The Unofficial Portes du Soleil not-the-weather Thread

A snowHead

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Avoriaz was EPIC today, 6" heavy un-tracked powder everywhere offpiste, all pistes complete packed-powder, 50% sun (just enough cloud to stop it getting heavy), +1 degrees, and practically no-one there!!

That's all... Razz

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A snowHead

You're very cruel, Shep. (Glad you're having a good time)

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

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Arbis eh? My own experiences of that have been like a snowy Zulu dawn

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

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"snowy Zulu dawn"...... Laughing

classic!
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Well, it's just when you stand below those drops and watch wave after wave of out of control European youth come hurtling over the top only to fall over, collide with other people and generally create mayhem. You catch my (Rourke's) drift?

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Well I think that's long enough, welcome back everyone Very Happy

There is a post on the Champoussin Facebook page about the proceeding installation of a new chairlift at Bochasses, to replace the old long t-bar - it runs up the long valley between Morgins and Champoussin. Anybody "on site" who can confirm?

However one poster seems to be saying something about them hoping to do another lift from the "départ" of this one to Point de L'Au. I thought I could speak French, but I must admit I don't know if "départ" refers to the point where the lift departs (i.e., the bottom) or the point where you depart from the lift (i.e., the top).

Logically it has to be the latter I think, as there is no way a lift could be built from the bottom of Bochasses all the way to Point de L'Au without cutting across several others and Champoussin itself.

This is something that's been on the cards for at least seven years; maybe in another seven, it will be built rolling eyes

and then all we need is another in the opposite direction from Crosets to replace the one that was discontinued to make way for apartments.

After all it is free

Don't recall seeing anything when I was there in July MTBing. Lift-world mentions a 6person at Bochasses, with construction date of 2012 though. Maybe I wasn't paying enough attention to the surroundings.

Thanks sanman, is it that time already...? Shocked

Don't know about the Bochasses chair, other than as you say it's been mooted for a long time. As for the Point de l'Au afaik "départ" is always the bottom. Never say never about the ingenuity of the lift engineers, it makes more sense to connect from the lowest point possible (although I would have bet on the start-point being the Champoussin car-park at the bottom of the Sépaya chair, where I remember an old 2-man starting that used to link to the bottom of the existing Pdl'A chair).

Re. the Crosets side, be careful what you wish for! The off-piste on all three sides of the Pdl'A has been epic since the old chair was removed, preventing the Crosets and Avoriaz hoi-polloi (especially the boarders wink

) easy access to the peak has been a god-send (reminds me of how great the french side of the Mossette used to be before the 6-man was installed and turned it into a rocky bump-run).

When I were a lad mumble mumble.......... rolling eyes

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Well there is certainly something going on out there. I found the attached via Google: http://www.air-glaciers.ch/collombey/index.php/fr/news/92 Can't work out exactly where it is but they look to be keeping busy!

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Have revisited the Facebook post, and what it actually said was "il était prévu au départ qu'il y en ait un qui amène directement à la pointe de l'au", so I think it actually means "it was foreseen/intended from the outset that there would be one which led directly to the PdeLA". In other words "au départ" meaning "from the outset" rather than referring to a geographical spot.

I can see that the logical thing would be to continue the lift beyond the top of Bochasses, to the left and up to the Pointe from there, either as a separate lift or as a two-stage job where you can get off half way or stay on.

That would also improve access to "Piste Didier Defago" from Morgins, although there would still be about 200km of poling at the bottom to get back to town.

This ties in with what we were previously told, namely that the new link from Champoussin/Morgins to the Pointe would be from behind the mountain (relative to the Val D'Illiez) not from the front where it currently is. When we can find anything out at all, of course ... the Swiss have a knack of being very polite with foreigners but keeping them well and truly in the dark, lest they get any ideas about being anything other than foreigners Very Happy

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So some interesting ski-lift tittle-tattle from the french-side...... Work on the new Avoriaz super-gondola got off to a good start back in March, slated for a December opening. A rather over zealous bit of dynamiting in June not only fractured the rocky lump the lower pylon needs to stand on to the extent that the pylon has to be made taller; but the flying shrapnel fatally damaged one of the suspension cables of the old teleferique!

The old lift was deemed beyond economic repair for the sake of one summer season's use, leaving the only link from Morzine to Avoriaz for non-drivers this summer a combination of the super-morzine bubble and special hourly (apart from lunch - natch wink

) shuttle bus linking it to Avoriaz. Meanwhile the satellite-village of Les Prodains at the bottom of the cable-car which has enjoyed the passing trade for the last 50 years, was left high and dry with tumbleweed blowing through the streets....

