Ski touring in Valmeinier with François, Lolo and David: powder runs, ski lifts and a first day exploring the wild terrain around Refuge de Terre Rouge.
It’s time for what has now become our traditional annual ski touring trip with François and Lolo! This year Tom has abandoned us, but David is the new recruit! As usual, the suspense over the destination lasts right up to the very end. Good old Hautes-Alpes-style organisation, which means we can stay flexible and adapt as closely as possible to the conditions... I have to say, if you want to drag me over to Savoie, you’d better have some pretty convincing arguments! Especially considering the quality of the skiing we’ve been enjoying lately in the Queyras — just the day before, for example, near Saint-Véran.
With the weather forecasts contradicting each other all week, we wait for the very latest predictions before making a decision... Last-minute change of plan: Savoie pulls out all the stops with at least two days of sunshine. More than enough for our team, well used to facing the most extreme conditions without so much as blinking!! After the Queyras last year, we’re off to Valmeinier country!!
The idea is to explore the area around Refuge de Terre Rouge, which is opening in winter for the first time this year and gives easy access to the upper Neuvache valley... Experience has taught us not to be too ambitious on the first day. So the plan is to reach the hut using the Valmeinier and Valloire ski lifts.
We quickly discover, to our cost, that ski touring isn’t exactly the dominant religion around here! Despite some hard bargaining skilfully handled by our resident expert, we come away completely empty-handed, with nothing more than a 4-hour ski pass in our pockets... Nothing for ski tourers, nothing for mountain guides — the tone is set! The locals in Valmeinier are tough negotiators.
So be it, we’ll find a way to get our money’s worth out of that ski pass... We head towards the Grand Plateau, where a magnificent ridge leads us onwards on skins. The view is spectacular. It feels pretty good to find ourselves in the high mountains so quickly, especially on a beautiful day like this!
I’d imagined a few options for descending from this ridge towards the hut... but since we’ve got a proper ski pass, we might as well make the most of it! All you need to do is keep your eyes open and switch on the powder radar to find some beautiful untracked areas... First warm-up run on the Neuvache side, followed by a descent back towards Valmeinier... Not too shabby for a start!
Here we go again. Back up to the Grand Plateau, then a little farther along the ridge to the Pas des Griffes. And the powder madness continues... A beautiful descent through light, sugary snow to get everyone in agreement. Hard to beat that!
A short skin back up to Refuge de Terre Rouge and we can collapse for an afternoon nap, just to make sure we’re in good shape for the apéro! An excellent first day, with the approach through the ski resort proving to be a great way to ease the body into things without sacrificing any of the fun on the descents!
We go to bed with no idea that the following day will turn into an dream day around the Pissine...
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