4am was a very rude awakening but it was a beautiful starry night when we headed back to Cham both of us very sad to be going, just seems a tad too soon this year…..but I guess best that way rather than having had enough!

The 3 months this time seems to have gone faster than ever and we are thrilled to have got upstairs into a habitable state, shame about the wood burners not being in but not the end of the world. The days of heaving plaster board up the hill, endless filling and sanding now seem ages ago and we have a wonderful, bright space upstairs now to fill with furniture and make into a homely place to be. Next year we hope to be in from the word go upstairs leaving our little 3m square abode as a warm, snug guest room. We will miss it I think but looking forward to having space and lots of light!!!!

We have got most of our ticks off the list as such. The coppicing is an endless task that we are seriously thinking of either getting Charlie out here full time (not sure our livers would survive!) or getting some Help Ex people in next year to break the back of it. We will see.  It is very important to us to keep the meadowland we already have and to create some more too.

We have had some lovely explores as always never enough but what with dodgy knees and backs we have made the most of our time on the hills and really enjoyed exploring some of the skyline close to us on our own and with friends too.

So thoughts for next year move to downstairs, making the inside doors to make the place mouse proof, getting partioned walls up, sorting out the back wall,  getting the flooring down downstairs, sorting out water into the building, re building a terrace wall outside, building a terrace out the back, re building the back terrace wall and maybe even getting an indoor shower in place but that would be very optimistic…..lots to ponder for now as we head into winter and focus on Ski Breezy and getting the chalet full in Chamonix. Bring on lots of snow, lots of fun guests and many a good day on the hill.