More worryingly, the safety-net of the old lift still being operational is gone, so any construction delays or teething problems with the new lift could see a debacle come December. I popped up to Prodain last week, and there seems to be ever such a lot still to do Confused

. They must be praying for a November like last year - meanwhile I'm considering cornering the local market in coach-tyre snowchains!
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Ouch, or as the French would say, Ouf. i've never been over to Avoriaz in summer but I know the village area at Prodains and that must have been a real blow.

I see your concern about lack of back up if the new lift isn't ready. Super Morzine will be busy if Prodains is out. "Le Petit Train" will have to become a little "plus grand" if it is going to handle all that additional traffic.

It is amazing what they can do in a summer, however, so I wouldn't worry too much. I suppose the biggest worry is getting it ready in time for the inevitable safety inspections by the authorities and subsequent four week wait for the issue of paperwork... this being France after all.

You know it makes sense.

shep, we also popped along to Prodains last week and were rather taken aback by how much needs to happen. Somewhere on a Morzine mairie website it does mention that a new cable will be put in to allow the old lift to run as the new lift will not be operational at the start of the season. We also drove around Avoriaz and saw the top part - still an enormous building site - still miracles can happen.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Good find Pamski, and good news for the coach-loads of schoolkids over xmas and new year. I wonder if the blasting contractor's insurance is paying, or joe punter?? I try not to use it these days, but have happy memories of being the only passenger down at 7am every Saturday to organise the fleet of Bladon Lines overland coaches arriving in Cluses (EZJ, all is forgiven!).

Also hanging-out in the driver's cabin in the top station with my mate Antoine seeing how late he could leave it before putting the brakes on!! No elf'n'safety in those days Shocked

. It's all automated now - and waaay slower rolling eyes

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Do you remember seeing the old suspension cable all tangled up in the trees below? It broke free when they were winching it up in '61 and was only recovered about 10 years ago.

So at over £5M a pop, here's SAMA's record of suspension cable failures (normally a lift-lifetime component)

1 lost in the woods during construction Blush

2 fire damaged when the bottom station burned Embarassed

2 almost rusted through..... (economising on grease Mad

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1 hit by (their own) shrapnel Skullie

A snowHead

shep, we rarely use it - if we do ski from Prodains we have nearly always used the chairlift.
Ah, Bladon Lines....
Not much H&S nowadays in France is there - I struggled to see anyone in a hard hat either at Prodains or on any of the multitude of building projects that are going on in Les Gets right now.

A snowHead

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Pamski, I chatted to some of the people working on a hotel in Les Gets - their tales terrified me! I forget the rest of the world doesn't operate to our building H&S standards.

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doctor_eeyore, I do find it funny when dates are promised. You just know that this will catastrophically antagonise the gods of project management.

c.f. the new 30kph peage lane after the Vallee Verte exit in Geneva direction - honking great posters advertising it's availability at the end of August... one month later and it's shut (in fairness it may have been open, but it certainly wasn't yesterday.)

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Yup, I believe so, at least from the artist's impressions I've seen. No doubt there will be a lift for mobility/luggage, but as far as I can see the rest of us are lugging gear up 1 1/2 floors of stairs...

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

When we were in Taninges a couple of weeks ago we saw that the 'red eggs have all disappeared from where they were at the bottom of the hill - perhaps going to reappear in Bulgaria? -and that there arenow a bunch of 'yellow eggs' there waiting to be sold presumably.

After all it is free

Thanks Doc

Had a quick look at www.morzine.fr, can't find the bulletins but will try again later when i've got more time. However looking at the Maire's photo, I did wonder if the guys who thought they had arrested Radovan Karadzic had got the wrong man?

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Whilst we are on the subject of new skilifts the following may be of interest. http://www.lemessager.fr/Actualite/Chablais/2012/08/30/article_deux_remontees_mecaniques_pour_relier_su.shtml

Looks like they have finally set a date to link Super Chatel with Linga via two lifts which will start near Lac de Vonnes. Once this is done the circuit will be complete with no need to use the bus to get from Chatel village to Linga or Pre La Joux.

Sadly the date they have set is 18 months away

I am going to be in Chatel the first two weekends of December whilst Mrs DJL spends the week between them supervising the refurbishment of our kitchen. Just realised that there could be limited skilift opening. I might kick off my season in style with four days on the slopes! What chance of decent snow? Anyone likely to be out there?

