Tete Pelouse, La Clusaz

After a productive work day yesterday I was keen for more of the same again but after an hour in front of the laptop with occasional glimpses out of the window, I knew the game was up and so caved in and went for a tour. What willpower!

I ended up driving to La Clusaz and then on again to the tiny settlement of Les Confins, from where a huge number of good looking tours are accessed. However, in my hurry to get going I'd forgotten both the guidebook and the information I'd printed off from the internet so I was armed only with a French map - a "chocolate teapot" item if ever there was one. 

In the end I kept it simple and decided to head up the Combe du Grand Cret with an open mind, but hoping that I'd be able to find a way over a peak called the Tete Pelouse and  into the Combe de Bella Cha, which looked to have better snow cover low down.

Looking up from my start point. The Combe du Grand Cret Valley is on the left, the Combe de Bella Cha on the right. 

The skin up the Combe was great - a decent track and a perfect temperature for skinning without sweating too much. 

Enjoying the skin.

Once near the top of the Grand Cret there seemed to be all sorts of options but I had no idea if any of them led into the other Valley, so I just drifted rightwards towards the ridge line below -

I was hoping to get to the right-hand col on this photo but ended up too high and instead went to the middle one.

All on my lonesome.

As I got higher and began breaking my own trail I ended up taking my headphones out and just enjoying the solitude. The sun was out (albeit not shining on me), the views amazing and the snow seemed to be getting better and better as I got higher so life was pretty good. 

I eventually ended up re-joining an old skin track just before the col and I was glad of it because I'd done over 1000m of ascent without a break and was feeling pretty tired. Reaching the Col was great though - immense views and best of all a clear route into the Valley I was aiming for.

A flask of juice, leftovers from dinner and some fruitcake - what a lunch. Not a bad spot to eat it either.

So, what to go for?

The cold, north facing snow which was powdery but a bit changeable....

...or the sunny spring snow?

The spring snow! In fact it turned out to be powder, which put a smile on my face.

The descent down the Bella Cha was brilliant - 90% powder, a tiny bit of a crust and just the odd rock for most of the way down. Unfortunately the last few hundred metres was 90% rocks and 10% crust but you can't have everything :)

Looking back at my tracks. The slightly erratic course was due to me trying to stay away from any old tracks - there's no point putting in the effort if you then ski where someone else did.

So, another great early season day. The amount of terrain above Les Confins is mind blowing and some of it looks pretty adventurous to say the least. To quote the former Governor of California, "I'll be back".

Courmayeur & Verbier

After a heavier than expected snowfall on Friday, we were confident that we'd be able to find good snow over the weekend without needing to do any touring. First up was Courmayeur, which started badly when we got through the tunnel only to find no fresh snow on the ground. Luckily enough, things looked white up high and we ended up getting some great fresh tracks despite there not being a huge amount of lifts open. It never ceases to amaze me how different conditions can be in Courmayeur and Chamonix and today was no exception - we went from shovelling the car to a dry Italian Valley (which is 300m higher than Cham) in one trip through the Mont Blanc Tunnel. I guess having Europe's highest mountain between the 2 towns probably has a lot to do with it but it still feels weird to me. Anyway, an excellent day despite first appearances.

Sharon deep in it.

Tristan with the Grandes Jorasses behind. The views from Courmayeur really are incredible.

When I was skiing down on the last run, I was blown away by the pink evening light but then I realised that I had my pink tint goggles on. Such is the brain power of your typical ski bum. Anyway, I made the most of my stupidity and took this shot through my lens. I quite like it.

On Sunday we made a last minute decision to head to Verbier and we ended up finding some great snow. The snow cover is getting better but is still very thin lower down, so Matt and I had 2 great runs off the top of Mont Fort but made the mistake of carrying on down to Tortin on the first one, resulting in numerous rock encounters. Still, a brilliant day and yet another reminder that I need to go to Verbier more.

Matt on Mont Fort.
 

Matt on one of the better covered sections above Tortin.

We ran into my mate Ian on the way up to Mont Fort and he had collected a rock pretty heavily on the run just before we saw him. Ouch!

