7 articles
Snowshoeing, cross-country and backcountry skiing, winter nights: enjoying the snow while knowing where you tread.
Snow turns a familiar landscape into brand-new terrain. Trails disappear, the days get shorter and the cold changes the pace of everything. Our guides help you enjoy it with peace of mind, on outings that stick to marked routes: snowshoeing on marked trails, cross-country skiing on groomed Nordic center trails, downhill skiing on resort runs, and winter hikes on maintained paths.
Dressing and packing right is a big part of the fun. We explain how to layer your clothing, choose gloves and socks that actually keep you warm, read the spec sheet for a pair of snowshoes or cross-country skis, and make sense of the temperature ratings on a sleeping bag once the nights turn cold. We compare published data and standards, not impressions, and if someone on our team has actually strapped on the snowshoes they’re describing, they say so and tell that story themselves.
Winter comes with its own rules. Snowshoe trails and Nordic tracks have their etiquette, ski areas have a skier code, and wildlife, which has a hard time in winter, is sometimes protected by seasonal closures that everyone is expected to respect. The drive matters too, since traction and chain requirements on mountain roads vary from state to state. For each of these rules, we point you to the official source, dated, along with the official forecasts to check before you head out.
Families discovering snow together will find plenty here, and so will regulars who come back every winter and want to choose their gear or their routes more wisely. For beginners, we cover the basics step by step, like the difference between classic and skate skiing. Numbers always come explained, with their units and what they measure, and the common mistakes get their place, from the cotton T-shirt that holds on to moisture to frozen fingers because nobody packed spare gloves. As for anyone who considers hot cocoa the real summit of a winter hike, they don’t need our help.
SnowHow-to guide
Kick wax, glide wax, klister, fishscales, skins: the lingo of waxing can scare you off before your first outing. Here’s what you actually wax for your type of ski, the steps with an iron and by hand, the snow temperatures to read on the wax label, and what to know about fluorinated wax, banned from FIS races since the 2023-2024 season.
Nolwenn Bastide··9 min
What length of cross-country skis? Weight decides, height checks: makers’ charts, the classic and skate gap, pole length and the paper test to do in the store.
Nolwenn Bastide··9 min
Base layer, insulating layer, windproof shell: how the three-layer system keeps you warm on winter hikes, which fabrics to pick, and the mistakes to avoid.
Nolwenn Bastide··13 min
How to spot a groomed winter trail in the Alps (it’s pink in Switzerland), why to stay on it, boots and traction, and when the sun sets in December.
Nolwenn Bastide··13 min
Sled ride, mushing lesson, multi-day trip or snowshoe hike with a dog: the options, prices in France and Lapland, minimum ages, and signs of a good musher.
Nolwenn Bastide··13 min
New to snowshoeing? How to pick the right size for your weight and the snow, plus bindings, poles, marked trails in France, and the avalanche risk.
Nolwenn Bastide··7 min
Classic or skate skiing? How the technique and gear differ, how long your poles should be, France’s 2026-2027 Nordic pass, and your first time out.
Nolwenn Bastide··7 min
Français (France)
English (UK)
English (US)
Deutsch (Deutschland)