 Poster: A snowHead
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Not looking for a long range weather guru! I'll be driving down to Mottaret overnight 9/3 - 10/3 and wondered what the usual deal is with road conditions up from the valley. I can rent chains for £30 in the Uk and will likely do that - but for anyone with experience of driving up to this area are they often necessary in your experience? I've never needed chains in Europe before, but would rather have them than not. So I guess I've answered my own question! Anyway, if anyone local / experienced with the area has any advice to share I'd appreciate it.
Cheers, Nick
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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If you can rent chains for £30 in the UK, then do it - if they don't charge extra if you actually use them! Otherwise you'll typically find you can buy chains for about the same amount near Meribel - if you need them.
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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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hatpegs, if you search on snowchains in Forum Search you will get a lot of useful advice. In an atempt to summarise quickly.
- It is a legal requirement to have them
- Worth putting them on a sunny afternoon before leaving to test, rather than in dark in blizzard
- take an old rug or something to sit on
- latex gloves will keep hands clean and worst of cold off
- roads are usually cleared very quickly so will probably be fine
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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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| Quote: |
It is a legal requirement to have them
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I think the correct position is that when the road conditions are snowy or icy, it is a requirement to have them and if checked by the police you will not be able to continue without them, or sometimes without putting them on. Most of the time you don't need chains, at any time of the season, but when you need them, you really need them, and will get nowhere safely without them (regardless of the presence of policemen). So either hire them before you go or, if you are likely to another Alpine trip in your present car, buy some in a supermarket as you approach the Alps.
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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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Thanks for the quick responses - all good info. As I'll be driving overnight, stopping on the way is not really an option - so I've picked up a set online for £25. They obviously aren't going to be the best quality but will satisfy legal requirements and maybe get us out of a slippery scrape come next weekend.
Bring on the snow!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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good plan, F**k yes bring the chains, cheap onesor any ones. you may find a bit of snow at the freezing point on your way up the hill and get stuck, forget about legal requirements .......
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| hatpegs wrote: |
They obviously aren't going to be the best quality but will satisfy legal requirements and maybe get us out of a slippery scrape come next weekend.
Bring on the snow! |
Great job in scoring a chain for a reasonable cost. The "quality" of chains are often related to how easy to put on. So, for the money you saved, might worth you a few minute looking through the instruction and maybe even lay them out on dry ground for a "dry" run, so to speak.
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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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skimottaret, great picture, and one which should emphasize the importance of the suggestion made by abc! You can find yourself in this situation at any point in the season. I put on chains on top of four snow tyres in mid April last year, when a very light fall of slushy snow made it impossible to get up a modest incline. This year, snow chains will be much more in demand in March - and hopefully April too - than they were in January.
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pam w, The drive to Mottaret can be pretty exciting in the slightest dump of snow...it's a lively road as Skimottaret obviously knows very well... I was out there last season in March around the same time and snowfall was pretty impressive. Buy or rent or whatever, definitely need a set of chains in the car. As you say, the smallest bit of slush can make things hair-raising especially on the hairpins to Meribel and on to Mottaret 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Quote: |
a very light fall of slushy snow made it impossible to get up a modest incline.
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Been there, done that! (only 2 weeks ago so the memory is still quite fresh) 
I was moving along happily when little flakes started to fly. In a matter of 5-10 minutes, the flakes were thick, and the road was coated with a thick layer of slush in less than half an hour. I was going up a mild incline and slowly, the car slowed down, then stopped, in the middle of traffic! Mind you, traffic wasn't moving that fast so every one stopped behind me waiting for me to do something!
To make a long a story short, I waved the cars behind to pass. And fortunately a plowing truck came by in short order and threw some salt/sand around. I was able to get moving again.
This was not even a chain controled area because the grades are so mild. No matter, snow can do a lot of things we don't like.
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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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I can say from personal experience that it is bloody annoying to drive all the way from Haute Surrey to Mottaret and then find that you cannot make it up the final 100 yard hill to the car park of your accommodation without chains. It happened to me though. We left the car there until it stopped snowing (luckily there was room and it was a quiet road) and then drove the luggage up later. We did have some chains in the car but I was not going to bother to get them out just for 100 yards.
This was in mid March so I would never drive up there without chains in the boot.
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So funny, one of my mate leased a flat for the season. Only late he found out, after the third time of not able to get up to the house late at night on the day of arrival, the building was on a small hill!
He ended up buying a 4-wheel drive so he doesn't have to deal with it the rest of the season. Very extravagant season.
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You know it makes sense.
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We just got back from Les Menuires, having driven there and back. Despite over 1 metre of snow falling in the last week, we didnt need our chains to get in or out of resort. The roads are kept very clear. However, the roads do get covered with snow very quickly. Take your chains - better to have them, than not.
Good luck with the overnight drive - having got advice on here - I decided against the overnight drive. Very glad we split the journey at Lyon on the way down. Did do it in 1 hit on the way back though 
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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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Not really relishing the overnight drive I must admit. Have driven down twice before, once to Morillon and once to Zell am See (now that's a long way), both times without stopping (well apart from fuel and toilet obviously!) and found it ok, but both times were during the day. Still, there's a couple of cars, so we'll go in convoy, share the driving etc. I'm sure it'll be fine.
Anyways, chains turned up today - they look pretty much exactly the same type that I rented from www.snowchains.co.uk a couple of years back, and I'm sure they cost more than £25 to rent...! Trial fitting in work car park tomorrow.
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Poster: A snowHead
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hatpegs, you need at least two session at practicing fitting those chains.
The work car park is an excellent choice of venue. Your mates are going to have a lot of fun.
Session 1. Work out how to get the blooming things on, and succeed in getting them on.
Session 2. Get all your mates out there. Divide them into two groups. One lot need to be armed with buckets of cold water which they will slosh it over you as you try to get the effing chains on again. The other group get into their cars and drive fast up and down as close to you as they can without actually running over your legs.
If you survive session 2 you will be OK for when you have to do this on the way up to Mottaret during the day. If arriving in the dark this has to be repeated in the evening 
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