was not so good today with high winds, large waves and some rain. We went into town
In the evening to meeting Dave and Barb and had a nice meal. On the way back home, a large back van reversed into the front of Lynne’s car at quite a speed. Not a great end to the day.

Day 13
The weather was not good today either. We visited a few local towns and had a nice lunch. During the day, we put on our swimming stuff and bin liners (to keep us warm) and then stood on the lower level of Lynne’s pad and let the HUGE waves wash over us. The water was very powerful pushing us back on may occasions. Great fun!! We also met with our neighbors, Bob and Caroline and their two kids. The evening was spent in town again where we found a good cocktail bar.

Day 14
Another day of poor weather. We visited some of Lynne’s building projects, popped round to Dave and Barb’s lovely house and took a look at a few properties, one of which Lynne’s business partner is thinking or purchasing. We went out to a local Italian with Dave and Barb, very nice!!

Day 15
Today the weather was a little better, but not much. We chilled out for much of the day and l then took Russ and Lynne back to Nice airport. Heather and l were chilling out when the door bell rang. It was Caroline from next door. We spent that evening with Bob, Caroline and the kids. They live in Sevenoaks and are both surgeons.

Day 16
Fiona flew back down to Nice today as Adrian is making a spectacular recovery. They have placed a stint in a blocked artery and he is feeling like a new man!! I picked Fiona up from Nice airport and we spent the rest of the day dodging showers, walking Heather and relaxing.

Day 17
Today, we resumed our walking, driving up to the mountains behind Nice and Monaco. The weather was cold with light rain. We found some good walking areas but the weather took the edge off. The area we found has a large fishing facility with lots of wolves in enclosures. We drove back in the afternoon and relaxed at home.

Day 18
Today we went up to the local national park. The weather was better although the altitude took the edge of the temperature. We eventually found a trail and walk up high. We begun to see Chamonix as the walk flattened out. As we approached the top we were surrounded by wild animals including marmots. The weather improved and we found a lot of great flora and forna. We had a pick nick near the top, within the snow line. We walked back down, crossing some fast flowing rivers. That evening we had a very nice Italian meal in town.

Day 19
Today, we decided to drive up to lake Garda in Italy, as the weather forecast for that area was far better than the forecast for Antibes. The drive was quite long (about 6 hours), but the weather improved on route. After taking the ferry across the lake, we found a nice camping site called Tonini’s. They had small apartments which we decided to use as the weather forecast had threatened storms. We found a good pizzeria looking out over lake Garda. Very nice!

Day 20
Today was not a great success on the walking front! We struggled to find a parking space at the base of the gondola station, so ended up walking quite a way. When we arrived at the gondola, there was a huge queue. So we joined the end. After a while, a German chap in front of us, came back from the ticket booth. Apparently dogs have to wear substantial muzzles in order to travel on the gondola!! So, we left the queue and then spent an hour finding a trail we could use. After finding the trail, we began the walk. It got steeper and steeper until, after two hours, we turned back, but not before Fiona almost stood on a large viper!! Luckily, Heather had not seen it. It was at least a couple of feet long. We spent the rest of the day sunning ourselves on the balcony. Unfortunately, a German couple with two young babies moved into the apartment next door and the babies cried all night. We hardly had any sleep!!

Day 21
Last nights baby crying and the difficult dog walking issues of the day before ended up with us deciding to leave Garda. We hit an internet café and looked for good weather. Florac in France was looking good, so we decided to, make our way back to Florac, but stopping off along the way. The day was sent driving to La Grave, just over the French border. The driving was spectacular, passing many well know Italian and French ski resorts on the way. La Grave was spectacular and we managed to get a steep walk in before the weather changed for the worse. We had thunder, lightening and heavy, heavy rain. We had a nice meal in town in a very traditional restaurant. The rain hammered down all night.

Day 22
Today, the sun was out early and the scenery around la Grave looked amazing with a fresh fall of snow on the tops of the mountains. The drive to Florac was equally stunning with abundant water falls high up in the alps. When we arrived in Florac the weather was OK. We walked some of the trails we had previously taken. We revisited our favorite pizzeria in the evening.

Day 23 – 28
The weather was mixed during these days and we had some great walking, completing the Stephenson’s steps forest walk, the Chaos walk (weather was cold and windy) and the massive five hour walk above Florac where we just missed the most amazing thunder storms. On day 28 we drove to see the Millau bridge whish is spectacular, was also found a great hotel in Melene, a small town in the Tarn Gourge.

