 Poster: A snowHead
|
Any snowHeads out there at the same time fancy hooking up at some point? Skiing, lunch, apres or evening (after dinner)?
We're in the main resort up near the DMC. Arrive late on the Saturday, so maybe from Monday onwards?
If so, PM me and perhaps we could exchange numbers or something 
Cheers
Chasseur
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Sun 31-01-10 20:14; edited 1 time in total
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
Must...not...keep...looking...on...here - work to do! Snow forecast in ADH for Monday
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
Chasseur, have fun and leave me some snow for 1st-6th Feb
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
Butterfly, thanks . I'll text some updates on the conditions in Snow Reports to whet the appetite.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chasseur,
Enjoy 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Trip Report – Alpe d’Huez
TO: Rocket Ski
Cost: £349 HB F & T (twin room)
Accommodation: Hotel BeauSoleil
Carrier: Monarch (Luton to Grenoble – 2 hour transfer)
Ski Hire: Nevada Sports, Beregers (by pistes and lifts in centre of ADH)
Skis: Volkl, Tiger Sharks – 168cm
Alpe d’Huez
A very well-linked, high resort on a South-facing plateau in the Massif des Grandes Rousses. The main resort at 1860m links to Montfrais (1650m), Vaujany (1250), Oz en Oisans (1350m), Villard Reculas (1480m) and Auris En Oisans (1600m).
The resort (ADH) offers excellent gentle green runs accessed by a wide variety of chair and drag lifts with the DMC or 1er Troncon telecabin. 2 natural bowls provide excellent beginner slopes directly above the main town. This is one of the best beginner areas I’ve seen – with wide pistes, ideal for perfecting technical skills and building confidence plus immediately accessible steeper/more challenging terrain to progress onto. Runs like Signal, Violettes, Hirondelles and Anemones and Loup Blanc.
For intermediates and advanced skiers, there are so many opportunities for thrilling skiing, whether on or off-piste, moguls, long cruisy or short blasty runs. More on that later.
If I had one slightly negative comment (one I heard also from others over the week) it was that the choice of runs for beginners to progress away from the two main bowls in ADH main resort present some challenges that are often too big a gap to bridge. Blue runs like Couloir from 2700m to 2100m (even experienced skiers tended to avoid it) that gets very busy and very chopped up with some steep sections, the short Dahut where I listened/overheard an English and French instructor explaining that “there were easier reds so take it very cautiously” and Bleu des Lutins a narrow, twisty and quite steep alternative and adjacent run to Poutran, the red linking to Oz.
The grading suggests to the less experienced that there are pistes to aim to move up to and I saw plenty of people skiing them who were falling and generally really struggling. I imagine that those skiers/boarders who successfully negotiate some of those blues would find that there was much more to enjoy in the whole area – a positive. I also suspect that there may well be significant numbers who have their newly found confidence knocked.
Of course, there are some truly excellent areas and pistes for early intermediates too. Auris as an area offers some rolling greens and blues (how fun is Corniche – complete with a bit of steep, rollers, cambers?), some fast and challenging reds and a couple of black. Auris is easy to get to via the “Scare Chair” under the altiport then right onto the Louvets Chair. A good area for mixed ability groups/families to head for IMO.
The resort also offers ice skating and an outside, heated swimming pool plus skidoo hire and probably other activities besides.
Overall: A fantastic weeks skiing with some awesome conditions. Met some new friends, had a fun morning with Nick Dawes and a few of his friends and skied with Snowmobil. Also hooked up for a few hours with a work colleague, Diane, and her family for lunch and some interesting zero vis skiing in heavy, new snow!
I’d certainly go back to ADH, a great resort for beginners, intermediates and advanced sliders, in spite of a concern that the bridge for beginners to early intermediates being a challenge on some of the links.
The first day, Sunday, was about as good a first day that I’ve had – blue skies, pristine pistes and a great re-acquaintance with the planks . Monday was skied in fog, snow and cloud so went up to Pic Blanc where the sun was shining so blasted a blue (Herpie) and then onto Sarenne before lunch which was a very, very welcome stop before heading off to Auris in some foggy conditions!
Tuesday I went over to Auris with the SO for some gentle skiing in the sunshine in the morning before heading back as the cloud came in.
Wednesday was the pick of the week – a blue bird day! Met up with Nick Dawes and a few of his friends and an introduction to La Fare, some great skiing in good company. Thanks again Nick (genuinely sorry we weren’t able to hook up after that). As we took the Alpette cable car we saw 2 chamois on the mountain side which was rather nice. Then off to a lunchtime lesson with Paul (one of our fellow hotel guests) to brush up on technique. My how easy it is to forget some basic principles! The lesson ended on a red mogul run – almost threw the towel in at that point. Totally knackered after a full on morning and lesson. I really don’t like the bumps, though that last run did give me a better grasp of handling them.
