Don't gamble on safety if you drive to the slopes

I like to drive from Britain to the Alps so that I can explore more than one resort during my stay. But on my recent journey just before Christmas, my preference almost cost me dear. Major snowstorms across Europe had heaped frustration on skiers trying to get to and from many Alpine resorts. Several roads were closed, and Zermatt in Switzerland was completely cut off for a time after avalanches also buried local railway lines. What should have been a routine road trip for me to Switzerland turned into a nightmare as I had to endure several hours driving in dangerous conditions. It certainly reminded me how quickly the weather can pose a threat. And it was a lesson in why you should not gamble with safety equipment. I should have bought new winter tyres for my 4x4 last September but I put it off, gambling that I could probably still make my trip to the Alps on summer tyres. I planned to find somebody to fit the new ones in Switzerland just before I tackled the most difficult part of the journey - up the mountain road to the resort of Villars-sur-Ollon. After researching online, I discovered I could get the tyres at a great price from a garage outside Lausanne. I just had to make sure I reached the garage before it closed at 5.30pm. I like to cross the Channel from Dover by ferry, meaning I roll on to the motorway at Calais at about 9am. That gives me nine hours to reach Alpine resorts without breaking the strict speed limits on toll roads. However, it poured with rain all the way through France, meaning my progress was slow. I suffered another setback when my usual route over the Jura mountain pass - which climbs to 3,280ft and provides a short cut from Besancon in France down towards Lausanne in Switzerland - was closed to all vehicles without chains due to heavy snow. The diversion via Geneva added a further 90 minutes to my journey - and by now, snow was falling heavily. I made it to Lausanne at about 6pm, and was relieved to find the garage was still open and willing to switch my tyres. Phew! There's no way I would have made it up the mountain without them. I saw countless vehicles stranded or pulled over at the side of the road, with people battling to attach chains to their tyres in a violent snowstorm. The moral of the story is either have chains and be prepared to put them on and take them off when the conditions change, or invest in snow tyres as early as you can. In the end, I had to stay in Villars over the Christmas period because many other resorts had unstable off-piste conditions and there was limited access to them anyway. But I rediscovered how exciting this underrated ski area is, especially when it has had great snow. The off-piste capabilities were a big surprise, and on Christmas Day my best present was skiing on dry powder in blazing sunshine on the slopes of my favourite peak - Petit Chamossaire. For skiing on New Year's Eve, I booked an early-morning lift pass online. The lift gates are operated by an electronic key card which you can buy from various outlets in the resort. Cards can then be topped up via the website tele-villarsgryon.ch and kept in your pocket, meaning you can open the gates automatically without having to take off your gloves to present it. It cost £23 for the whole day, a big saving on the high season price of £37. The first two hours were heaven, with enough visibility and so much snow that even the groomed pistes offered skiing in boot-high powder. Off-piste, snow was above the knee. What a great end to the old year - and the start of the new year was pretty good too. I went out on January 1 to blow away a few cobwebs after the New Year celebrations and enjoyed three hours of skiing in sunshine. By the last run down at about 5pm, the snow had taken on a pleasant tangerine hue as the sun went down between the peaks of Mont Blanc and the Dents du Midi.