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Hurray
- I hate the tramp up that little hill and the steps from the bus, we usually end up having a row over whose stupid idea it was to do that route that day, shame about the eighteen months but fingers crossed it doesn't lengthen into two or three years.

Oh? Bus was always like sardines too. Forget getting off at any location other than when the entire bus offloads.

One time we peeled off the piste to the right and followed a track down to Chatel (probably the one I rode on the bike this yr, but it all looks different in summer). Came out at SuperChatel, with a bit of poling, and along to the lift. Skipped the entire bus and walk up the hill bit.

You know it makes sense.

andy, yes, we have also done that - and doesn't it all look different in the summer!

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

andy, If you are skiing down from the top of Linga and keep right all the way you eventually get to a track that leads onto a forest road (Chemin des Ramines) which crosses a bridge and then appears next to the little chapel opposite the lake at Vonnes. It's a popular mountain bike route so you could well have done that. I've not skiied it but it would be doable but with quite a bit of poling I would think. Then you need to get to the Super Chatel lift. There is a path from the far side of the lake which leads there. It's always seemed a bit of a mission to me so on the occasions that I don't have the car I tend to suffer the bus.

I still haven't worked out exactly where they will put the new lifts. There has been some forestry work below the road leading to the lake I mentioned above which looks like it could form a piste down to the bottom of Linga and a lift from Vonnes giving access to that would allow Super Chatel - Linga but I'm not sure how you would get the other way.

A snowHead

A snowHead

Now I understand!

The lift Linga to Vonnes is basically a horizontal transport from the bridge on "Chemin des Ramines" to Vonnes with no gain/loss of altitude. You can reach the bridge from the top of Linga by the route andy mentioned and you can get from the bridge to the bottom of Linga by the route that I noticed had been cut through the woods.

The lift Vonnes to Super Chatel will end up near Restaurant "Portes du Soleil" between the double drag lift and the drag lift to the snowpark. Not sure there is a piste route to the Vonnes- Linga lift so that might be a download.

Implications could well be increased queues at the Linga gondola as people on the circuit take the new lift and then up on the gondola rather than hiking through town and bus to Pre la Joux. Still it's progress and well done to the new mayor. I think he's after a stage on the Tour de France as well.

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Brrrr... that's going to be cold going clockwise on a January morning ' Blue

'! Two chairs and two drags with no skiing in between, from Linga to the top of Super-Chatel! I quite fancy the bus and the bubble Laughing

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But yes, it is huge progress and very welcome! Should also open up a load of off-piste into the Col de Morgins from both sides ' Twisted Evil

'

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

FlyingStantoni, I'll drop you a line nearer the time.

Exciting - I've never skiied that early in the season!

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2-way lift? (or 2 of them maybe). Sella Ronda loop has a couple (and I think 1 more kind of planned).

I could expect a few queueing blackspots if there was a full PdS itinerary in both directions. Linga might be one of them. IIRC it used to be an oldish gondola followed by a rickety old chair heading up from there going anti-clockwise back towards Morzine/Avoriaz (not skied there for a few years now, and on the MTB you skip a lot of lifts/pistes and traverse more, so memory is a bit hazy) ?

Been saying for years I ought to go back. Maybe this year (but it'll have to be a long weekend).

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

andy, There is a new fast 6 seater chair that replaces the rickety old 3 man up to the top of Linga. Opened winter 10/11 I think. The gondola from the bottom of Linga is still the same one but is fairly efficient. Some nice angled slopes in that area for practising drills which is where I usually end up if I have a lesson. The snow can suffer low down though it is much better now with the snow making equipment

After all it is free

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under a new name Ah yes, I forgot to follow the unwritten rule of Flying Stantoni (as applies to Changabang in Avoriaz etc.) ie "it's crap, don't go there"!

jellylegs the new super-gondola goes from the opposite side of the road in Les Prodains from the old cable-car (which is now in a rockfall no-construction-zone), to a bit to the right of the old top-station at what is now Place Jean Vuarnet (or Place de la Gare in old money) in Avoriaz.

The version planned from Morzine town centre to the top of Avoriaz was tragically cancelled a few years ago due to cost and parking problems. The new Prodains bottom-station is designed such that it can one day become a middle-station if they ever build the Morzine-Prodains bit. Funding for this was guaranteed should Annecy have won the (2018?) winter olympic bid, but we didn't so it's not Sad

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The Unofficial Portes du Soleil not-the-weather Thread

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The Unofficial Portes du Soleil not-the-weather Thread