 Poster: A snowHead
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For my first post - has anyone been to this resort? I am moving over to France, and this will be my "local"
Cheers, Paul
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well Paul S, sorry I can't help you as I've not been to Super Devoluy still when, where, why are you off the France?
Just making convo.
Regards
Slowplough
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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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Sorry, can't help either.....but welcome to snowHeads 
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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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Slowplough, just the usual "change of life" style of thing... We are moving to France to run a small hotel, which requires some work doing to it. Should be over by the end of July.
It's either work for ourselves or for someone else!
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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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eek, well lets hope the current webcam is nothing to go by
http://www.superdevoluy.com/webcam-a.htm
The missus has been to La Jou du Loup (or some spelling like that) for a day...which i beleive is very nearby...she said it was ok, nothing special but not bad!....small ski area for the locals i think. No queuing problems, and very few non-French.
apart from that, i have little more info, sorry!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Tomski01, I think they meet at the top, (I would have to check my maps, can't remember the name...) we were there last weekend. Didn't take the ski gear with us, just sitting watching.
I was told there were 31 ski areas around there, but I would be surprised if they were more than a coulple of runs each!
I don't mind the size of Devoluy, as long as I manage more than a week each season! 
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well, if you live there and have a car....if there are 31 places nearby, then you cant go far wrong!
you can bet they will all be small, pretty, quiet and cheap, and even if you only get a days skiing at each, thats still 25 days more skiing than i had this year!
you may have pciked a ncie spot, away from the crowds, but still near the skiing...ace!
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Paul S, welcome to snowHeads
There are a few ex-pats posting around here and they appear to have a great time at the smaller resorts - great for a day at the weekend but not enough for a week.
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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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Paul S, welcome, and don't let tomski01's webcam put you off: here are a few more views, and apart from the first one (oh dear!) the slopes look lovely.
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Thanks, I will have to wait for next season, but with the work on the French property to keep me busy, (amongst other things...) the time should fly by. (Is it only skiers who want summer to end?)
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Paul S, I've been to both Super Dévoluy and La Joue quite a few times... whereabouts is the hotel you'll be running? The resorts are pretty remote, quite a drive up the valley from the Gap/Serres road. The domains are linked and quite extensive for the southern Alps, varied, plenty of tree skiing on the La Joue side in contrast to the extremely ugly SuperD (see the 'Is Scenery Important?' thread where I made some not too complimentary comments!)
Depending on where you're based, about 10k before you get to Gap along the Serres/Gap road shortly after Veynes there's a little resort called Céüse (also known as Céüze). As you'll be living in the area, you can pick and choose your trips, I do recommend this place for a day or two. It's low, with a high point of only 2000m, so conditions have to be just right.... but it's quiet and friendly with some excellent off-piste on the right day. Have lunch in the Hôtel Gaillard 'au pied des pistes'.... Mme Gaillard herself will serve you, and the fare is superb as well, as good value. Between the Mont Ventoux, and Céüse is where I learned to ski. Fond memories of both, occasional pangs of regret for the 'Alpes du Sud'... Yes, Les Arcs, where we are now, is in an entirely different league, yet....
Otherwise north of Gap you've plenty of choice. Gap to Orcières Merlette is a little over a 30 minute drive, and it's about the same journey time to Les Orres and the little resort of Réallon (opposite Les Orres). Merlette is not quite as ugly as SuperD (!) and a little bigger, does get crowded during the holidays. Needs to be avoided at this time of year as most runs are south-facing, so although it's quite high at 1850m you can find yourself swimming back down the lower runs. In holiday times it's well worth spending the odd day in the little resorts on the way up to Merlette... Ancelle, Saint-Léger-les-Mélèzes, Chaillol, Serre-Eyraud, Laye.... they're low so check conditions, but I really love these tiny, friendly places that no one bothers to visit, preferring to pay three times as much for a lift pass and the pleasure of fighting to hold your place in the queue with the hordes of Marseillais who tend to descend on the likes of Merlette!
