The Klein Matterhorn to Valtournenche (Zermatt/Cervinia network) is an absolute epic - did it a couple of times last April, and there's a spectacular new 'reward restaurant' almost at the end of the run - http://www.foyerdesguides.it/sito/index_gallery.php - though that run has one very very minor niggling point - a short chairlift to get you over a ridge on the way down.
Aiguille Rouge to Villaroger (Arc 2000) is, indeed, another superlative run.
Another that could be added to that list is Weissfluh to Küblis (Davos) - said to be 12km.
But 'the mother of them all' always has to be Aiguille du Midi to Chamonix - the Vallée Blanche - said to be 22km. This is the best online guide to it that I know:
The Aletsch Glacier, sadly these days it is not quite as long as it used to be but in the days of my father one got the first train up to Jungfraujoch, then skied all the way down to somewhere near Brig and got more or less the last train back if snow conditions were good at the end I think this was over 25km long.
There's also the run from Piz Gloria to Laterbrunnen which is I think about 13.5km long
The whole of the Jungfrau region has many runs between 7km and 8km in length
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Comedy Goldsmith wrote:
Any other epic suggestions?
I remember Verbier's Tortin being quite long and somewhat wilder than say Sarenne. But can a lift-served piste in high season ever really be called 'epic' ? If the Vallee Blanche and say Tortin are allowed, what about Vallons de la Meije in la Grave ? That's quite long too.
Aiguille Rouge to Villaroger (Arc 2000) is, indeed, another superlative run.
unless it's in thick Fog/Cloud then it's just chuffin hard work. The only plus in those conditions is the restaurant at the bottom for a nice bowl of hot meaty food and glass of wine.
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There's a 14km run on the Stubai (the Wilde Grub'n or something). Classified as a ski route but pretty much always groomed. Most of the time it sucks, fairly flat, some narrow cat tracks, usually full of incompetent people endangering themselves and everyone else, presumably 'cos they want to ski 'the longest run.' Pretty sketchy late season, one particular cat track has HUGE exposure to big wet slides, far worse than Happy Valley in St Anton for instance. Does have some nice offpiste variations to it though.
After all it is free
After all it is free
iirc, the Inferno is almost 15km and that doesn't go right from the top of the Schilthorn
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ansta1,
Quote:
unless it's in thick Fog/Cloud then it's just chuffin hard work. The only plus in those conditions is the restaurant at the bottom for a nice bowl of hot meaty food and glass of wine.
Don't be a tart
Aggy Rouge to Villaroger is a fantastic run. One of my favs. Some nice steep stuff at the top to get the blood pumping, opening out into a nice bowl, then into a fairly narrow section under some cliffs before heading below the tree line to wider slopes again. Nice views to be had the whole way. Sure it gets a bit tedious at the bottom and the snow ain't as good. But eh you're going down to 1200, what do you expect.
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Layne,
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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ansta1 wrote:
Quote:
Aiguille Rouge to Villaroger (Arc 2000) is, indeed, another superlative run.
unless it's in thick Fog/Cloud then it's just chuffin hard work. The only plus in those conditions is the restaurant at the bottom for a nice bowl of hot meaty food and glass of wine.
Ha - walked out of their after being ignored by very rude waiter. Would never ever ever go back.
Nice run though down - mind you late season the bottom can be interesting
Actually this is also a nice run to cheat on with non confident skiers, as can pick up run half way and then loop off on roads to get to same place. I'll always remember it for skiing over the cliff near the top and getting stuck between the safety netting and cliff edge
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.
Klein Matterhorn to Valtournenche is not one continuous piste, it's a few snippets of various pistes until you get to Cime Bianche, then a short chairlift ride up to get to piste 1 down to Valtournenche.
Vallée Blanche is not a piste at all.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Boris, Lost track of the number of restautants in les Arcs area we have walked out of due to surly staff attitudes.
In one, we were told NOT to sit down until the table had been cleared, on looking around there were several other non cleared tables.
So we didn't sit down......ever again in that restaurant.
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
what are the rules for "longest run"? one continuous piste/itinerary? one way fo getting from a peak or col to a valley?
Must be loads of cols that you could find a 17km or 21km wiggly windy road that's closed in winter, and not a designated piste.
Also loads like Kaltenbach, where you could pretty much choose one of several traverses from the far end of the piste map across numerous indicated pistes, and continue on to a final black run right down to the valley. I assume the Valtournenche one is similar and that the quoted distance counts all the bits leading to the top of the main route.
