Back to Belle-Plagne for another January, and the mountain delivered. Snow conditions were excellent from the start of the week — the upper runs had a metre-plus of base from December snowfall and cold temperatures had kept it dry. There’s a particular satisfaction in returning to a place you know well and finding it at its best: familiar runs in proper condition are more enjoyable than unfamiliar runs in poor condition every time.
The Paradiski area repays repeated visits because the sheer scale means you never quite exhaust it. This year we spent more time in the Les Arcs side of the domain — Arc 2000 in particular has a high, open character that’s very different from the more sheltered Belle-Plagne sector. The run from the top of the Aiguille Rouge down to Arc 1600 is as good as anything in the Alps, especially on a clear day when the Mont Blanc view is full and unobstructed.
Photography on the mountain in good conditions is its own reward — the combination of altitude light, snow texture and mountain scale gives you images that simply aren’t available anywhere else. The challenge is always the same: keeping the camera accessible enough to use without losing too much body heat, and knowing when to put it away and just ski. This year we got the balance about right.
The week ended, as all La Plagne weeks should, with a fondue at the apartment and a final morning walk in the village before the transfer bus arrived. Twenty-one images that don’t come close to capturing what a week at altitude in January actually feels like, but try their best.