Day 29
We drove to Melene, after a very long walk. On our way back to Melene, we took the steep road down in the rain. After arriving we had thunder and heavy rain again!! We ate in the hotel which had the smallest bar in the world. They served Leffe beer, so it was not all bad. We had a fantastic meal in the hotel, which we very quiet. Unfortunately, the maid had been in our room and found Heather on the bed!!!

Day 30
We had breakfast in the hotel and met another couple who had also been traveling around the area and were fed up with the unseasonable weather. We had planned to take boats down the Tarn river, but the water was running too fast due to all the heavy rain, so we could not do it. We spend most of the day driving to a small town outside Clermont Ferrant. The area also has limited skiing in the water. We arrived early and found some great walking but the weather was changeable. By the end of the day the sun was out big time, so we sat outside the bar and had a few drinks. That evening we had the worst meal ever in a local hotel. Fiona’s Salmon with boiled potato and apple was the worst.

Day 31
The day started with blue sky, so we eventually found a trail in a hiking book, loaned to us, by the hotel manager. The walk took some finding, but once found was good. We came across some large fields of flowers with thousands of busy bees. The droning noise was impressive. We then drove to our next destination, Chablis. It took about three hours and when we arrived, it was not as easy to find accommodation as we had been led to believe. Eventually, John asked a chap who worked in one of the many wine houses, if he could recommend anywhere. He told us to follow him and we ended up at the local posh hotel, which was great. We were offered a large discount and an upgrade. The room was great, on two floors. We headed out for a meal, finding a fantastic restaurant, where we had one of the best meals of the French/Italian trip.

Day 32
Today started well, with good weather and a fine French breakfast. We did the usual, making up ham and cheese rolls from the breakfast buffet and then spiriting them out to have for lunch! After much faffing about, we visited the local tourist info, leaving with a walking map. We found a great walk, amongst the many vine yards in the area. We found another walk in the afternoon. However, after about 1 hour of walking, the weather took a dramatic turn and it started to rain buckets. We ended up walking back in torrential rain and were soaked to the skin by the time we reached the hotel. Luckily for Heather, she had stayed at the hotel in the dry!! We went to a local Italian for an evening meal, as Fiona had fancied a Carbonara since arriving. It was the worst meal we have had in a long time. Fiona’s Carbonara was over cooked and my local ham dish was awful! We visited the hotel bar that evening to sample some more the excellent local Chablis wine which tastes even better than the wine they export to the UK.

Day 33
Today started with sparkling blue skies and another fine breakfast. We revised the previous days walk to try and find a compass and watch that John has lost. We did not find them, so ended up at the local police station to report the loss. The police were very polite but would not give us a loss report. By afternoon, we jumped in the car and drove to Paris (Charles De Gaul Airport) to pick up Shauna, who was joining us for a three day tour of the Champaign region. The flight was a little delayed, so we relaxed in the local hotel reception and then picked her up and drove to Epernay. Our hotel was OK and in a good position for town. That night we a great pizza with some of the excellent Champaign.

Day 34 -36
We toured many of the local small, privately owned Champaign houses, tasting as we went and buying a few at each house. Even though we have done this for years, the hospitality of the Champaign house owners still surprises and delights us.

Day 37
Today was spent driving back to blighty, via the channel tunnel in Calais. The journey back was good and we stopped off to buy some cheap boozed at the local beer and wine outlets. We met some chaps on the train who had been at the La Mans 24 hour car event. One of them had a new Aston, very nice indeed. As we arrived back in the UK the rain was there to greet us!! After a while the skies cleared. We dropped of Shaun and drove back to Chaddleworth in the sun. Another great adventure, comes to an end. The weather could have been better but over all we found some great walking areas in France and Italy which we will definitely go back too. The mountains around the bottom half of France are stunning!! Lake Garda is also worth another visit, but next time we will visit without a dog. Heather, did not enjoy this trip as much as previous European visits. She is almost 11 now and she prefers to stay at home. We will now be at home for a week before embarking on our next adventure. Canada, here we come!!

6th May - 9th May

Well, the yacht trip was very good although the trip out was not good. The day of our flight was bloody awful, with heavy rain, thunder and hight winds. We were delayed over an hour (from leaving the beach in Banyan Tree). Eventually, we took off, but the weather was so bad we landed in Male. Eventually we took off again and landed 20 minutes later in a sister resort, where the yacht was waiting. We were delivered by boat to the yacht which, on first impressions, was amazing.

