 Poster: A snowHead
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simo1234, Death Couloir is certainly challenging, but I beleive that it can lead to lift-pass confiscation if you're caught, no ? Which is the LEFT option ?
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Half way down the couiloir in a large rock - the snow goes to the left and the right of this - you must take the left option.
Regarding losing the ski pass - I have not heard of ski pass confiscation specifically for skiing down this couloir but the pisteurs can confiscate for skiing down any closed piste.
If you get a chance to do it in good snow then enjoy. The top bit is steep and narrow but opens up to a lovely (normally untouched) few hundred metres of powder.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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The top bit might have been lovely on smooth on Thursday but by the time I went down this Sunday afternoon and it had turned it one of those moghully routes where the terrain seems to be making all the decisions. You just hope the previous 10 people didn't go straight over the cliff, because you are stuck following their tracks ! Might have been sensible to try my big new skis on something tougher rather the long green Verdons run before bouncing my way down here. Felt much better on the couloir proper and, in my mind at least, got a bit of a rhythm going for the critical last 200m where you are being judged by the passers by.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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What's the drop o of Saluire that you can see from the lift going up from the Meribel side? Its so long ago that I've been there and memory ios a bit hazy
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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snowploughdave, welcome to snowHeads  .
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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isn't that the couloir that simo 1234 is referring to
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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this thread has some more details on the courchevel couloirs
http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=185347&highlight=courchevel#185347
When you ski (?) the cat track you pass three other couloirs 1 to meribel and 2 down the courchevel side. They are all a bit trickier than the GC but dont get bumpy (few ski them). The reason I mention this is that it can help you relax on the cat track if you know that the edges are not actually shear drops but alternative routes down!
In terms of the GC being open, my experience is that it is seldom closed. Think it just proves what a crappy January Courchevel has had that the GC has been too thin. When I worked my ski season there it opened at Xmas and was only closed on a few days for avalanche risk.
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dan100,
If thats it, it opens out quite quickly so only the first couple of turns to deal with - but its a long time ago, so........
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there are good guides to the couloirs on maddog guides and a nice picture of those on Co side on www.courchevel.com on iteniaires section
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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So could all EOSBers who wish to ski the Grande Couloir assemble here?
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admin, <The solution is to have the nerve to ski the ridge on one side of the erm, ridge. That way your skis have something to bite on.>
That did actually look the safest, but shame on you for starting another traversing thread hehehe 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Would of skied it last time I was there but I was a bit off couloir at the time
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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ever thought of sending that video to Warren Miller. He may be short of a few extreme shots for his next release!
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You know it makes sense.
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ever thought of sending that video to Warren Miller. He may be short of a few extreme shots for his next release!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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feb/march is definitely the best time to ski it but in my experience you don't need to wait until its officially open to give it a go. If you have enough mountain knowledge or are with a suitably advanced skier then you should be able to tell when its skiable or not. Early on in the season it is very rocky and because of the nature of the slope, it takes a while for the rocks to be sufficiently covered. There are a few other couloirs running off it that are often better skiing as they are less skied and therefore less mogully. The snow can be very hard and icy at times making it very difficult and not so pleasurable. The descent down to meribel on the other side of the ridge is steeper, more dangerous but usually much better skiing and needs much less snow. The top of it is very steep and needs to be taken very carefully but it soon widens and becomes much more manageable. Towards the bottom, as you are getting towards the piste and the slope begins to even out there are lots of rocks so if you are trying this descent early on in the season then stop and take it very slowly form there, or better yet traverse to the left back up onto the piste.
bon ski
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Poster: A snowHead
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If you look at kamikaze's photo you can see a couple of tracks starting off down the "sheer drop". (Well it is very steep, I admit)
I've never found the GC closed, I must say, though I've never been earlier than the 2nd week in January and not at all recently..
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I skied it this morning with my nine-year-old daughter. With her short skis and low centre of gravity, she made much less of a meal of it than I did.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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4 Year Bump, impressive  .
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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But then the Grand Couloir is a timeless classic
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Skied this 03/17. Enough snow, but poor condition, heavily moguled making the 2 steep lips a bit tricky. That said, the run itself isn't overly hard, but the access path is, unless you've got freshies: you'll be off the side if you bail a turn.
Recomend you do it if in town, but deffo not for beginners or intermediates.
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