On the 9th February, the party of 30 students and 3 staff set off for Le Corbier, France at 8.30 am. It was to be a long day as we travelled from Gatwick, as the flight was to be followed by a 2 ½ hr coach transfer from Turin. We arrived to cold and snowy conditions some twelve hours later and we were ready for the hot meal and bed. Unfortunately, we needed to have our skis and boots fitted and so we finally managed to retire at about 10.30 pm to dream of the skiing ahead.

The next two days brought more snow, up to 40 cms on the top of the mountain, and this made for great skiing conditions on the piste although it was somewhat difficult to determine where the pistes were! However, everyone took to the challenge and settled in their groups to some good skiing, getting on well with the larger than life instructors.

From day three onwards, we were able to see both the pistes and the fantastic scenery as the clouds lifted and we had some blue sky and sunshine. The mountains were spectacular, and the views in all directions were breath- taking and this made the skiing even more enjoyable. Once again, the conditions were perfect and all groups enjoyed moving around the mountain, or indeed moving from resort to resort.

The evenings were taken up with set activities such as bum-boarding, bowling, swimming, a quiz and the medal presentations, alongside opportunities to relax playing pool or watching tv. There was something for everyone and the activities helped the group get to know each other.

The hotel also helped the trip to be successful being staffed, by young, friendly and extremely accommodating students who worked tirelessly to ensure that we had a good time. This, combined with the good, plentiful food meant that we lacked for nothing and were able to rest and recover from the days’ exertions.

All in all the trip was a great success. The skiing was good and the resort catered to our needs very well. Our students embraced the activity well, and got on with the instructors and the hotel staff and were, in general, a credit to the School. My thanks go to Mr Lockey and Mr Birchall for their energy and support throughout the week in making the trip the success it was.