Thursday was supposed to be overcast and light snow.....but of course, the sun was shining once again . So more blasting around with Paul and Snowmobil with whom I have a deep admiration. All I’ll say is that Snowmobil qualifies for a free pass and I hope I’m skiing that well when I qualify for one!! Respect!!
Friday am was weak sunshine, a little flat in places and a cruise over to Montfrais and chocorums at Les Airelles a totally charming restaurant with a roaring fire. Could have stayed there to be honest! A couple more runs and then off to lunch at La Grange - a fab pizza restaurant at L’Alpette - with a work colleague and her family. The weather then closed in so we headed up to Come de Petites Rousses to ski in the now heavily falling snow before returning to the hotel via a quick trundle in the ski park.
Some of my favourites:
La Fare – a black run from the blue Chalets beneath L’Alpette 2050 that winds down through the trees to L’Enversin d’OZ. A very pretty run that isn’t always skiable right down to the lift to Vaujany. It is now! And well worth it, more than once 
Vaujaniate – a blue with some steep sections that winds down the valley from Montfrais to Vaujany. Another pretty and fun run.
Violettes – although a green above the ADH main resort, hardly ever used with some fun rollers – a great run for honing carving technique and getting some air out of harms way.
Les Rousses – a red from 2700m (top of DMC, 2eme Troncon). A main link to Montfrais and fast and technical.
Petite Prince – a blue down to Villard Reculas. Not overly demanding but with some wide, cruisy sections, some narrow and a very pleasant, South-facing piste side bar/restaurant to end with 
Souveraine and onto Villard – a very fast, wide red from Signal 2115 down to Villard Reculas. A thrilling rollercoaster that left me with a wide grin......at least until I skied into a thick bank of cloud where vis went to zero in about 2m!! Then it was more grin and bare
Sarenne – well it had to be in there . The 17 km/11 mile run from Pic Blanc. This black run has it all, bumps, steeps, chopped up, fast, narrow, technical and then a lovely track winding through the trees and rocks. It was a bit rubbly in parts and to be honest I hadn’t quite got my ski legs back, so was a bit knackered afterwards. But it is fun, especially in the excellent conditions that currently exist.
To be honest, there are so many terrific runs and so many that I didn’t manage to get to – Campanules, Combe Charbonniere, Edelwiess, Col de Cluy to mention but a few.
Accommodation – Le BeauSoleil
A piste-side, ski in/out hotel ranked as Rocket Ski’s (Ski Plan) flagship accommodation. As far as position goes, couldn’t be bettered really. Ski out (well pole out) to any one of a number of lifts including the DMC telecabin. The hotel principally caters for school groups. There were 90 or so school children in the hotel during our week. They sit for dinner before the other guests and have their own eating area for breakfast. Absolutely no problems at all – they were a credit to themselves and their schools. I hope that doesn’t sound condescending. The hotel isn’t really geared to providing space that suits everyone for après activities, but it wasn’t an issue.
The hotel is clean and tidy and reasonably well run. One or two employees could do with some customer-facing skills including one of the senior managers who was a little “sneery”. Other than that everyone was helpful, informative and interesting to talk to. In fact they were very friendly. The bathrooms (for that read shower rooms) quite possibly were designed, built and occupied by either pigmies or contortionists. But heh, for the money, it would be churlish to complain. Mind you, some paid almost twice as much as we did and, for that, I would certainly be a tad unimpressed.
The evening food was OK and on some evenings better than OK. Portions fine. Cheese platter available for €5 – plenty enough for 2. Breakfast was very samey. Please, please.....bacon and eggs would have made a welcome alternative to bread, ham, cheese, alpen, cornflakes, even once. To be fair, there was fruit and yoghurt too.
The bar was OK. €4 for a pint of Amstel. €10 for bottle of house red. €4.50 for a brandy (small measures, making a double pricey ) They have table football and a pool table, though the older school kids often took these over until bed time at 10.20pm. Bar closes at midnight. It opens onto a large terrace which is in the sunshine in the afternoons. Lunch was reasonably priced and good if one was in the vicinity at that time of day. Open to non-guests. Happy hour was 5-6pm and 9-10pm.
The demand on hot water in the evening led to a marginally warmer than luke warm supply. Recommend showering soon after getting off the piste for a steamy shower, or try in the morning.
The rear of the hotel (where we were) backs onto the nightly migration route for snow bison as they move around to graze on the slopes. The beeping and engine noise can be a little disruptive for those that like a little fresh air in their room at night. Ear plugs, heavy lugs of brandy or exhausted sleep are good remedies It didn’t bother me after night 3!
Beds (twins) very comfy and the duvets nice and warm. Bedrooms cleaned daily. Plenty of hanging and shelf space.