Les Orres I like, pretty ugly again, nowhere to park, but has a rep as the 'cold' resort of the south, and is often the last one to close. Lots of nice steep testing runs. Otherwise Pra-Loup, Vars, Risoul and numerous others are all within striking distance. If you need any more info about the area, or Gap itself, just ask.
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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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PG, many thanks, this is what I was after! We have been to La Plagne mostly, with C1850 as our 1st choice. That area was researched, but too expensive, and we have been around various other alpine parts, (Chatel etc) to take a look.
The village is north of Veynes (sp?), and the hotel needs a lot of TLC, mostly on the inside. I don't expect to have loads of spare time, but being there puts me a lot closer to skiing than being here... 
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Paul S, That's interesting! I actually stayed in a hotel a few kms north of Veynes a couple of times, and your description sounds familiar! It's not in La Roche des Arnauds by any chance, on the main road, on the left as you enter the village heading north towards Gap? That hotel has been closed down for at least a year now.
If it's north of Veynes (and particularly if it's the hotel I'm thinking of!) you've just a 10/15 minute drive up to Céüze, which is the first exit on the right as you leave La Roche.
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You know it makes sense.
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PG, it's on the N75 in St.Julien. Closer to the NW of Veynes.
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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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Hope it all works out. It's a lovely part of the world. Beware the southern French 'artisan'! As soon as they see foreigners arrive, all quotes seem to be upped by 10+%.
From Saint Julien Superdévoluy is the 'biggest' nearby resort, about 50 mins away. Céüze is about 35 mins, Orcières Merlette 1hr15, Les Orres 1hr 20.
Update on SuperD, just seen the latest snow report, the main reason why this resort is struggling is down to altitude. They do say villages under 1800 will in the not too distant future be hard pushed to maintain a ski tourism-based economy, and SuperD at 1400m currently has 2m50 high
up but "10cms" (and we all know what that really means) at resort level.
I mentioned in that other thread that it's not the most attractive place!
Another resort which faces the same altitude problem is the little resort of Réallon (opposite Les Orres). Closed since 28/03, this webcam at 1560m says it all.
UPDATE: since posting this morning, Réallon, then brown, has now turned white! Trouble is they cannot afford snow cannons, so can rarely stay open later than the end of March/early April.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I've not been to SuperD since 2000 when I drove up from near Grenoble. Over the last 100 km I didn't pass another car - this is one of those areas where they film car adverts that you see on the telly. Stunning scenery and just no-one. Mentally it is a long way from the Savoie.
The skiing is excellent when there is snow, I was skiing mid-April but I have a hard time seeing how a hotel will work unless you are good at marketing.
SuperD though is the resort that saved French skiing in the early 70s when most of the Savoie resorts were going bankrupt. Why? They invented timeshare here. Not a lot of people know that.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Quote: |
| but I have a hard time seeing how a hotel will work unless you are good at marketing |
Youth, boundless energy and enthusiasm, good health, across the board diy expertise, extremely low borrowings and a partner with the patience of a saint would come in handy as well!
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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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Well, it's either this, or working for someone else! The way it works is we have a year to sort everything out, and we are doing a lot of the work ourselves. Not a lot of the "youth" left, though...
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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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Best of luck! I get down that way now and again, so if I'm passing through St Julien......
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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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PG, our plans for taking a year to sort out the hotel have been shot to bits! The current owners have take bookings for the summer, so it's in at the deep end. That should keep us busy!
If you are ever around, we would obviously be delighted to see a fellow snowhead!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Does anybody know how the snowpark is over there? If ist any good and what's in the park?
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simy50, welcome to snowHeads! Sorry, don't even remember seeing a snowpark when I was there!
A thread revival from nearly two years back... wonder what happened to Paul S and his hotel off the beaten track in the southern French Alps near Veynes? He hasn't posted since June 2004...
Only one hotel in 05140 St. Julien en Beauchene - the Auberge des Amis. Must drop in one day....