The weather is now set to be sunny and very warm (freezing level above 3000m) all week so it's tough to know what good options there are. One good thing is that a freeze/thaw cycle might turn this powder snow into a decent base lower down so let's see what unfolds. Whatever happens, winter is off to a great start.

Combe a Marion, Col des Aravis

Having sampled the skiing in the Aravis a few days back, it seemed rude not to go back for another look. This time we headed up to the Col des Aravis for a trip up the Combe a Marion - a spectacular north facing bowl which leads to a hidden gully and col.

All Photos Gary Tulloch

Me at the start of the skin. 

As anticipated, it was pretty chilly heading up to the Col, but the wind wasn't nearly as strong as a few days ago so the skin up was a bit more enjoyable. Some of the skinning is pretty awkward as you can't really avoid going up a narrow gully, but the scenery is amazing so it's tough not to enjoy the ascent. 

The upper bowl - big country.

Earning the turns.

As you get higher and higher, the atmosphere keeps on improving until you eventually emerge at the Col which separates the Combe a Marion and the Combe de la Blonniere. We passed a very pleasant half hour soaking up the sun at the Col and then strapped the skis on and headed back into the shade for the descent. 

A terrible lunch spot.

The ski down was great fun and took in some excellent powder, the odd bit of crust and the occasional rock where the snow cover was a bit thin. Despite the rocks, the ski was excellent overall and well worth the effort of the skin. 

Me near the start of the skiing.

Seeking out the good stuff. 

Seeking, and finding.

There's a couple of really good topos here so get on it before the weather closes in again!

http://www.skitour.fr/sorties/blonniere,51564.html#sortie

http://www.skitour.fr/blog/talonlibre/1317-la-combe-a-marion-ou-couloir-nord-des-aravis

Pointe de Merdassier NW Face

It hasn't snowed for a few days now but temperatures have been really low so Tristan, Jack and I figured that we could still find some good snow. The direction of the recent winds seems to have resulted in the Aravis getting plenty of snow so we went to check out the Pointe de Merdassier, high above La Clusaz.

                                            

The Merdassier is the highest peak, on the left. The NW Face comes straight down the shaded bowl in the middle of the photo, in between the 2 obvious rock bands. 

The skin up the peak was nice but freezing cold, and when we reached the final summit ridge and started booting, things got even colder and windier. Randomly but very happily for us, there was no wind at all on the summit so we had an excellent lunch spot, spoiled only by me dropping the cup from my flask, which disappeared never to be seen again.

Jack and me on the summit.

                                      

Athlete food - a pork pie.

Stunning views across to Mont Blanc from the summit.

From the summit we did a short traverse into the NW face and then dropped in.

Jack traversing to the face.

                                                

A clear win for me in the effort:reward ratio stakes! Time to enjoy the big skis after the effort of pushing them up 900m.

The snow at the top of the face was pretty thin and involved some fairly amusing grass skiing...

After that the snow was quite crusty but got better and better until we reached the lower half, which was just perfect powder through the trees. 

Looking back up at Jack and Tristan on their way down the upper section.

                                   

Tristan in the first section of the good stuff. 

I'm still traumatised by the disappointment of the incident I'm about to describe but here goes...Having finally reached the perfect powder I hit a rock on my first turn, my ski came off as I face-planted, and then the ski picked up some speed on some firmer snow and shot off down the hill. Struggling to hold back the tears of disappointment, I skied down on one ski and the snow was so good that it was still fun even with half kit. The ski had lodged itself in a tree a few hundred metres down and seems to have suffered no damage. This is the 3rd time I've had this happen to someone in my group (although it was the first time I've been the "victim") and I think I'll just have to accept that it's bad luck. I'm not into skis leashes, and I don't want to lock my skis onto my feet, but if anyone has an idea to improve the performance of ski brakes, let me know!

Anyway, a superb day despite this incident, and a highly recommended early season tour. Best of all, we scoped out LOADS of good stuff in the Aravis and even took a bit of a detour on the way home in order to scout something out...Standby!

Sponsors!