Managed a 17km MTB descent in Maribor, Slovenia. That might be skiable on a snowy day right to the valley.
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
boredsurfin,
Quote:
In one, we were told NOT to sit down until the table had been cleared, on looking around there were several other non cleared tables.
Err, sorry what was the issue? Did you not want to wait a couple of minutes while it was cleared? Did you feel that it would be a long wait? Do you think he was just trying to annoy you? Curious, as it seems a reasonable request to me, provided they got to it quickly.
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
In Valfrejus from the highest point on Punta Bagna you can follow Combe (blue) and then Le Jeu (blue) all the way back to the base station - a total of around 11km.
Loops bottom right and left hand side of this:
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Wed 2-10-13 14:06; edited 1 time in total
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Cascades from the top of Flaine down to Sixt is 14km, but I'm not exactly sure where they measure that from as you have to do a good bit of Serpentine along the ridge first.
Did it with our 5yo last year, it took a while as I had to tow him on some bits. He was very please with himself when we got to the bottom. Did it again the following day with his big brother (11 at the time) and we absolutely flew down - didn't stop all the way and it took us about 50 minutes, my legs were dead after the slushy March bumps at the bottom.
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?
Simple maths suggests that the longest route from mountain to valley is also the flattest. Surely the best proxy for a run's epicness is the uninterrupted vertical?
With reference to the previous threads about resorts lying about the actual total length of piste in their resorts does this thread consider the actual length of the piste or do we multiply them by 1.5 to account for the turns that skiers might feel inclined to make on the way down? Or even what our GPSs measured.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
boredsurfin wrote:
Boris, Lost track of the number of restautants in les Arcs area we have walked out of due to surly staff attitudes.
In one, we were told NOT to sit down until the table had been cleared, on looking around there were several other non cleared tables.
So we didn't sit down......ever again in that restaurant.
Isn't it uncomfortable to eat standing up? Especially in ski boots.
Simple maths suggests that the longest route from mountain to valley is also the flattest. Surely the best proxy for a run's epicness is the uninterrupted vertical?
Winner winner chicken dinner.
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I reckon Glenshee could be a winner if they just marked out a tight, spiral ski run going around and around the Cairnwell.
After all it is free
After all it is free
The 'Bellunese' from the Marmolada (3270m), the highest peak in the Italian Dolomites, down to Malga Ciapela (1450m) is 12km long. A red thigh-burner for the first half, then flattens out to a cruisy blue. Impressive 1820m vertical. A 3-stage cablecar whisks you back up to the top.
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Layne wrote:
ansta1,
Quote:
unless it's in thick Fog/Cloud then it's just chuffin hard work. The only plus in those conditions is the restaurant at the bottom for a nice bowl of hot meaty food and glass of wine.
Don't be a tart
Aggy Rouge to Villaroger is a fantastic run.
I think you may be reading what he actually wrote, rather than what he intended. The lack of punctuation has virtually reversed what I think he intended to say.
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queen bodecia wrote:
Klein Matterhorn to Valtournenche is not one continuous piste, it's a few snippets of various pistes until you get to Cime Bianche, then a short chairlift ride up to get to piste 1 down to Valtournenche.
Vallée Blanche is not a piste at all.
Define "piste"
Remember that a literal translation just means track.
If you can clip your skis on at the top and ski all the way to the bottom without having to walk or get a lift (or pole much), then I would argue that is a continuous run no matter what the map may suggest.
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alex_heney, that's why I started a new paragraph. I know he wasn't dissing the run. Any road, trust me, he is a tart. I sat next to him in an office for several years
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.
I like the look of that Bellunese run. I'm planning a trip to go to Alp D'Huez and really want to do the Sarenne run from the top. I need more confidence on bumpy black runs first though.
Not sure how long the run is but in Zermatt I liked skiing from Matterhorn Glacier Paradise (3883) back down to town (1680).
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
At Les Deux Alpes you can ski from the top of the Glacier at 3600m down to Mont de Lans at 1300m which is a total vertical of 2300m. Although it's not one named piste it can be done without taking a lift and there are actually a few different ways it can be done. I don't know exactly how many km it is but it must be 15 or more I guess especially if the flattest route is taken. I'll measure it by gps next time I'm there.
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
The longest black run in the alps is reported to be the Goldeck North near Millstätter lake, Kärnten in Austria. It's 8.5 km long.
