Skiing in France |
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Montgenvre Skiing 2010
Boullay - Belfort - Switzerland Italy - Montgenevre - Annecy By Linda Thalman
We're off for a three country visit: France, Switzerland and Italy with a full
week of skiing in France at Montgenevre.
Two hours south of Boullay the snow was gently falling.
The autoroute was clear but being salted and snowplows were removing snow along
the sides of the motorway.
Our GPS lady navigated us into the center of the Belfort as the snow
continued to fall in big flakes for our lunchtime halt.
A quick walk round the small city center to get the lay of the land as we looked for a warm and toasty
place for lunch.
And our choice was just delightful at Le Pot au Feu. What a wonderful lunch prepared by
Chef Annette Denis. The welcome, service, our meal and wine were all perfect.
We loved the special touches such as the bread served in a bag and the presentation for
all the dishes was so original.
Out into the snow to walk off lunch so up we went to the top of the
Vaunban designed fort with a view obscured by snow and clouds.
The approach to the fort took us directly below the Lion of the
Territory of Belfort. Our jaws dropped as we rounded a corner and
saw the size of the stone beast.
Huffing and puffing when we finally reached the ramparts we were the only
tourists leaving prints in the snow.
In the history museum with military memorabilia and archeological displays
we warmed up again.
Then off to Switzerland aiming for a small village north of Zurich to see our
friends, the Wanner family, and it wasn't snowing too much.
At the border crossing we bought our 30 euros vignette - required for driving on Swiss freeways -
and our GPS lady led us straight to their village.
Off we went south through Switzerland on the Autobahn heading for Italy. The St Bernard Tunnel
was empty of cars, truck and buses. Just love traveling in the off season.
Lunch was in Nus, Italy in a pleasant restaurant with "white crusted" pizza. Delicious and gigantic
portions.
Onwards and upwards to Montgenevre arriving early enough to get in some warm-up skiing on
Saturday morning before moving into our lovely apartment on the 6th floor with a perfect
view of the mountains and sun all day long and all week long.
Perfect skiing... we chose the right week. Azur skies, no clouds, chilly but
not freezing unless you sit on the Thibaut chairlift where you'll freeze
your backside and face.
The wind whips you as the lift reaches the top. We prefered to wait for the
cabines which are warm and toasty, with nice cloth covered benches, warming ourselves up
for splendid descents.
Pierre gets the week's prize for the most spectacular fall. Heading down the
black piste, called Tetras, as if it were a gentle blue slope... headphones on
listening to the Doors "This is the End" song and "crash and burn" it was.
One ski flies off to the left, flipping about. Then the right ski skating down the hill and Captain Pete
himself tumbling about 100 meters further down the slope.
I watch all this from near the top of the run, holding my breath. Plus de peur que de mal as they
say in French.
Skiing very slowly down a 60% slope, I pick up the scattered
skies and slip and slide to Pierre's side falling on my bum as I draw near him.
Ouuf, nothing broken, no scapes or scratches. He's just got a lot of snow
inside his jacket and ski trousers. And he even had time to take a photo of me trying out a
new Olympic sport of carrying skies and skiing at the same time!
We signed up for a Grand Tourisme ski class. This was new. You must be able to ski well
enough to do all kinds of slopes. There was just the right amount of instruction to help us all
improve our ski skills and lots and lots of skiing: on groomed slopes, off track, in gulleys, in the
bit of powder that was left in March, up and down the slopes of 'pipe' like tracks, down a competition
slope and more!
Wednesday morning class was off-piste skiing. The sounds of silence of the
route we took partially along a small river was stunning. We didn't see any wild mountain goats
but we had a most lovely hour in beautiful scenery.
Everyone was in fine feddle all week long and we swooped down the red pistes in a
lovely ribbon of skiers, carving wide angels across the groomed slopes
as if we were a symphony in a Mozart concerto.
Wednesday afternoon is down time. We're relaxing now before the full-day
excursion to Italy and the Voie Lactée - the Milky Way on Thursday.
We can see Italy from the balcony of our flat... it is that close.
The ski pass for the Montgenevre ski resort includes runs and lifts that
are in Italy... so coffee or lunch across the border is easy.
So off to Briançon we go to have lunch at Le Rustique with such a charming
mountain decor. We were seated at a table that was made from a sleigh.
Pierre had a Tartiflette - a potato dish, and I had mountain trout. Hmmmm, good.
Local wine and attentive service. Just perfect for our half-day away from the slopes.
Our ski teacher, moniteur, in French, David from the ESF (Ecole de Ski Française),
has promised us a full day of skiing including an hour lunch stop at a typical Italian restaurant on
the slopes.
And he came up trumps - a fizzy white wine to get things started, followed by antipasti, pollenta
with two different sauces, small sweet cakes for dessert, tasty red wine to go with it all.
Oh my oh my oh my it was good. And we all skied so well after lunch!
I've been working hard at improving my technique, which was ever so flatteringly
described by David: "Linda, you look like you're driving a Mac Truck!"