With winter on its way I'm delighted to say that this season I'll be supported by Black Crows skis, Scarpa footwear and Plum bindings. This is an amazing opportunity for me and I just can't wait for the white stuff to arrive in LARGE quantities. 

A massive thank you to the 3 companies - bring on winter!

Dreaming of winter! Photo Carol Boscoe.

Verbier and Tete de Veret

After a wet day on Friday, the weather was forecast to be clear both days of the weekend and just about everyone in Cham was plotting and scheming to come up with a good plan. Everyone I know agreed that Verbier was the best idea for Saturday and I couldn't think of a better plan, so we headed over there for the second Saturday in a row. Coverage has improved a lot in the intervening week and there were a lot more lifts open so an excellent day was had. 

There are plenty of rocks poking through so going into the powder felt slightly like walking on eggshells at times, and you couldn't really let rip for fear of hitting an unseen rock, but there was some amazing snow and plenty of good terrain available. We started off with a razz around the Lac des Vaux, then a couple of runs down to Tortin, a lap down the Funispace and finally a big, beautiful couloir below the Funispace which took us all the way to Verbier. It wasn't the biggest ski day ever but it's more than enough for this time of year - everyone was buggered by the end! 

The new Crows about to fly.

Matt deep in it on the final run of the day.

Today (Sunday) a big group of us headed back to the Les Carroz/Flaine area for a half day tour. We skinned up to the top of the Grand Vans chairlift, then along the ridge to the Tete de Veret for a look at its NE couloir. It turned out that the entrance was a bit steeper than we'd expected, but it was fine once you dropped in - a pleasant case of a mountain's bark being worse than its bite. The couloir and the bowl below it were great - fun terrain and some decent snow in places.

The team heading up.

Looking back up at the NE couloir - I didn't take any pictures on the way down as I was busy enjoying myself.

From where the picture above was taken, we stuck the skis back on and were soon back at the top of the Grand Vans ready for the ski to the car. The snow from here was even better and we got plenty of powder and also a bit of bushwhacking, which is all part of the fun. 

Matt and Sharon about to start the skin back up to the Grand Vans.

Ready for the final ski to the car.

Pointe Percee

Me, Sophie and Sharon loving the powder.

It looks as if Monday is going to be the final day of decent weather and then it is snow, snow, snow. No complaints from me.

Les Carroz & Flaine

The snow line is gradually creeping downwards in the Alps and each spell of bad weather seems to be that bit colder and more wintery. After a bit of a false start to the touring season last week I was keen to try again this week after some more snow over the weekend. 

Although there had been some new snow, it had also been accompanied by some incredibly high wind at altitude, and skinning up Le Tour on Monday was fun but the skiing was frankly terrible. I was sure there was better stuff out there though, so Sharon and I headed up to Les Carroz yesterday (Wednesday) in search of fun.

We parked up at the foot of the Telesiege du Lac and then skinned up the 500 vertical metres to Les Grands Vans, surrounded by some incredible views with the sun poking through the clouds. After plenty of time looking at the view and drinking from a flask, we turned round and skied down roughly following the piste and also seeking out the odd tree section. Although the snow cover was thin, most of what we skied was nice, light powder so there were big smiles all round. 

Lac de Vernant, with Pointe Percee behind.

Me near the top of the Grands Vans.

Me with the map, working out what the other peaks are.

Sunset skiing - bliss.

Today I teamed up with Matt, Jack and Tristan and we went up to Flaine in search of more of the same. However, the weather forecasters got things pretty drastically wrong and we spent an hour skinning uphill towards the top of the Aup de Veran cable car in thick mist, before deciding that a coffee was in order. Annoyingly, the snow we skied down was good, and the stuff higher up was really nice, fluffy snow, so we would have had a really good tour if there been any visibility. 

It's forecast to snow to 600m tomorrow, but after their efforts today I'm not sure I believe what the weather men say! If it does arrive it could make for a great weekend so hopefully they're right this time.

Verbier

Rumours were spreading that Verbier was going to open this weekend, although I was dubious that there would be enough snow. Luckily, I was completely wrong!

SUCH a good feeling after a long summer.

The views were beautiful whenever the weather cleared.

Quite a clear snow line above Verbier!

