This was the second tour of the season; I was on my own as both the OH and dog were off games recovering from the previous day, so thought I'd film commentating, as in the past a few have said that they found it interesting.
The area is one of my favourite sectors and we often take people up there who have not ski-toured before, so this video could almost be a taster for those contemplating ski-touring.
Though with those new to touring I would try to take an easier route, but, conditions often dictate what route to take as you'll see in the video, plus you have to be aware of the people skiing ability vs the snow-pack.
The scenery is rather lovely, and hopefully, you'll get a feeling of the vast expanse of terrain up there. The day before we were privileged to have two chamois bounding along in front of us.
The start was just before the main tunnel, 1.5km below the Col du Lautaret, climbing up towards the Galibier road at 2,350 and then along the Vallon de Roche Noire, before climbing up to around 2,600. So around 600m vertical.
Conditions were cold, minus 4 with a chilly wind higher up, in a group i'd probably stop for drinks and snacks a couple of times, taking a picnic at the transition, that's when you prepare to go back down, taking your skins off etc, and if you thought skiing involved a lot of faffing then with ski-touring you embark on a whole new journey into the world of faffing
Though this time of year, daylight can very quickly go and temps drop like a stone, so hanging around is not encouraged, hence spring ski touring is so much more socialble.
I usually try and keep my videos to below the minute, but this is not the same genre that I usually do!
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
