 Poster: A snowHead
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It's not nothing
Not many people know this but God did not actually rest on the seventh day. After a hard week's graft, he created blue skies, powder snow, fat skis (probably Whitedot), goretex and skived off skiing for the day. These days, every now and then he does it all again (cos he's God and he can). You just have to be in the right place at the right time to hitch the ride.
Mountain Tracks Guide and Director Matt Dickinson puts us five clients in that right place at the right time as the Le Fornet telecabine lifts us above the inversion layer keeping Val D'Isere in dark and gloom. We're greeted by blue sky, sunshine and beneath us, a piste and slackcountry refreshed with overnight snow and barely touched. Off the lift, we head - like pigs in sh*t - straight for the backcountry, past the boundary warning signs and into knee-deep untracked powder. By the fourth turn I'm on sensory overload.
The wind is sharp in my face as I slide fast through dunes of frozen water full of diamond white light winking in my periphal vision. My skis suck up that energy, start to float, lift and powder bounce kicks in. Suddenly all I know is my own breathing slowed right down and the rhythm of my poles planting. Then I'm simply not part of the equation anymore. I'm just curling up my toes, gripping the boards and riding zero gravity all the way to the valley bottom. What's not to like? .
At the bottom of the valley, with our week-old expertise, we slap on our skins and begin the 90 minute or so climb to Col de Fours. The sun reflecting off the valley's walls of snow feels nuclear but I quickly get my glide on. It's the sweet spot where the rate of climb combines perfectly with energy expended and I retreat into a slow, sweating, calming and peaceful Zen-like rhythm where the weird feeling of skiing uphill becomes utterly natural.
As usual, Matt prefers to power his skinning with a secret ratio of roll ups and Coke Zero. To each his own. He reckons he's getting lean for the climbing season but already he'd make a ski pole look fat.
At the top of the Col, the powder frenzy returns times two with the sight of the endless hectares of untouched spread out before us. One earlier party has barely scratched the surface. On a rollover, Matt hits a submerged rock and does a neat rolling face plant. James with his bombproof stance shreds perfectly ( https://www.facebook.com/MountainTracks/posts/804324686288626 ), his wife, Emma turns and turns elegantly, Dave slides purposefully and Phil floats on through. Long story short we all just dissolve into our own giggling private powder glee. Hours later back in our Ste Foy chalet, it's still humming round and round our heads.
And that was Day Five of an introductory touring week where each day got better than the last...and the first had already been a Can't-Get-Any-Better-Than-This Day.
Day Four
A whole different ski touring world reveals itself at the top of Foglietta's north face accessed by a 60 minute or so skin from the top of St Foy's Col de l'Aiguille lift. The soft clink clink of our couteaux on the wind-scoured ice felt strangely reassuring. At just shy of 3000m the weather's closing in and the prospect of a drop in angled in the low 40s is turning my trousers brown. Already I've resorted to a short boot pack when I can't handle making a kick turn so close to the edge of the ridge.
Exposure is my demon (always has been and always will be) and the first 20 metres of Foglietta's face is a vicious, rocky sideslip above a very much no-fall zone. I simply cannot comprehend the mindset of people who can relax in such a place. Matt perches himself between me and the drop as I edge myself down, whimpering with fear.
He coaxes, cajoles and orders and from somewhere I find the belief that I will not die today. Nobody else seems that bothered. But I'm slightly gratified to see that once out on the face proper where steep now feels flat, Matt needs a roll up to calm down ... although only from the prospect of being knocked off the hill by one petrified, clumsy client.
To beat the weather, we ski and traverse through a whiteout without stopping and down over snow that turns from powder to ice to crust and back in the radius of one turn. We get to the Refuge de l'Archeboc which, ominously, has two large crosses sticking out of the snow drifting around its front door. It's locked and we sit on a table outside as I huck down the best baguette ever eaten anywhere, anytime. In the history of the world.
No one says much. Matt contemplates the weather and the mountain and repeats a mantra that's been hanging around all week. "It's not nothing," he says. Followed by " I can show you the way but I can't save you". A certain amount of intense and silent introspection follows.
We ski on down through the snowline rising rapidly with spring temperatures. Snow under the skis is reduced to a track a couple of feet wide winding through a forest pungent with pine and larch and round the stone corners of the empty summer village of Le Crot. Finally, on a road we walk and carry which by now I've realised is often standard practice at this time of year. It makes a perfect end to each trip we do.
Day Three
The Grand Col Les Arcs. A classic intermediate ski tour apparently. Accessed from the ski area lifts plus a short skin. On the steep (for me) drop in, a local ski instructor offering some surreal local brew complete with small and again, local, snake in the bottom of the bottle ("You will not be sick for a year". Yeah, right.) does nothing to calm me. Let's just say I made it down.
