Meribel in the Summer Months - Part Two

Last month's blog post was about me behaving myself in Meribel just before the wedding I was due to shoot. This post is about the activities I got up to once the wedding was in the bag. My wife Harriet flew out the day after the wedding, which meant we both had a week on holiday. So what did we get up to and what activities can you do in Meribel in the summer?

Absolutely loads is the answer. We thoroughly enjoyed being back in the Alps in the summer, which was the first proper visit for us for four years. We went walking up in those hills, Harriet slid on her jodhpurs and went horse riding a couple of times, and I went mountain biking most days. A couple of times I rode with my friend, and fellow British ESF Ski Instructor, Ian Saunders. Ian and his family have lived in the Meribel valley for a number of years, and he is more familiar with the terrain and biking routes than I am. We had an amazing time exploring the mountains together.

What was really interesting to see was how much snow on the mountain hadn't fully melted. It just confirms how much snow fell last winter. There were large patches up around the Saulire peak, especially on the north facing slopes of Mont Vallon and those overlooking Courchevel, in particular at the top of the 'Creux' piste.

We rode all three of the valleys including St. Martin, Courchevel and the full range of the Meribel valley including whizzing down to the valley floor at Brides Les Bains. It was amazing fun travelling around the mountains, sometimes using the chairlifts, having just as much fun on two wheels instead of two skis. 

At the end of the week Harriet and I went across to Morzine to visit my mate Slippers Jackson and his young family. You may have come across Slippers before on this blog, he is also a Ski Instructor and we sometimes get to teach together during the winter. He and his family also live in the Alps all year round, and he runs a Mountain Bike Hire shop in Morzine. It was fun for us to see them all in the summer, plus Harriet rented a full suspension bike from Slippers, then went biking in nearby Les Gets. 

Like all holidays, ours came to an end way too quickly. We had a fab time enjoying the mountains, catching up with many friends and crammed in as much as we could. One thing for certain is that we will definitely be back again next summer, how could we resist?

If you enjoyed reading this post but fancy a quick skiing fix, then you might like to read an interview with Slippers Jackson from last winter, see 'A Ski Instructor Interviews Another Ski Instructor'. Please feel free to share this article on all the Social Media by using the little icons. Or even leave us a comment below, it's easy to do and always great to hear from people. Don't forget you can click on each photo to view a larger image. More news from Michael soon. Live with passion. Martin.