A mysterious skier who has resurfaced from the Matterhorn Ice has been identified thanks to Facebook.

Monte Cervino/Matterhorn, where Henri Joseph Leonce Le Masne was recovered and finally identified thanks to Facebook.

Story from Corriere de la Sera. – A mysterious skier who has resurfaced from the Matterhorn Ice has been identified, thanks to Facebook. He has disappeared in March of ’54: he was called Henri Joseph Leonce Le Masne, a 35-year-old Frenchman. He was identified with a DNA test. His niece Emma, who lives in Paris, replied to the Italian police’s Facebook appeal

The skis that were recovered with the Ice man that came from the cold.
The skis that were recovered with the Ice man that came from the cold.

There is a woman, Emma Nassem, who is driving through the streets of Paris; it is the beginning of July, a month ago. Suddenly the radio hears about a strange cold case, an almost impossible mission attempted by the Italian police, which on its most popular Facebook page, Agent Lisa, launched an appeal on June 29: “Help us to give a face and a name to the skier found in 2005, at 3,100 meters above sea level, on the Matterhorn, in Valle D’Aosta ». Here, we will say, what are the social media: a post that in a few hours becomes viral made the record of shares and rebounds throughout Europe.

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Planning your summer holiday in the mountains and beach – our next trip

The view from the top of the Skyway Monte Bianco - Punta Hellbronner- Amazing rotating gondola that takes you up to the highest point in Italy to see the Mont Blanc and all the surrounding mountains. Photo: The-Ski-Guru.

The summer holidays are coming upon us and I am counting the days to leave this hot city and have some days off. I have been planning this summer holiday for at least half an year and cannot believe it is finally coming! We will be going to the mountains and the beach in one trip, to please all the members of the family.  Even though I will be having a couple of meetings here and there, it is still time to spend with the family and enjoy being and playing outside.

I love planning where we are going to go each year. For winter we always go to the Alps driving, and we have done already 5 years of going to Pila, just up from Aosta, one going to Madonna di Campiglio and one adding Courmayeur to the end of our stay in Aosta/Pila. We always travel by car, as we take all our equipment with us, and we are well positioned in SE London to get to Folkestone for the Eurotunnel station.

Start of the trip at the Eurotunnel - can't wait! Photo by The-Ski-Guru.
Start of the trip at the Eurotunnel – can’t wait! Photo by The-Ski-Guru.

Summer is not different. I find that purchasing flights for the family during the kids’ school holidays is very expensive, plus I do love our road trips. So off we’ll be going soon to Folkestone to board the Eurotunnel and get into another adventure.


One thing to remember is to get the car lights stickers that are obligatory for UK cars driving in the Continent, so you do not blind the cars coming the other way, the yellow vests per each person in the car, a triangle and I am not sure if the breathalysers are still requested in France. It was the case, then I’ve read that it was not the case anymore – just check online before travelling just in case! Have all these things inside the car, reachable if you are stopped by the police, not in your car boot, as you could be fined if you need to get out to get them!

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Spot on Gasthof Post Lech – where to stay in Lech am Arlberg

Spot on Gasthof Post Lech.

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Last week I was lucky to stay for a couple of nights at the Gasthof Post Lech in Lech am Arlberg. It was my third time in Lech, but the first time I was staying to sleep there, as I have been only a couple of times for lunch between meetings and going back to St Anton.

 

The Gasthof Post is a luxurious 5 star hotel in Lech, part of the Relais & Châteaux group of distinguished hotels.
The Gasthof Post is a luxurious 5 star hotel in Lech, part of the Relais & Châteaux group of distinguished hotels.       

I really liked Lech, and I will write a Must-Read Guide on the destination soon. But I wanted to single out this stay at the Gasthof Post Lech. I did not know much about it, only that it was one of the best hotels in town and that it was very well located.

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What is new with Les Trois Vallées for the 2018 – 19 ski season

Meribel is the centre of the Les Trois Vallées, a multi-linked ski area with 600 km of pistes. Photo Meribel. The Must-Read Guide to the Rhône Alpes.

Les Trois Vallées, the world largest ski area as they call themselves, is composed by renowned resorts like Courchevel, Meribel, Brides-les-Bains, Les Menuires, St Martin de Belleville, Val Thorens and Orelle. With 600 km of pistes, it can keep all guests entertained for weeks, without having to ski one trail twice! Here we’ll tell you what is new for the 2018-19 ski season.

Les Trois Vallées, an amazing expanse of pistes and off-pistes to challenge any type of skier.
Les Trois Vallées, an amazing expanse of pistes and off-pistes to challenge any type of skier.

The opening days for the 2018-19 ski season from the different resorts  are from 17th November for Val Thorens, 24 Nov for Orelle, 8 December for Courchevel 1850, Courchevel Village, Courchevel Le Praz, Vallée de Méribel and Les Menuires. On the 14th December is the turn of Brides les Bains, followed on the 15th by Courchevel Moriond, Courchevel La Tania and Saint Martin de Belleville.

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Feds take charge of Lake Christine Fire, but it likely will burn for weeks

Lake Christine Fire Forces Evacuation near Basalt. KDNK

Fire crews descend on Roaring Fork Valley in Colorado, as fire spreads to 5,263 acres- Lake Christine Fire.

Report republished from the Aspen Times, from Scott Condon – Federal resources are pouring into the mid-Roaring Fork Valley to take command of the battle to corral the Lake Christine Fire after local firefighters saved hundreds of homes during a “chaotic” period.

“Today was a good day. We got some resources in,” said Keith Brink, operations section chief for the Northern Rockies Incident Command team, which took control of the firefighting effort at 6 a.m. Thursday.

Those resources include one hotshot team already on the fire lines and another arriving Friday. Brink called them “the elite of the elite.”

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO - JUNE 13: Global SuperTanker Services LLC's B747-400 firefighting Supertanker, the worldÕs largest firefighting plane sitting on the tarmac in Colorado Springs June 13, 2018. (Photo by Joe Amon/The Denver Post)
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO – JUNE 13: Global SuperTanker Services LLC’s B747-400 firefighting Supertanker, the worldÕs largest firefighting plane sitting on the tarmac in Colorado Springs June 13, 2018. (Photo by Joe Amon/The Denver Post)

All told, there will be between 300 and 400 federal and local firefighters battling the blaze by the weekend, according to incident commander Mike Almus.

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Chapelco opened the ski season 2018.

Las Pendientes lodge by the side of Chapelco ski resort, great little place where to stay at Chapelco.

Ski trails opened between the 1250 and 1700 cotes. Chapelco is expecting big snowfalls in the next days now that they opened their ski season 2018.

Chapelco has opened its ski season 2018 with a classic winter day of fog and bad weather, the ski resort has opened its Cablecar, the Chairlift Graeff, the Chairlift 63 and the Chairlift Rancho Grande with 1000 visitors to enjoy the snow in the trails that go from Plataforma 1700 until the base of the chairlift Rancho Grande at 1250 m approximately.

Chapelco - Patagonia, Argentina.
Chapelco – Patagonia, Argentina.

With a temperature of 2 C, moderate winds and little visibility, Chapelco offered 35 cm of compact snow in its Platform 1600. All areas of Ski and Snowboard School, Nursery and Snow Kindergarden, dog sledges, snow shoes and snowmobile were open to the public. The equipment rental in the base of Chapelco and the photo service received as well the first visitants. All the mountain restaurants opened their doors and showed the World Cup games on big Led screens on HD.

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