After a lovely dinner with the other punters, we soon realised that the Russian group of 4 woudl just not fit in. The leader of the group was simply unaccpetable, loud, obnoxious, rude etc. etc.

Day two on the boat brought great weather and great snorkling. However, our room was noisy and hot during the night, so not a great nights sleep. The Crew, especially the chef, were amazing and luckily for us the Russians decided they did not want to eat with us, GREAT!! They sat at the front of the yacht, having ordered lobster, caviar and fine wines, which were brought in for them!!

We had a lovely meal with Victoria and Helier (From Jersey) and a nice professor and doctor from Austria.

Our second evening was spent, moored by another island owned by Banyan Tree. This exclusive island has been rented by the footballer, Stephen Jerrard, so we were not allowed to see the place. Fiona and l spent the night sleeping outside, as it was a bit quieter and a lot cooler.

Where we arrived back at our main Banyan Tree resort, we felt we had arrived "Back Home".

Next we day we were up early to fly back to the UK, which was very good, except for a bunch of drunk Navy lads who were returning from Columbo.

Fantastic Holiday. We LOVE Banyan Tree, and would like to return, maybe, to celebrate our 50th birthdays.

29th April - 5th May - Maldives Magic

The flight out was on time but Air Sri Lanka was not good. John’s seat was particularly uncomfortable. The food was not good at all; most of the time our food choices were not available, although mysteriously, other punters seated near to us but served after us seemed to get what they wanted!!

We arrived to a hot but very cloudy Male. Our private launch, took us to our Island in just 30 minutes. First impressions were that the Island looked similar to Coco Palm (Previous Holiday in the Maldives) but was a little smaller.

Our villa was available immediately, it was quite different to other Maldives accommodation, very classy, great location, with a back garden area with whirl pool and seating area, plus a seating area in the front garden and our own shaded sun hut down on the beach. (See photos).

On our first morning we met up with Graham and Helen, our Irish neighbors. They were out on holiday, celebrating a wedding anniversary and Helens 60th birthday. Lovely couple. The snorkeling was wonderful with great corals, the best we have seen to date in this part of the world. We realized that we should have bought an underwater camera case as there is just so much to see, including quite a few large reef sharks.

The food is certainly a touch above Coco Palm. The lunches are just amazing, fresh grilled sea food to die for. More gigantic prawns than you can imagine!! We are being good at breakfast (fresh fruit prepared to order including delicious lychees and the sweetest mango we have ever eaten.)

We had booked on the snorkeling safari and turned up Wednesday morning ready and eager. However, it turned out that the trip had been cancelled but we had not been informed. John had a firm word with the reception staff, who apologies profusely. We had planned our day around this trip so were a little peeved.

A little later in the day, one of the managers took us aside and apologized for the error. In recompense, he offered us an all expenses paid two day trip on their luxury yacht. This one year old yacht is huge, has its own chefs and crew, all air conditioned, with just 6 luxury births. They have their own on board diving crew. We are to visit some of the southern atolls, stopping off for secluded beach BBQ etc. What a result. This boat usually costs over $800 per couple per night, so we feel very lucky indeed.

The next day was Helens 60th birthday, so we met them on the sun set jetty for a champers celebration. (See photos). They then had a romantic private BBQ in front of their villa. Very nice!! Before this celebration, we went for our joint spa massage. It was wonderful, lasted one and a half hours and was the best l have had to date. So good, we have booked to go for another the day before we leave.

We also met with a very nice couple from Japan, Geoff and Katherine. John got talking to Geoff after Fiona pointed out that he was carrying a very neat underwater camera. He showed us some of his photos from the reef surrounding the Island. He also offered to download some for us onto our memory stick. They are a true representation of what we see every day on the reef. They both dive every day, so, so shots are from deeper water. These photo’s spurred John on to book a refresher dive.

The nest day, we had a lesson on the catamarans and the took one out, great fun. The reef is tricky to navigate as there is only one route in and out. However, once outside the inner reef you can sail for miles. Great fun.

The food just gets better and better, lunches are a real gastronomic treat and very relaxed affairs. The evening meal is a la carte, luckily the puddings are just about avoidable!!

We also visited the sister island, just five minutes by boat. We had a great snorkel, seeing turtles and sharks to boot. This island is smaller and less busy, great tea and coffee’s by the lapping sea. John managed to leave his T shirt there, however, the staff had it back within the hour!!