The boot room is huge and warm with security entry code – seemed secure enough, though I did lock my skis each night – more on that. Currently, one can ski to the door
Overall, a pleasant enough place in an excellent position. A bit of a hike to the livelier places in town and uphill on the way back. 5 minute walk to the cash point and Spar. 7 minutes to the nearest Tobac (past the Spar for those who need it!)
Others who had been to the BeauSoleil (with Rocket Ski) recalled that they used to provide afternoon tea and wine with dinner as part of the package. In their opinion the place had gone a little “downhill”.
Chef’s night off: recommended by a seasonaire to La Dahut in the town. Plenty of character with a traditional menu. Four of us went there with an average cost per head of €35 for 2 courses, cheese, 2 bottles of red and 2 glasses of white, water, coffee and complimentary Genepi. Good recommendation.
Ski pass office and ESF: about 150m from the hotel, right by the DMC for the upper part of the resort
TO– Rocket Ski: Did exactly what they said on the tin. No problems and knowledgeable reps. The second time I’ve booked through them and probably not the last.
Carrier: Monarch
On time on the way out (in fact we arrived 30 mins early and then had to wait on the coach for a Manchester flight that was 30 minutes late) and 20 mins delay on the way back. They didn’t have enough food to go around on the return and it was some of the school children on the return that missed out. Totally unacceptable IMO.
We flew over Paris on the way back – a clear night and one could easily pick out the Eiffel Tower and L’Arc de Triumphe. Rather nice. Didn’t really make up for the lack of food. The ham paninis were dreadful – “should do better”.
Skis and ski hire: Recommended to Nevada Sport by work colleague and discount card provided. It was suggested that I ask for Dominic, who runs the Nevada Sport’s 2 outlets. I was after on-piste carvers and had a “hit list” of skis I wanted to try. The first on the list were Volkl Tiger Sharks. Duly provided, fitted and out of the door in 5 minutes. Left my driving licence and no requirement to pay until their return. Nevada Sport seemed to have a good range of equipment for hire or purchase. Cost for what are listed as VIP skis was €103 for the week taking discount into account. Pricey? Some may say. For me, great value for the pure enjoyment. I wouldn’t buy £750 skis and, if I did, that would be c7 weeks skiing during which time I might be looking for the next latest model.
Skis: Volkl Tiger Sharks – 168cm 10ft
The best skis I’ve hired. Awesome carvers, sure, super-grippy and I’ll look for these again. Having walked to Beregers (10 minutes), picked them up, jumped on Marmottes1 (first person on at 9am), then skied back to the BeauSoleil, it was love at first slide....lol!
I’d no prior idea on value, but was informed a few days later that new they’d cost around £750!! Dominic had advised keeping them safe – no wonder, once I’d learned of their retail value. Hence locking them up when they weren’t safely locked into my bindings. Which they were as often as possible!! I only fell off them once, when stationary!! Clearly a ski meant not to dawdle on....lol
Well, I hope that helps some – feel free to ask any specific questions.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
nice write-up - sounds like you had a good time
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thanks, Arno. A great time. I was just having another look at the piste map and realised there is so much more to do.....
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
Chasseur, and once you start exploring the offpiste...
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
Probably face plant exploring  given my inexperience once outside those nice markers......
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chasseur, Nice one, enjoyed meeting up and skiing with you, let me know when you're next in town
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
|
Was in ADH th week before you Chasseur....Did all the runs mentioned but backed out of doing Tunnel due to the continual stories I heard of it being just too difficult with some experts side slipping their way down some sections!!!....Not sure if that's the case though! I travelled from Dublin with Crystal and stayed in the Bergers area and I must admit I'd go back there no problem, some of the best skiing I've had. We did self catering and adjusted our eating to allow us pay the €6.50 in O'Sharkeys for the Guinness......Now trying to persuade Mrs Dover to skip off with me first week in March as there's a deal to Les Deux Alpes!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
|
if you need to sideslip the tunnel you are not an expert
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
|
Hi Mark , it was a very good week , thanks again for the company , may see you both again one day . regards Bill
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
Great write up.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
Skis: Volkl Tiger Sharks – 168cm 10ft
The best skis I’ve hired. Awesome carvers, sure, super-grippy and I’ll look for these again. Having walked to Beregers (10 minutes), picked them up, jumped on Marmottes1 (first person on at 9am), then skied back to the BeauSoleil, it was love at first slide....lol!
I’d no prior idea on value, but was informed a few days later that new they’d cost around £750!! Dominic had advised keeping them safe – no wonder, once I’d learned of their retail value. Hence locking them up when they weren’t safely locked into my bindings. Which they were as often as possible!! I only fell off them once, when stationary!! Clearly a ski meant not to dawdle on....lol
Very nice skis, used them last year.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