Oh well, my upper body was too rigid on the first day, but I think it's gotten
a bit more flexible and I'm bending down more and keeping my shoulders aimed at the
bottom of the slope.
56 years of skiing means I can get down any slope, perhaps with
little grace but almost always without falling or making a total fool of myself.
But, yep, guess I ski like a truck driver!
Thank you David for a most memorable week of skiing and to the group: Cristina, Jose, Maurice,
Mathiew, Paul - and Brigitte who joined us for the Thursday Italian excusion - for the best
ski group in Montgenevre in 2010.
We skied and laughed and skied some more and had a fantastic week. Merci David and the group!
See the full trip story and more photos here:
Skiing in France
Skiing in France is simply unbelievable... fantastic, exciting, fun, beautiful!
Having learned to ski at age four on pink wooden skis at Willamette Pass Ski Area [near Eugene, Oregon]
with only the Bunny Hill and one tow rope slope in 1954, I can only say that the French Alps are amazing.
There was eventually a poma-lift which came from France at the modest ski
area my grandparents - George and Trilla Korn - ran for 15 or so years.
How I wish my Popsi and Grandma had been able to ski at the many wonderful French ski resorts that I've been to.
The French Alps ski resorts are outstanding in organization, number of lifts,
restaurants, hotels, apartments, ski schools, off piste possibilities and more.
If you don't ski, you should still visit the ski areas in late spring or summer for
hiking, tennis, mountain biking, golf, swimming, hang gliding, relaxing - you name it.
See also other travel articles by Linda Thalman here:
La Plagne - Les Arcs Ski Resorts in the Vanoise Region of France
Our spring 2009 skiing break was extraordinary.
Our main goal was to ski for a week in the beautiful French Alps. This year we chose
La Plagne as our base and the huge ski area called Paradiski.
This includes La Plagne and Les Arcs which are connected by the Vanoise Express cable car.
I skied in Oregon and California: Willamette Pass, HooDoo, Ashland and Mount Shasta
between 1954 and 1968... so I don't know if the 'big' ski resorts in the 21st century in the US, Canada, Chile, etc.
are comparable to the Alps....
But let me say in France, Italy, Switzerland and Austria the skiing is fabulous.
Especially when you can ski from your apartment or hotel to the lifts and at the end of the day
ski right to the door where you leave boots, poles and skis in the locker.
And especially when it's spring skiing with temperatures reaching 17 C on the terrace for lunch at
about 1250 meters altitude. And only -2 or hovering around zero centigrade at 3000 meters up on
a glacier.
But before we got to the slopes, we drove from Boullay les Troux, 35 kilometers southwest of Paris
along the autoroute du soleil, the A-6, to the north suburbs of Lyon.
We checked in at nine in the morning, parked the car in the underground parking right by our apartment building, rented our skies and
off we went for a warm-up on the slopes.
A text message arrived as promised later in the afternoon.
We finished our warm-up skiing, got our keys and settled in before dusk.
What a great start... and it was seven days of heavenly skiing in sun, sun, sun.
On our last day the temperature dropped and we 'froze' a bit on the lifts, but we were over the moon!
Burnt to a crisp, piling on the sun screen and after sun cream, watching the stars and the
Alps in all its beauty at the end of each day from the balcony.
Just absolutely amazing and wonderful.
I can NOT promise you a week of sun and excellent skiing conditions like we had, but I can say we experienced it.
Unforgettable skiing believe you me.
And just one more wonderful time at La Ferme!
When you go back to a restaurant two, three and now four times, you know it is great.
Skiing in la Plagne in March 2009 we made it a goal to take the Vanoise Express which connects
La Plagne with Les Arcs and ski all the way to La Ferme.
On a beautiful sunny day, we made it in two and a half hours.
What a joy to sit on the terrace, drinking up the sun and, once again, having a most wonderful
lunch at La Ferme.
We'll be back again, I promise.
La Rosière France - Thuile Italy
We stayed in a family resort called la Rosière with stunning views of
Mont Blanc from the upper ski runs.
The plus of la Rosière is you can ski into Italy and down to the ski resort of
Thuile at 1400 meters - even in March.
With my partner Pierre and his brother Richard we did all the runs at la Rosière
and quite a few in Italy.
My favorite run was piste number 7 in Italy.
This is a long and wandering trail from the top of the mountain down the valley on a tree-lined
run to Thuile.
It was memorable for the sunny day, lunch outside,
a silly fall with both Pierre and I practically turned upside down and being totally
exhausted at the end of the day.
The snow was spring mushy and a side track led us into the fields with no snow.
We should have just skiied along the regular run as Richard did, but we didn't.
Another memorable moment.
Our apartment in la Rosière was smack dab in the middle of the village, at
street level, but on the third floor with no elevator. We'd hesitated about
booking a flat with no lift... but in the end it was perfect as the apartment was at street level!
With a south facing balcony we had a spectacular view on the mountains. The flat had
a living/kitchen area, a double bedroom, a bedroom with bunk beds, a shower room and
separate WC. It was perfect for the three of us and all our gear.