This is where we were although we did a variation and not the Aiguille Rouge drop in (from Planet Skier at http://planetskier.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/out-of-bounds-in-les-arcs.htm ):
The Reserve Naturelle des Hauts de Villaroger. There are plenty of route variations, but they all take the fall line in the beginning and later veer to the left, eventually making it to the small village, Villaroger. A few hundred meters of walking or pushing is needed before reaching Villaroger. But the payoff is huge. The vertical difference from the top of Aiguille Rouge (elev. 3226m) to Villaroger (elev. 1200m) is a whopping two kilometers. Depending on the chosen entry point into the off-piste routes, this means 1800 to 1900 meters of vertical on the out of bounds part. On one run.
Instructor and off-piste specialist Bryan Hogg comes along and passes on some helpful tips. Lunch on a small glacier. These valleys, steep slopes and gullies surrounded by proper bloody mountains of rock, ice and snow really feel like the backside of nowhere.
Day Two
Col du Monsetti. Remote and beautiful. Lovely long skin in hot sun with cool wind. Getting the hang of these things on my feet now. Soooo pleased I've gone light as possible, sold my first born, left arm and bought a pair of carbon light skis. Must cut handle off toothbrush. On walk out Dave pops out of bindings on creek crossing and nosebuts rock.
Day One
Stunning. Fresh fall of snow. Spend fantastic first morning in Ste Foy slackcountry being checked out by Matt. We try the skins out in the afternoon after accessing lovely plateau via Col de L'Aiguille. Lovely (I'm serious) walk and carry out through summer village of L'Echaillon after skiing down the Vallon du Clou.
I cannot believe the week will get any better than this. I am in for a whole new world of surprise.
Gear
Whitedot Director Carbonlite 178cm skis
Dynafit Beast 16 bindings*
Technica Cochise 130 Pro boots
Accomodation at Auburge sur la Montagne, Ste Foy
http://www.auberge-montagne.com/
Can't recommend it too highly. Andy Mac and his wife, Sue are long time Ste Foy skiers and residents and with their staff, run a very friendly, laid back and well organised operation. Wonderful hosts. Nothing was too much trouble. The chalet is modern but also lived in comfortable with an outdoor tub and sauna shed. Incredible whisky collection. The food by Will the chef is marvellous. Great breakfasts.
Summary
I guess this trip report is aimed at skiers and boarders of a certain skill level and experience who are pondering the step up and investment into touring and the expense of hiring a guide.
I can't see why you wouldn't use a guide to get the most out of this leap into the unknown. Madness not to.
Matt was up early every morning matching several weather reports, the group's skiing ability and fitness plus north and south facing aspects on possible routes and his local knowledge ...and probably several other things I wasn't aware of. The result is that we had a week of exceptional days in exceptional places. We had powder at some time every day with the last day being, well, epic. A bit of luck is always involved but none of that was accidental.
Matt included us in the discussion on routes each evening. Throughout the week, he explained and pointed out avy risk indicators and the reasoning behind his decisions as we skiied.
There were five of us, all of a similar off-piste skiing ability - except James who was in a class of his own - and we all got on really well.
Obvious but highly essential point; guides keep you safe. This leaves you free to relax and enjoy the skiing. I know there are plenty of sHs who are fully equipped to do this stuff themselves but I could not have accessed these places without external encouragement, support and reassurance from someone I could trust. If spending the money hurts so much just ask yourself how much you like your life. Also if you're going to try something new why not make sure you are going to get the best experience possible first time?
The accomodation at Auberge sur la Montagne was as much a part of the week as the skiing. Without a doubt, the two combined made up one perfect storm of a ski trip.
Go light! Then go lighter still! Second obvious point; You also need to be fit.
Touring means you'll never look at mountains the same way again. Which reminds me...I forgot to mention Day Six which we spent in resort in Tignes after our guiding package was over. So here goes...
Day Six
Tignes resort. Look at all these @$*&ing people!
* PS. Skis, bindings, skins and couteaux sorted by sh Spyderjon who also quiver killered my quiver. Makes travelling with more than one set of skis a dream. Thanks Spyderjon!
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Thu 2-04-15 8:57; edited 2 times in total
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Big Paua, fantastic report! Thanks for posting.
I did an Intro to Off-Piste course with Mountain Tracks in January, so have stayed at the Auberge and also thought it was absolutely wonderful, just as you describe. (I wish I were bold enough, fit enough and a good enough skier to do what you've just done.)
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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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Brilliant!
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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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Bump.
I was looking around for an intro to ski touring week and found this.
Great write up; time wise, what's the skiing/touring split on these weeks?
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