Last edited by You know it makes sense. on Thu 3-10-13 6:47; edited 1 time in total
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
The Vermalen run in Sonnenkopf is said to be the longest run in Austria - 11m Long with a 1300m descent. Krippenstein - Dachstein, Austria also Claim to have an 11km run.
Quote:
Die „Vermalen“ auf dem Sonnenkopf im Klostertal (Vorarlberg). Die Abfahrt ist elf Kilometer lang und hat 1300 Höhenmeter
The Valluga in St Anton is 10.2 km with a descent of 1500m
Quote:
Die „Valluga“ in Sankt Anton am Arlberg (Tirol). Mit 10,2 Kilometer (1500 Höhenmeter) die längste Arlberg-Piste
This subject isn't exactly fresh, and the one thing I was puzzled about and was going to ask was "what's the longest run in Austria?"
I did a bit of Googling yesterday on this subject and the conventionally-published online articles don't go very far. This is already - one day in - thanks to citizen journalism and pooled knowledge of snowHeads- perhaps the most valuable resource on this subject to date.
That's without checking the archives of regular ski journalism. A dusty old 'ski encyclopaedia' book might have deeper info. I might give Chris Gill, who founded the Consumers Association's Good Skiing Guide and now publishes Where to Ski and Snowboard a bell. I'll also have a chat with Arnie Wilson, the hugely travelled ski writer.
moffatross wrote:
I reckon Glenshee could be a winner if they just marked out a tight, spiral ski run going around and around the Cairnwell.
Amusing! Putting on a McSerious hat I guess the run from the top of Glencoe via the Plateau (which is actually a gentle downhill stretch), and all the way down to the carpark, is the longest conventional run in Scotland. It's marked on the ski map and is open at points in the winter. The final stretch is usually 'combat skiing' (i.e. not much base) but I've done it and it's fun! Maybe Glencoe could come on here and let us know an estimated run length for that one?
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
I am now totally in favour of Jonny Jones's, suggestion. It is really only the vertical difference that counts. We can all extend the length of a run by zig zagging all the way down either on the piste or the piste itself can wind tediously down the hill.
So after reading all the above posts it appears that Claude B's, run at Les 2 Alpes is the winner and in second place is kfyh's, descent in Zermatt. Both really sound worth doing if you like the experience of dropping over 2km and experiencing a change from high mountain to alpine pasture and a probable 13 degree temperature rise
How long is the Hidden Valley (Lagazuoy - Dolomites)?
alex_heney wrote:
Vallée Blanche is not a piste at all.
Quote:
Define "piste"
Remember that a literal translation just means track.
If you can clip your skis on at the top and ski all the way to the bottom without having to walk or get a lift (or pole much), then I would argue that is a continuous run no matter what the map may suggest.
The Vallee Blanche classic route (there are several others), though much skied and often like a piste, is an off piste route across a much cravassed glacier which you are advised to have a guide to go down. It is not an itinerary and is not marked. By definition an off piste route is not a piste.
If off-piste routes are allowed there are many very long ones (eg the Col de Gebroulaz (above Val Thorens) to Pralognan, which is 20km and 2,000m vertical).
I agree, though, that it is vertical which counts. The Alp d'Huez link-ups sound the greatest (I have done this off-piste) but the greatest vertical on a proper black piste is claimed to be (and I think is) Aiguille Rouge to Villaroger in Les Arcs (as already mentioned) which is about 2,100m vertical.
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Thu 3-10-13 11:41; edited 4 times in total
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Quote:
How long is the Hidden Valley (Lagazuoi - Dolomites)?
About 7 miles (10.5 km)
After all it is free
After all it is free
snowball wrote:
How long is the Hidden Valley (Lagazuoy - Dolomites)?
Nobody knows ( it's hidden ).
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Sadly
Quote:
At Les Deux Alpes you can ski from the top of the Glacier at 3600m down to Mont de Lans at 1300m which is a total vertical of 2300m.
is bigger than 2100.
The last couple hundred metres of the Aiguille Rouge is a blue and there are red sections along the way. There are some other quite big descents in Les Arcs such as from the Grand Col to Pre st Espirit, or Col du Chal to Vallandry both of which are non stop blasts for lunch with good restaurants at the end of each.
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The Villaroger run used to be marked as a black all the way (I think we can probably agree that the Alp d'Huez and Deux Alpes routes are mostly very blue). On looking at the piste map I see that the central section is marked red now, though there are black options for the late parts ( as well as the blue ones). So OK, it isn't a black, though I think it is (probably) the steepest 2,000 plus metres of piste.
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