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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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Michelle, St. Julien en Beauchene is the sort of place where you would be lucky to find a telephone, forget broadband internet connections!
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Hello folks,
Just signed up when I saw this thread, I go to this resort every year
I stay at a house over in Lus la Croix Haute. It’s about 45 minutes from the resort in decent conditions... a bit of a trek there and back each day but it's the closest resort to where we stay.
As others have mentioned its not the highest of resorts so doesn't always have great snow levels... last year was particularly shocking. Rocks all over the place. This year looks much more promising though; I'm heading out there in the middle of Feb so hopefully the snow will stick around.
When you look at the piste map it doesn't look that big, but as the two resorts link up there's actually quite a lot to explore & if there’s snow around there's plenty of off-piste to play around in.
Queues don’t tend to be too much of a problem either especially since they’ve introduced a second speedy lift on the Joue de Loup side, the only busy time seems to be just after lunch, but you get that on most resorts.
The Times newspaper did a very favourable write up of the resort here if anyone’s interested.
http://travel.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/travel/holiday_type/winter_sports/article1395215.ece
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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TristUK, welcome to Snowheads
We went to La Joue du Loup at the end of March last year, very warm and sunny (so slushy snow, in short supply at bottom as was typical last year) but would agree about the lack of queues. Not all the runs were open due to lack of snow, also my ski-ing time was curtailed as I broke my arm on day 3, but am hoping that if the snow sticks around this year we should be able to ski pretty much everywhere. Have you seen on the website they now have two live webcams, one on SuperD side and one at the bottom of La Joue du Loup, which are very useful for checking out conditions for ski-ing back to the village, as well as the other webcams up the top? My sister has a chalet in la Joue du Loup, so we are off out there in Feb and again in March.
We find La Joue du Loup ideal for us as a family - we are not looking for wild apres ski, the chalet complex has an indoor pool, the nursery slopes are ideal for sledging after the lifts close and the ski area is not too challenging nor crowded so our two (age 9 and 11) are able to progress well. There are very few English people around, (although quite a few Dutch people) but the French people who go there seemed very friendly and would often initiate conversations on the lift which was great for my French. I did book private lessons for the children, to ensure they got an instructor with good spoken English, rather than being the only two in a large group of French children, although their instructor was great at telling them the French words for things as well, so good for their French.
PaulS who posted on this thread a couple of years ago was very helpful when I PM'd him last year to ask for some local info, and I assume he is still out there running his hotel - might go and have a look this year, as we will have a car.
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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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Oh and regarding PaulS's Hotel. I'm pretty sure I drive through that village on my too and from the slopes each day!
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You know it makes sense.
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TristUK,
What do you find is the best way to get out there? I've driven down from Geneva, and from Grenoble, and up from Marseille (this year we are going via Marseille because flights are cheaper and it is a very easy drive, although longer). Have also considered getting sleeper train from Paris to Gap.
I have not done the drive from Grenoble in winter conditions, in the summer I took the N85 down to Corps and then across to La Joue du Loup via the Barrage du Sautet but this involves quite a few nasty hairpins and also long climbs which could be tricky in icy/snowy conditions. (coming from Suffolk I'm not used to hills!) If you are staying at Lus a Croix Haute I assume you go down the N75? What is that like as a route (it looks longer on the map) and what route do you then take across to La Joue/SuperD?
Have you boarded/skied at La Jarjatte? And do you ever go out there in the summer?
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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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| gamekeeper wrote: |
TristUK,
What do you find is the best way to get out there?
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I’ve done it a mix of ways...
a) Ferry over to Calais and drive down over night
Did that once on a Friday after work... heavy rain the entire way... didn’t get there till 7am the next morning. Not the nicest of ways to do it.
b) Fly to Grenoble and drive
Pretty easy. The airport is on the wrong side of town for us though so you have to take the motorway through town. It takes about an hour to get to Lus la Croix Haute, so I’d guess 1h 45 min to the resort. The plus side though is that you can hire snow chains from Grenoble airport easily.
c) Fly to Marseille and drive
That’s what I’m doing again this year, as like you it works out much cheaper with the flights. The downside is that I’ve found it quite difficult to hire a car with snow chains from Marseille. In the end we’ve booked with National car rental who have said they can provide chains. Budget out right refused.
