Whose Idea Was This?

Setting off first thing tomorrow to do a 16km walk up a 1300m mountain with 8 other women of a certain age (ie 40ish).
We are staying here (scroll down for photos) tomorrow night, walk another 15 km or so up an down a bit and here the following night and then another 15 km or so mainly downhill. We are having a bbq in T parent's house in Albertville. (our destination and the big smoke around here)

Hubby the kids and I are camping on their lawn for the night. Hubby has decided to do the packing for the camping...I have reluctantly agreed to let him...but posted my camping list prominently on the fridge. I'm just hoping for a soft dry surface to sleep on. Although drinking and camping work quite well and I'm planning on drinking at the bbq. Slept on rocks the last time I was camping and drinking...about 14 years ago.

I'm pretty competent downhill, its the uphill that concerns me! Especially tomorrow. I've never climbed that much or that high...max I've done is about 1100m. There aren't any 1300m mountains in Ireland.
In fact we are climbing to 2200m. I'm not sure I'm evolved for this.

Nervous.....be back in 3 days to report how it went.

Getting Fancy Pancy

Just want to draw your attention to the fact I managed to add a link to my last post...during a thunder storm...so willing to risk life and limb for my readership. (Hi Ann)
That's akin to going from crawling to walking in blogging terms.
So click on Col Du Petit St Bernard and be impressed..:))

On the downside I somehow lost my title photo of Inch Beach...

From Winter to Summer

Well since my last posts lots of nice things have happened that I'd love to blog about, and some not so nice that I'll keep to myself ;)

I'll just have to start from today forwards as blogging retrospectively is difficult for me.
Blogging is difficult ...FULL STOP...my 3 year old is doing my hair as I type. Nuff said.

Well the ski season finished up the beginning of May and all the locals swapped ski racks for bike racks. The weather is glorious, 28 degrees today.

My 40 yo hubby has resumed his teenage cycling enthusiasm and has done his first col.
The col du petit st bernard....2188metres high over 28 kms.
I have to say I am VERY proud. We cheered him over the summit and he cycled down the Italian side of the mountain and we had a big pasta lunch in La Thuile for pennies. (€2 for 2 glasses of wine and €5 for both the kids pasta)

We drove on to Torino and stayed over night, with granny and grandad and the dog.
Great city and great food. Even though its just over the mountain, the italian culture is so different to the french. They are much more out-going and fun,friendly, crazy, disorganised anarchic and the food is MUCH better. I love the french but especially around here they can be a bit crusty on the outside, taking a while to warm up, which isn't much good when you are on holidays.

Granny and grandad have been here for a fortnight and have just left.
Granny reckons we tried to kill them yesterday when we brought them on a 2 km walk between two local alpine villages. There was a lil ole climb of 200m on a very rough track, and they are in their mid 70s, but they did great. I'm thinking some parapenting for their next visit!