We also met with the islands marine biologist, Robert, who has also offered to supply us with some photo’s. He introduced us to a another guest, Oliver and his fiancé. He lives in Germany and has donated money to the island to help with their continuing quest to manage and conserve the coral gardens. They are actually building new coral gardens using a combination of cement and graftings from existing corals. Every night they feed rays by the jetty.

On Saturday, John went for his dive, which went well. He had to complete a written dive test before hand which he did remarkably well at!! The dive was great and he plans to do some more from the yacht. We chilled out for much of the day, taking another catamaran out for a spin. A sun set drink followed by another wonderful evening meal and a skinny dip finished the day off nicely!!

Sunday began with the snorkeling safari with some new chums, Donald and Shona Nesbit. They are here visiting from Glasgow. Shona chose not to snorkel. We saw, thousands of small fish plus, turtle and very friendly bread fish. Shona was shooting video of us from the boat.

Later on we had a lovely lunch with john eating as many grilled fresh prawns as he could.

Later in the day we took a catamaran out for a spin. However, the wind suddenly turned very squally which made getting back tricky. We just about made it in time as the wind became strong and the arguments flew!! We managed to get the boat back to base just in time.

We met with Geoff and Katherine just after this to go snorkeling. Geoff allowed us to take his underwater camera and shoot as many pictures as we liked. We were originally planning to photo just a bright purple anemone which Fiona has found near the jetty. However, the anemone was fully out, hence hiding the purple cover. We still managed to get good shots of the clown fish and then proceeded to swim out further. We ran off a load of shots but also got sun burnt in the bargain as we had not planned to be out so long. We bought Geoff and Katherine a CD of Banyan Tree music to day thanks.

A Champagne sun set on the jetty (allowing some great sun set shots) and yet another gastronomic evening meal finished off the day.

Monday started off as planned, with a late breakfast and a chill out agenda. We are eating with Donald and Shona tonight, meeting for a cocktail at sunset in the bar to show Shona the underwater pictures, as she does not snorkel.

The weather has been fantastic so far although some rain is falling this afternoon. When it rains hear it pours!! Tomorrow we are off on our yacht trip tomorrow. Fingers crossed for good weather and calm seas!!

Friday the 18th of April - Last day

Well another week has flown by! The snow has been exceptional for the last week of the season although today was mainly cloudy and windy with a little snow.

We covered almost the entire resort, popping back to the top of Hochgurl and the 5 star hotel for coffee, before meeting up with Graham and Pam for a spot of lunch at the Hohe Mut Hut to the right of Obergurgl. Goulash soup was great. Pam had decided to purchase a new pair of skies, the design of which was an important consideration.



After lunch, Pam and Graham went to the ski shop and we visited the hotel equestrian centre to see the newly arrived foals which were extremely cute! We may visit this place again later in June when driving back from France. Below is a picture of them in the summer.




Fiona decided to end here seasons skiing, so l went backup on the slopes on my own for the last ski of the season. The slopes were empty and the sun peeped out a few times at the top of the mountain above Obergurgl. the last hour and a half were just sublime. this resort combined with Solden has been great.

We went to the Madelaine for our last cocktail and then back to the Edelweiss for the farmers buffet which was impressive.

The holiday was very enjoyable, meeting some new ski chums is always good fun. Tomorrow we are back off to the UK, where it is raining!

Thursday the 17th April 2008 – Solden Rocks

Today we took a taxi to Solden with Adrian, Mark, Pamella and Graham. We were here two days ago but today the weather was far better with some clouds but mainly sun.

We toured around most of the resort including he glacier, trying to keep up with Mark (see below), who is training for next years downhill world cup (at least that's how it feels).

The snow here was better than at Obergurgl and the area is larger and more wide open, with every type of skiing. Powder was still to be found but you had to look for it. I tried to learn from Graham who has a fantastic style of skiing in powder. Needless to say, l was unable to replicate his technique. Don't you just hate good powder skiers!!

We had a lovely lunch on the mountain, chosing to eat inside where the atmosphere was typically tyrolian. We all ate the same, a local dish of sauasage, potatoes etc. Very nice!!

Tonight we are of to the Madelain hotel too meet the gang for a drinkie and then we are off to the Pizzeria next door for our treat of the week. Last day tomorrow!!

Wednesday 16th April 2008 – Powder at the Neiderhut

Today was another fantastic powder day. We woke up to heavy snow falling, however by 10AM it had stopped and by 11AM the sun was out. We were one of the first to hit the slopes so were skiing virgin powder for hours. The resorts are so empty that we were still finding new powder to ski after mid day.

