 Poster: A snowHead
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OK- be gentle (but this forum seems really helpful). Haven't skiid for years but got young family and wife that have; going to La Rosiere by car (via Calais) at end of February. Never driven in Europe in the winter (apart from recently snowbound Herefordshire) (But have done loads in the summer. Which is easier). Stupid question... but what can I expect in terms of conditions (will be driving a Jeep; got decent snow chains).
Thanks
(Irrelevant.. but so far my Alfa Brera Q4 has been better than the Jeep in the snow.. but might struggle to get 4 more people in it)
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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, 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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One pece of advice for La Rosiere that has been shared on here before "Don't go via Italy".
The road over is a piste in the Winter!
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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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sb57, welcome to snowheads. Lots of good reading referenced above. You shouldn't have any problems with the driving conditions, given that you have good chains, but the roads will be busy - peak season. Are you going on a Saturday?
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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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In the coach going both ways lots of people were throwing up and I came close, so take plenty of sick bags for the leg between Bourg St Maurice and La Ros.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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truffaut,  had they been drinking? I went to La Ros on a coach (with Ski Olympic) twice and I don't remember anybody throwing up. It's a winding road up, certainly, but not likely to be a problem to anyone in charge of the speed they go round the bends. But some of those coach drivers are nutters on the hairpins....
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Thanks everyone- fantastic response. And thanks for your patience as it's now embarassingly obvious that there was already a load of advice on the forums that I should have found.
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One of our daughters was spectacularly sick on the way down from La Rosiere last year. I think it was a combination of an early start & too much Pain au chocolat. Unfortunately she then triggered off a wave of vomiting children back through the coach & the reps ran out of sick bags! Worth packing extra wet wipes/sick bags etc.
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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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Supermarkets in Bourg have 24hr pumps, but when unmanned (after 8pm I think) only take cards. If the pumps won't accept your card they won't dispense.
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Mrs DJ always goes a faint shade of green as we use that bit of road. However, I have been 'helped' to adopt a more car-sickness friendly mode of driving, which includes not singing out 'whee' as I drift the back end round the hairpins, and now it works fine. Saw a stag there on the last trip, so looking out for wildlife helps distract.
David
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Supermarkets in Bourg have 24hr pumps, but when unmanned (after 8pm I think) only take cards. If the pumps won't accept your card they won't dispense.
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I've found that in the last few years it's become much easier to use UK "chip and pin" cards in those French automatic pumps. If not, you have to find a friendly French driver and pay them cash to put some petrol in your car, using their card.
It's a while since I've had to do that - but people are usually OK about it.
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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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sb57, easy drive, autoroute form Calais all the way to Albertville then decent road to Bourg St Maurice, last leg (23Kms) from BSM just typical mountain road, which is referred to locally as the Grande Route, the quickest way is to use the old road through Montvalezan, it's straighter, steeper and narrower, just don't use it after a snowfall. You shouldn't need chains as the main road is regularly cleared but the roads in the village aren't, so you could need chains to get to some locales. There's a map of the village on www.larosiere.net that should help you find your lodgings.
We've found that the best route is via Rheims, bypassing Lyons towards Grenoble then Chambery and Albertville, usually takes us about 10-10.5 hours in a mini-bus a bit less in a car. Just about all the automatic pumps I've used in France now read UK credit cards, the ones at Super U in Bourg St Maurice certainly do.
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