 Poster: A snowHead
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Yes, we've bitten the bullet, pulled the pin and have our house on the market in readiness for a move to the Alps!!!!!
I was always going to retire in a couple of years, but after a recent visit (Shopb2014) I thought "actually, this is not a bad place to see out our retirement", so promptly booked Hells Bell's apartment in Monetier for the last week of June and took Mrs KenX out for a visit.....
It ticks all the boxes, obviously I'm a mad keen skier, the OH less so, but there's X-country skiing...
Also 2 markets a week, endless dog-walking and the Mediterranean is only 4 hours away 
We're also keen mountain bikers and the lake at Embrun is fantastic for windsurfing and only an hour away!
Not sure which village to choose, but we'll most likely rent for a while before we buy, watch this space
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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KenX, OH YES !!!!!! Do it. Wish I could do it too.
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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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Hells Bells, Thanks Helen, fwiw, you've been a part of our decision
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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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KenX, glad to be of assistance. 
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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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KenX, how exciting! I look forward to reading how things progress
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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It's going to be hard work and will take a few months or more, but will keep you all posted!!!
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KenX, great!
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Pedantica, you will have to come to Serre Chevalier and find out why we all love it so much
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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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Hells Bells, I will, but getting my fingers burnt on another property in France is not on my agenda! 
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Great news, but seem to recall reading some where that the weather here in the summer can be a little..................
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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KenX, that sounds very exciting. 
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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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Weathercam, Don't wee wee on our bonfire Gavin!
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KenX, Excellent. Very exciting. Obviously make sure you're in before winter and of course (presumably) the next off piste bash.
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You know it makes sense.
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KenX, good work! I'm looking for someone who can do some MTB scouting in that region...
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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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Poster: A snowHead
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KenX,
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Hells Bells, nice. There must be plenty of goat tracks I guess and some proper back country terrain.
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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More street cred than Eastbourne 
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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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snowbandit,
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Sharkymark, shedloads of the stuff, sometimes I often wish I had an MTB just to explore terrain rather than hiking.
Today was on the road bike exploring a valley I was in last summer and eventually had to turn back as no good on the road bike - will drive up there this avro with the Mrs and dogs - and is so quiet compared to Nevache where we ended up yesterday, mind you the hike down think we saw all of fifteen or so peeps
And this is one of the classic MTB climbs here http://www.climbbybike.com/climb.asp?Col=Mont-Prorel&qryMountainID=12001
Plus if you look on google map Col de Granon you'll see that from the top (there are various off road routes going up to there from La Salle les Alpes) there is a route going all the way back down the other side which is interdit to cars and motorbikes.
If you had two cars between a group so you could do some great stuff dropping a car off etc and then going back over to it, in much the same way as some of the routes the off piste bash did.
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How old are you Ken? Did you think about renting your house out or maybe selling your current house and using the income generated to rent in France rather than buying? Serre Chevalier may not be the best place to be for all of your retirement and you could be a lot more flexible renting. I know the Brits have this "must buy, must buy somewhere" mindset. There are some real horror stories of Brits marooned in places like SW France now.
On a personal level nothing would persuade me to retire to somewhere as remote as Briancon/Serre Chevalier; but that is just me.
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KenX, Excellent idea! Best of luck to you. When you're considering the quality of the spare room, bear in mind that I like an east facing window. 
Sharkymark, funnily enough, I've just posted something on another thread about the need to check out Serre Che singletrack.
davidof, I'm intrigued by your opinion. Whilst Briancon may be remote from major population centres, I'm not sure what the area is really lacking. But then I do live on a mountain outside Abergavenny, so perhaps my expectations are low...
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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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| Custard the Rabbit wrote: |
| But then I do live on a mountain outside Abergavenny, so perhaps my expectations are low... |
As long as there is the occasional sheep on the hillside what more could one want.....?
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Alastair Pink, yes, we have leisure centres.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Custard the Rabbit, where I was cycling today would be MTB paradise - I took an old military road from just outside Briancon on the Izoard road that is closed to traffic - I was on my road bike and surface was just about ok - saw a few guys on MTB's the road goes all the way up to the top of Montgenevre, if I'd been on a MTB then I could have cycled all the way to the Janus Fort and more - from up there you have a huge number of options - one being the descent down to Vachette that the off piste bash did a few years ago.
What would be good is that you can cycle quickly up that military road and gain altitude to then give you access to the various routes, though I did see the main chair was working. But you could do a very interesting "back country" loop from Serre.
I'll post some pics later & route in the cycling hautes Alpes thread in resort reviews
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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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| Custard the Rabbit wrote: |
davidof, I'm intrigued by your opinion. Whilst Briancon may be remote from major population centres, I'm not sure what the area is really lacking. But then I do live on a mountain outside Abergavenny, so perhaps my expectations are low... |
A real hospital would be on my list for starters (if I were retirement age) plus good transportation links. Remember the OP was talking about selling up, burning his bridges and retiring to the area not just going for a few weeks holiday; in that case why not.
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KenX, I'd be much more in favour of the idea than davidof, but I'd still strongly recommend that you visit the area in early May or in October before moving over there lock, stock and barrel. Mountain/resort towns can be very grim at those times of year (although Briancon is likely to be better than most).
Weathercam, suspect anything "interdit to cars and motorbikes" or only just impassable on a road-bike is likely to be a bit tame for Sharkymark!
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You know it makes sense.
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Hi guys, been v busy selling stuff and marketing the house!!!
I take your point davidof, but lived in Zermatt for 10 years, it doesn't get more insular than that!
To my mind, we get the ski season for almost 6 months and then MTB'ing/hiking/dog-walking/Italy/Mediterranean for 4 months, then 2 or 3 months in between to lick our wounds!
We actually live in a town in Somerset, but know hardly anybody, so hope to rectify that in Serre Che
If we're wrong, then we haven't burnt our bridges, just need to move (again!)
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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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KenX, we're off out in a couple of weeks for our summer break. We usually head off elsewhere for a couple of days, this time to Barolo.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I guess davidof is saying that if you don't like it or have to move, but have bought, you may be stuck there because it may not be easy/quick to sell at a reasonable price. If you rented (even long term) you would be able to move back to e.g. the NHS more quickly if things went wrong.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Understood, but the whole point is retire in the UK, or retire in Serre Chevalier????????????
We can't afford both and are not strangers to living abroad!
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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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| KenX wrote: |
If we're wrong, then we haven't burnt our bridges, just need to move (again!) |
Don't underestimate the complications of selling in France. Be very careful not to overpay for what you intend to buy. There is very little price transparency in France. There are no reliable house price indexes, most of the information is "massaged". In some parts of France you can pay 50% under the price shown in the estate agency window at the moment.
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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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KenX, how is the property hunting coming along?
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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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Davidof, we'll take that on board thanks!
Hells Bells, still not sold our house here so not much point in hunting in SC..........
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FAQ