The sun was in and out all day and the temperature had dropped slightly so the snow stayed perfect for much of the day.

We felt a little tired by late afternoon, so we had a coffee at the five star hotel in Hochgurgl and then headed back to Obergurgl to meet some chums in the Neiderhut for a Tyrolean knees up from 3.30PM. The hut was up to it’s usual standard, although the musicians have loads more kit to play with now. They sound very impressive and had a good bop with Mark, Andy, Pam and Graham.

Pam taught us some Tyrolean dance moves that resembled the Adam's family! Mark started the Schnapps rolling, but we managed to stay relatively sober!



We were back home for 7.30PM, rested, bathed and then headed down for dinner with John and Jade. We talked politics with John and then went to bed to watch the Apprentice. Sir Alan made another bad decision. You can tell we didn't have TV for the 11 weeks in France!

Tuesday 15th April 2008 – Snowed out in Solden

Today we met up with other skiers and our reps to ski the Solden area. Unfortunately the weather had closed in big time and the snow was falling thick and fast.

By the time we were up on the mountain, the clouds had rolled in and the conditions were less than perfect.

We had some really really slow skiers with us and the reps refused to divide us into groups, so we ended up waiting about 15 minutes at the end of each run for the slower skiers to catch up.

Many of us asked then to split us up, but they were determined we all stay together.

They took us to the top of the glacier where the snow was falling in bucket loads but the resulting powder was exceptional. The powder was waist deep and the skiing fab.

Every now and then the snow stopped and the sun peeped out, the skiing was just amazing with no body else on the piste.

We stopped for lunch at 2.30PM!

The run back to resort was poor, as it is now so late in the season and Solden town is relatively low. We had to pick our way through green fields, taking our skies off to cross some roads.

A good day was great, despite the poor leadership as we met some new ski buddies, Adrian, Mark, Pamela and Graham amongst them.

After relaxing in the spa, we headed off for some drinks at the near by hotel, the Madelaine. Very nice too and good cocktails, especially the Long Island Ice Tea's.

We headed for the local pizza pad, however, the restaurant is shut on Tuesdays! So, we went back to our hotel and had an OK meal and a good chat with out fellow guests, John and Jade.

Monday 14th April 2008 – Yet Another Sunny Day

Today started with us visiting one of our fellow guests rooms to check on his sons badly burnt faces. One of the boys, Nick, had swollen lips, but both lads had badly blistered faces. We advised them to consider using Sun block and not to go out skiing today. Their father John had not realised that they could burn quite so quickly this time of year.

So, after breakfast, another sunny day beckoned, the pistes had been over bashed and the temperature had plummeted over night so the slopes were quite hard. We took our skies down to the shop to get them edged, which made a big difference.

After a coffee, we headed over to Hochgurgl where the sun was in and out but the snow at the top was sublime. At times the clouds really came in and caused white out conditions.

We managed to find some more powder and made some great powder tracks!

We felt a tad tired after 6 hours, so went to the spa area in the hotel. The sauna’s etc. are all massive and you are only allowed into the area in your birthday suit.

We had a few drinks and then off to dinner. We met John and Jade, a father and daughter from Bristol. She is only 11 and John has semi retired and is now into local politics. We chatted the evening away and then went to bed, exhausted but happy!

Sunday 13th April 2008 – Sunny day after all

As usual, the weather forecast was wrong and the day started and finished in sun.




We skied all over the resorts, HochGurgl is on the same lift pass as Obergurgl. We were lucky enough to have had snow fall on previous days, so we were able to benefit from lovely powder on the off piste areas, especially in Hochgurgl. The only down side being the T bars!!


Since our last visit to the area, they have built a new circular restaurant at the top of Hochgurgl which has great views and a good cup off coffee.





The resort is only a third full, so the slopes are empty and the lift queues non existent. A great days skiing!!



We met a nice couple from Manchester on the sun terrace, they had flown in under their own stream and are staying in some new apartments.

We had a few drinks at the bar and our evening meal was very Austrian. We went to bed in time to watch the results of the previous nights Nancy show (how sad is that?).

Saturday 12th April 2008 – Off to Obergurl

Today we left the UK for yet another fun time in the alps. However, this time we have chosen Austria. The day was taken up, flying to Innsbruck and then coaching up to our hotel in Obergurgl, one of the highest resorts in Austria.