There’s probably not that much difference between Grenoble or Marseille distance wise to be honest so whichever offers cheaper flights really. For us, because we drive too and from the resort each day having chains is quite important as we’ve needed them a few times previously. If you are staying on the resort for the week you might be able to get away with it as you’ll only be going up and down the mountain twice. The first time we went didn’t need them once but previous times we’ve been bloody glad we had them.
As for driving to the resort in the Winter, in general you’ll be fine on the N75 (although watch out for any snow drifting across the road), it’s when you head up the mountain to the resort that we tend to encounter problems. There’s an exposed village on the way up (I can’t for the life of me remember the name) and whenever it’s snowing heavily it’s around there where we normally need to put chains on. It’s totally dependent on the weather though. It could be because we’re normally driving early in the morning or late in evening though before the plough has had a chance to clear anything.
| gamekeeper wrote: |
TristUK,
I have not done the drive from Grenoble in winter conditions, in the summer I took the N85 down to Corps and then across to La Joue du Loup via the Barrage du Sautet but this involves quite a few nasty hairpins and also long climbs which could be tricky in icy/snowy conditions. (coming from Suffolk I'm not used to hills!) If you are staying at Lus a Croix Haute I assume you go down the N75? What is that like as a route (it looks longer on the map) and what route do you then take across to La Joue/SuperD? |
The route we take from Lus is basically straight along the N75, and there’s a left that takes a shortcut (one side of a triangle rather than two) into Veynes that we take. You basically go up and over a hill rather than around it on the N75. We then carry on through Veynes and turn left up towards Joue du Loup. It’s about 20 minutes to Veynes and about 20 minutes further to Joue du Loup.
| gamekeeper wrote: |
TristUK,
Have you boarded/skied at La Jarjatte?
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Stupidly not considering its literally around the corner. We’ve always opted to head up to Joue du Loup because we always thought La Jarjatte looked too small.
| gamekeeper wrote: |
TristUK,
And do you ever go out there in the summer? |
Yes, I went out two years ago. Absolutely lovely! 30C+ and loads of places to explore.
We went over to Die on a route that the “Tour” takes. Amazing scenery and loads of rivers to play in and go canoeing
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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TristUK,
I've had same problems trying to get snowchains with a hire car at Marseille - last year we didn't need them, this year I'lll check webcams & weather forecast just before we go and if it looks likely we'll need them will buy them at a supermarket or garage on the way up from Marseille.
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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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| gamekeeper wrote: |
I've had same problems trying to get snowchains with a hire car at Marseille - last year we didn't need them, this year I'lll check webcams & weather forecast just before we go and if it looks likely we'll need them will buy them at a supermarket or garage on the way up from Marseille. |
Good to know I'm not the only one then!
I can't believe how alien an idea it is to ask for chains from Marseille.
We were booking three cars + chains... probably over £400. Nope can't do it. Fine I'll take my business else where.
We were actually thinking of doing the same (buying them) before we found out National could rent them. The problem is we arrive late on Saturday so the shops will be shut... and then they'll all be shut on Sunday too!
Fingers crossed National don't let us down!
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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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Oh and Paul S, if your still post on here I've just been talking to my parents who's house I stay at in Lus la Croix Haute, and they recognised your name. You've met you apparently. They've heard about you through Louise in the village, and they borrowed your trailor a couple of years ago! Small world eh!
When we're down in Feb I'll try and pop by your hotel and have a drink!
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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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Hey guys - I've seen a few references to Lus La Croix Haute here - me and the wife are heading out there in a couple of weeks to take a look at a place in La Jarjette with a view to seeing if its viable to turn into a holiday rental business. Very early days at this stage but would be good to get some input from locals as to the area (and particularly what the summer trade is like).
Thanks
Jamie
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