You may not find this terribly rewarding unless you're included here, so this is a good time for casual and random browsers to turn back before they get too caught up in the sweep and majesty of the proceedings and can't let go.
A promising start to the snow season, 29 November 2015
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A grey day at the Col de la Givrine, with the usual hordes of sledding families holding back to see if the sun's going to come out, or not
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Dr Joe establishes a brisk lead towards the forest
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The Col de la Givrine is a Winter Wonderland, with sledding hills, cross-country ski trails, snowshoe trails, walking-on-packed-snow trails, a train stop, a sports outfitting station, a restaurant, and three more restaurants along the trails out a ways in the mountains. In poor weather, however, is not too bad.
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The farm of La Givrine
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We're taking advantage of the walkers' trail until we get to the forest.
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The farm of La Givrine
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In the woods called La Tourbière ('the peat bog', which explains the open pools)
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A stone wall; which Dr Joe goes over like a greyhound, but has to wait on the other side 5 or 10 minutes for me to join him.
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A little trail uphill in the forest
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Memorizing the way we've come, to help with getting back the same way. It's not really necessary around here anymore.
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Hardy walkers on the walkers' trail
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The farm of La Genolière, with a little restaurant montagnard
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This, unfortunately, is as far as we'll get today; Dr Joe has a lot of class preparations to do, and I've got a blister.
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The now well-traveled secret trail through the woods
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A look out over La Tourbière and La Givrine
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However promising the new snow might look today, it was gone within days and entirely absent throughout the warmest December in Swiss recorded history.
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A little vacation chalet just above the Givrine rail station and the carpark
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