Skiing Contrasts between the US & Europe.

 It continues to be sunny cold and great snow, with the added adavantage of their being no one around.

Grands Montets looking perfect.

Skiing with Shanon and Antonia’s extended families was a study in contrasts—different abilities, different goals, but a shared enthusiasm for skiing somewhere else other than the US... Between them, there were a lot of children, which meant balancing progression, safety, and enjoyment across a wide range of skill levels.

I spent  my time with Colin, [Shanon’s son] and Antonia ,the ones keen to explore Chamonix's off-piste terrain with me. Together we covered the fundamentals of avalanche awareness: terrain selection, snowpack basics, route planning, and decision-making. The focus was on avoiding risk rather than reacting to it—understanding where not to go is more important than knowing how to get out of trouble.

We also discussed the cultural differences between skiing in France and the United States. In France, off-piste skiing is more integrated into the overall ski culture, but it comes with a clear expectation: if you leave the marked runs, you are responsible for your own safety. Mountain guiding is a regulated profession, with standardized training and certification, which creates a consistent baseline of expertise.

In contrast, mountain guiding in the U.S. is not uniformly regulated. While there are excellent guides, the lack of consistent oversight means the level of training and experience can vary more widely. It puts more responsibility on clients to vet who they ski with and to understand the risks involved.

For the rest of the group—those who preferred to stay on piste and focus on improving their skiing—I arranged sessions with my friend , ESF instructor Hugo Goisnard. This proved to be the right call. Hugo managed to raise the group’s technical level quickly while keeping the sessions engaging and safe. Confidence improved across the board, and just as importantly, everyone had fun doing it.

In the end, the trip worked because it matched the right approach to the right people: structured progression on piste for most, and focused safety education in off-piste terrain for those ready to take that step.