Back to rain tomorrow, but there's a good base forming at mid altitudes and once the high winds stop, things will be looking really good between 2000 and 3000 metres. As it is, the best skiing is probably 2200m to 2800m, which leaves plenty to go at over the coming weeks. As ever in November, the weather is pretty unpredictable but resorts are gradually opening up (although nearly all are weekends only for the next few weeks) and there is the odd good day coming up so get out and make the most of it.

Grand St Bernard

Matt, Gary and I headed up the Grand St Bernard pass today, in order to check out how conditions are looking to see how much of a snowpack there is right now. We were pretty confident that there wouldn't be much good skiing to be had but figured that a day out was better than no day out. 

As it turned out, we were pretty spot on and the skiing was pretty dire but it was fun all the same just to be out in the hills, especially seeing as the weather has now closed in and is forecast to stay gloomy over the weekend. 

Snow down to 900m on Sunday apparently so stay tuned...

Gary considering part-exing his Audi RS4 beast for an electric Renault. 

Just as an aside, Matt was heartbroken that the Agip garage in Martigny was being refurbished as he couldn't buy one their excellent chocolate muffins, but finding this at the alternative garage provided some consolation.

Me out-clowning Matt - no mean feat. Photo Gary Tulloch.

2 mountain athletes at the end of the day.

Cervinia

I've just got back from the first day of the season of lift served skiing and it's not even the second week of November! Happy days.

I needed to get some photos today for various articles I'm writing, but somewhat inevitably the day descended into loads of skiing and not much photography! Unfortunately nothing was open in the Cervinia part of the mountain but there was enough open above Zermatt to keep us more than entertained. This can obviously be accessed from Zermatt but it's much easier to come in via the Cervinia lift system. 

There was a bit of good, chalky off piste but most of the day was spent getting the ski legs back in and flying around the blue runs.

I will DEFINITELY get the photos for the articles tomorrow....

Cunningham Couloir

All week it's looked as if today (Friday) was going to be a washout, but the weatherman suddenly got optimistic and predicted a half decent day. Tom and I had initially thought about doing Fil a Plomb, but with the winds due to increase and some cloud expected in the afternoon we decided to save it for a better day and headed up the Midi with no fixed objective. 

The day got off to a great start as we stood back and watched the race for the abseil anchors from the Midi bridge. Word has got out that the routes accessed via the bridge abseil, on the Midi NW face, are in good nick and they've been getting hammered recently. Tom and I were in no rush and so watched the chaos and once it had subsided, debated what to go for. 

Jon Bracey abbing off the bridge, headed for some hard climbing.

We thought about heading for the Tacul Triangle but didn't fancy the walk, and also considered the Cosmiques icefall but with no info on conditions figured it was a long shot. We eventually decided to follow the hordes over the bridge and go for the "Shit route", so named because the top few metres on the final pitch is formed from frozen "waste products" spilling out from the Midi toilets. No-one we'd spoken to was heading for it, and we'd heard it was a good route (provided you didn't sniff too much on the final few metres).

The ab off the bridge was as gripping as ever, but the abs went smoothly enough and we were soon at the foot of the route. Unfortunately the team ahead of us had changed their minds and decided to do "our" route so we let them get onto it and settled into our down jackets. Things started to go wrong when we noticed just how slowly they were climbing and how much ice they were sending down the route. The speed they were going we figured that they might not even make the last bin, meaning that we wouldn't either - not good. By this stage it was too late to ab down further and join the queue on the other routes so there was nothing for it but to climb up the Cunningham Couloir, under the bridge and onto the Midi N face.

I'd always thought that the Cunningham looked a bit chossy but easy enough. Turns out it is about Scottish grade 3, but it feels like everything is held together with blu-tac so both Tom and I got a pretty harrowing, low angled chossy lead. Safe to say I won't be doing it again, but it's good to know that you can escape in dire straights. 

Tom Moores describing the excellent climbing that can be found in the Cunningham Couloir.

Bird, Blanc, Bottle.

Bad weather on the way now and the Midi shuts for 7 weeks starting on Monday, so summer is officially over. Let it snow!