Our hotel, the Edelweiss and Grugl, is very welcoming with a fantastic spa and swimming pool area plus an out door heated swimming pool to boot!


After dinner, an early night was had in readiness for the next morning ski. We were please that the hotel has live BBC into our room, so we watched the latest Andrew Lloyd Weber program looking for the next Nancy!

18th March 2008 - 21 Today, 21 Today.....

Today was another big day, it being James's 21st birthday. We had the usual sing song at breakfast and James opened his cards and presents (of which there were many).


Today was also our last chance to hit the slopes in 2008, so we headed to Canyons, which as become our favourite resort. It is probably the largest and close to Park City.

The day was OK weather wise, with a few clouds and occasional light snow showers.

We hit the slopes and had a great day stopping at one of the mountain restaurants for lunch. The snow became heavy for a while but then stopped and the day finished dry and sunny.

We travelled the whole resort finishing on the much favoured Doc's run which takes you down to Doc's Bar (very handy). We had a last drink on the sun terrace outside the bar as Fiona and Shauna had managed to secure two gas heaters to stave off the chilly wind.

After relaxing, and dressing up, we headed off to Zoom (a restaurant owned by Robert Redford) for another excellent meal. Unfortunately, James had a sudden bout of sickness just after we returned home, so he was unable to join us for his own birthday celebration meal. Still the ribs etc. were amazing.

A DVD finished off the day. Tomorrow we return home (Boo Hoo). The time has rushed by as always. It has been an excellent holiday and we hope to return to the Utah Powder as soon as we can.

17th March 2008 - Adventure all the way

Today began as expected with blue sky and sunshine. We had agree the night before to get up extra early so we could catch the powder that had fallen the day before. By morning we had about a foot of snow in the town, so expected more on the mountains. A waiter at the restaurant the previous night had told us that Brighton (a ski resort in the next valley) had received two foot of powder!!

We headed off at 8AM and arrived at the resort for the first lifts. The resort had not had two foot but the new snow was great. We headed up the far right of the resort and after a few runs down, John took the team off down a new track. BIG MISTAKE!! The run was a link to the next resort (Solitude).

Chris was the only one to see a very small sign up high in tree. By the time we realised, it was too late and we were quite a distance outside of Brighton. The only way back was to ski down deep powder onto a plateau and then into the Nordic ski park. We ended up tracking through deep, deep powder for half an hour, which was exhausting. Fiona got stuck in the deep powder and James and Chris found the going very tough on their snow boards.

We eventually hit a snow shoe path which took us to the Nordic Centre Office. From there we had to walk back to the main resort centre (5 minutes up hill).

By the time we had reached the resort lifts, we were exhausted!!

we had lunch at Molly's but the service was awful. They forgot John and Fiona's meal and when the Nachos turned up they had forgotten to include the beef. It was also st Paddy's day, but nobody apart from Tim had made any effort.

The rest of the day was spent skiing the wonderful on piste and off piste powder. We all took turns leading and had a great afternoon.

We stopped off at the Silver Lodge on the way back home for a few drinks.

Dinner was an "eat in" affair, this time the boys cooked and the girls relaxed. Nachos followed by chicken salad.

A DVD finished of the day nicely!!

16th March 2005 - Heavy Snow - Day Off

Today began as forecast, with heavy snow. It was expected to dump down all day, so we decided to take the day off and recharge our batteries.

After a long breakfast and lazy start, we headed off to the Discount Retail Outlets, just on the edge of town. The site contains about 50 well known retail outlets which sell last years stock at huge discounts.

John and Fiona purchased trainers, tops and jeans all at less than half price. John also found a pair of Cat shoes he had seen on sale in the UK at over £120 for just £33.

Shauna purchased, tops, cycling gear, shoes and trainers whilst Tim and he boys went mad, buying watches, sun glasses, tops, hoodies, jeans, trainers etc. many of these were birthday presents for the boys.

The weather cleared during the big shop, but on the way back to town the clouds rolled back in and some of the heaviest snow we had seen started to fall.

We found a good restaurant on Main Street and had a lazy lunch, watching the snow whizzing by the windows.

After lunch we walked up Main Street, stopping by a gallery where they had a wonderful collection of bronze frogs created by an English sculpture. John & Fiona could not resist. Shauna bought some very special earrings.

We headed back for home and watched some DVD's before going for an Italian meal at a restaurant called Grappa. what a wonderful place. the best so far in Park City.