Huge wet snow avalanche destroys chairlift at the ski resort of St Francois Longchamps, Savoie.? The resort is on the opposite side of the Col de la Madeleine from Valmorel.
Ski Touring, Maurienne
I met up with friends at St Etienne de Cuines in the Maurienne valley on Saturday morning to enjoy a great day out with blue skies, some good powder and good company.
We drove up to a small village to find that we weren’t going to be alone!? We left the roadside with skis on and started up the lower Merlet valley following a summer track.?? At last we reached the large valley bottom.? The sunny side of the valley had a few remnants of avalanches following the recent rise in temperature however the north-facing slopes looked good.
At the end of the valley we gained height steadily before a small subsidiary cwm led to the col du Villonet at 2545m; about 1500m of ascent from the car.
There were fine views towards the Aiguilles d’Arves and southward to the Ecrins.? After a “casse croute” it was off with the “skins”.? The first 30m was quite hard and icy before we got into wonderful powder which induced the normal cries of joy.
Back down into the valley bottom we managed to ski to within 50m of the car with the snow taking on typical spring snow characteristics.
Hot in Pralognan, Vanoise
A wonderful week in the Vanoise completing the Tour des Glaciers. Blue, skies and sunshine with sightings of Chamois, Ibex and today the Bearded Vulture. I’m now sitting in Pralognan after a swim in the hotel pool and enjoying a cool beer in the late afternoon sunshine.
Heatwave in Savoie
38 degrees C. today I’m the valleys but you can still find freshness in the mountains. I even took a brief swim in the Lac de la Partie at 2500m in the Vanoise. I’m sad not to be able to take up the invitation to the end of season party that will also mark the end of the current refuge de L’Arpont. Thanks Valerie.
A great evening at the Dent Parrach?e thanks to Franck and Kaptan. Dinner at the Aiguille Doran was memorable – Fabienne’s cooking is superb.
Enjoying the via ferrata Les Bettieres, French Alps
A great via ferrata near Peisey-Nancroix in the Tarentaise.? This is a great via ferrata in three sections with the difficulty increasing as you gain height.? After each section there’s an escape route if time or inclination dictates.
As you can see in the photograph despite it being late June there’s a lot of snow higher up.? We were also treated to the view of a Bearded Vulture flying past below us.? There’s a pair nesting in the area and under constant surveillance by the Vanoise National Park authorities.
After completing the via ferrata we climbed a 4 pitch rock climb lower in the valley.
Via Ferrata du Plan-du-Bouc, Champagny-en-Vanoise
Another wonderful day enjoying the via ferrata in Savoie.? Today we went to Champagny-le-Haut to climb the via ferrata called the Plan du Bouc.
The valley of Champagny-le-Haut is a wonderful spot without any intrusion from downhill skiing.? In the distance you can see the Grande Motte and it’s glacier.? The route follows a spur at the entrance to the valley with expanding views as you climb.? There was some damage observed to parts of the via ferrata following last winter’s snows.
Having completed the route we enjoyed a late lunch at the Refuge du Bois.
