THE WINTER 2027 NEWS & CALENDAR
Its mid July 2026 and we’re in the middle of a heatwave here on the West Coast of France but its already time for me to start thinking about the coming winter. It’s difficult to imagine cooler temps, never mind snow filled days when the temperature is hitting 40C but there’s probably no better time to lock in the winter calendar than when you’re dreaming of some nice deep carved turns in the cold gold of the mountains.
So What’s NEW for 2027…
Well, first things first, mcnabsnowboarding has officially moved to France and so the first big change will be that the courses are now priced in Euros. With today’s online banking systems this really doesn’t change much and your invoice will have the details of what to do and how to pay.
The winter will kick off as usual with our Gourmet Kick starter week in Tignes, this is where we all stay together in a swanky posh appartment (with sauna and Spa) next to the lifts in Tigne Lac. We Ride all day, hit the Spa and then cook together before the cards come out to see who will be washing up! It’s always good to get the feet back in the bindings after a summer off the snow and Tignes is possibly the best and most snow sure place to Ride early season. This is always one of my favourite weeks of the winter and we often get an early winter split aswell, check out the vid below!
Back to Tignes in early January for the Freeride sessions. I’ve had some of my finest off the lift powder rides on these early season weeks in Tignes as the winter snows come in and start putting down the seasons snow base. Early Jan is often the quietest period for the Alps and more often than not we’re tracking fresh lines in between the pistes.
St Foy is the obvious stop off after a weeks riding in Tignes (as its only 30 mins down the road) and offers amazing slackcountry terrain and quiet pistes. St Foy is famous for its pow between the pistes but also hosts some fantastic Splitboard accessed Slackcountry and Backcountry terrain. In St Foy we all stay together in a nice comfortable Chalet at the foot of the slopes, meals are provided (except for a couple of evenings) and the social psych of the day continues on in to the evening. Again, I’ve had some of my best and most memorable riding of the winter on these St Foy weeks.
Hitting some early winter fresh in St Foy
Home foe a quick Surf and then out to eh Spanish Pyrenees for my Baquiera courses starting with the Carve Club, a week of freeride shredding and perfecting carving techniques on and off the piste.
The carve club in Baquiera
The resort of Baquiera, in the Spanish Pyrenees, is perfect for snowboarding, the angle and terrain features just make every run feel like surfing the perfect wave. I love it here and just can’t wait to get back to carving those banks. I’m planing two weeks in Baquiera this season, the second week focusing a little more on the slackcountry areas beyond the lifts where some Splitboarding or hiking on foot might be needed. If the conditions suit, there’s some amazing riding to be found in the valleys surrounding the resort and it doesn’t take much effort to get out there. For these courses we stay down the valley in the comfortable Hotel Garros with breakfast and evening meals included. (You’ll make your own accomodation booking).
Very excited to head back to Gressoney after it not being on the calendar for a number of years. Gressoney is linked to Alagna and Champoluc offering 3 valleys of incredible terrain and big vertical drops from summit to valley. There’s so much terrain here right off the lifts and when that gets tracked then some short Splitboard hikes will get us in the fresh again. Hopefully the famous Giachetti couloir will be in condition!
looking into the daunting Giachetti couloir in Gressoney
After Gressoney I drive up the Aosta Valley for 2 weeks of Backcountry adventures amongst the high peaks of Chamonix, my home from home. Starting with a warm up on the BC Intro we’ll get out amongst it off the lifts and on the Splits. The new lift to the top of the Grand Montets should be open again next winter so fingers crossed for some big glacial descents down the Rognons and la Face straight off the lifts like in the old days! We’ll hit the Aiguille du Midi and as many of the classics as we can fit in whilst I introduce you to the fine art of Backcountry Snowboarding. Week 2 is the BC Freeride week where no introduction is necessary and we can get straight into the high peaks and the big rides that Chamonix is famous for.
Can’t wait to explore Cham again so come and join me and lets get it on!
Home for another quick Surf before heading to the Arctic North for Senja.
I visited Senja for the first time last winter and loved the place. We’ll spend an evening in Tromso, do a split mission on route to the Senja ferry the next morning and then spend the rest of the week Splitboarding on the magical Senja Island. We’ll share a chalet and all chip in and cook together so bring your best recipe and get ready for an epic week of Splitboarding and adventure. After joining last winters trip, Ruth has already claimed one of the spots on this one, so if you want in on this one don’t hang around!
Still toying with a 2nd week up in Norway or Iceland so watch this space and let me know if interested!
Right I need to go jump in the ocean and catch some waves… looking forward to riding with some of you next winter but enjoy the summer first and if you’re down on the West Coast of France gimme a shout!
If you possess building skills come over, we’re doing a food and surfing kibutz for DIY in our new (old) house!