Travel Tip: If you are two, book an apartment for four people. If you're three or four
people, book a flat for six! Check the square meters: less than 25m2 is really small.
30 to 45m2 is comfortable and larger than that is pretty spacious.
Our apartment was promoted as being able to accommodate six. That was accurate, but it would
have meant persons five and six would sleep on the fold out couch in the living space.
If the budget is tight and you really know your friends and/or family, this could, however, work out fine.
Our spacious lodging with 52 square meters came to 45 euros per person per night. A very fair price.
The supermarket just across the street had all the basic necessities
and the local specialty shops had great prepared dishes and local produce to choose from.
Our one evening out for a cheese fondue with a tossed green salad was at Le Ruitor in
la Rosière. The price was ever so fair: 12.90 euros per person, wine not included.
The ambiance and service was delightful on a cool March evening.
Mid-week we usually take at least a half day off from skiing and indeed the weather 'cooperated'.
It rained all day. Global warming? Rain in March at 1850 meters? Snow is predicted for the Paris
region for the end of March... what to think?
In any case, off we went to a favorite restaurant: La Ferme in Villaroger in the
Haute Tarentaise region of France.
It was down the hill, along the valley, over hill and dale through beautiful country roads.
La Ferme is just below Les Arc ski resort which is across the valley from La Rosière.
We could even see the restaurant from our apartment balcony!
La Ferme is one of the most wonderful restaurants in the Savoie.
Have a Savoie white wine while you study the menu.
The plat du jour is always delicious, and
there's a good choice of regional specialties that all go well with local Savoie wines.
If you've room left, have the blueberry pie for dessert and a coffee with a local
burned wine.
The owners are just so welcoming and friendly. Not to be missed, I promise you.
Chambéry France
I mustn't forget to tell you about Chambéry where we stayed on our trip down to
the Alps. We stayed one night in the welcoming Le France Hotel, centrally located with private car park.
This was very useful as we had a lot of ski gear in the car and the 10 euros for the evening is typical
of hotel parking.
Having arrived at 19:30 we had time to see some of the 'old town' on our way
to L'Hypoténuse Restaurant for dinner at 20:30 and following dinner to explore a bit more
of the town.
Dinner was ever so pleasant at L'Hypoténuse. All the dishes were tasty and refined,
the wine lovely and the desserts works of art. See the dessert plate below in the photos.
While the town was quiet and quite empty for a Friday night in the middle of winter,
I'd be glad to come back and visit it on a summer's day, too.
Chambéry is well worth a visit on your way to or from the Savoie.
Les Arcs - France
What a wonderful week of skiing we had at Les Arcs in the heart of the French Alps.
I wish I still had those little wooden pink skies I had at age 4. They would be great for
a ski museum.
The 21st century skies are parabolic and so different but I still manage to get down the
toughest black slopes and all the red, blue and green pistes, too.
Les Arcs is one of the largest ski resorts in France, connected to La Plagne for
kilometers of great skiing. Both resorts are 'modern' and don't have the
old village feel of Val d'Isere.
We rented a studio that could accommodate 5 people for the week. That is:
a main room with two single beds, kitchen nook, bathroom with tub, separate
WC and a room with 3 bunk beds where we dumped all our ski equipment and stuff.
Tip: book a studio for 4 or 5 people even if you are
only two people. Studios for two are like broom closests.
At the end of the day we skiied right to the door of the apartment building. In the
morning we did have to hike to the lifts... it was a tough 5 minutes UP HILL.
Younger skiers practically ran up the slope, but with more than 50 years of skiing behind me,
this was a minor displeasure of the day.
We signed up for morning ski classes with the ESF (Ecoles du Ski Français), the French Ski School.
I cannot stress strongly enough how much fun and enjoyable it is to take lessons with ESF
instructors. Bernard, our 'moniteur' at Les Arcs, was so encouraging and his English
was darn good... he did confuse falling off and falling down, but he sure knew how to
teach us to ski!
ESF has top notch teachers, all certified, all love skiing and teaching. And, you get to
jump the queues/lines if you're in a ski class... just love going to the head of the
line when there's a crowd.
"The Farm" is down, down, down in Villaroger. Unfortunately, it was below the snow line
this year.
But you just park your skies at the top and take the chair lift down to the village
and walk through a bit of field to an authentic mountain chalet restaurant.
Tip: Reserve by phone or just enjoy waiting while the staff bring on the tasty,
honest food and drink with the most amazing smiles, friendliness and speediness that
I've rarely, if never, seen when dealing with over a hundred customers. Bravo!
Merci to Michel Emprin who runs the bar and coordinates everything to perfection.
Val d'isere
We had booked our stay for 2006
at our favorite hotel in Val d'Isere way last October 2005.
Thankfully we did that as the Hôtel Les Lauzes
did not have a room left in January and it wasn't even a school holiday week.
Six glorious days of sunny but chilly (minus 16C at 3,000 meters!) skiing.
We were lucky to see an evening show with the ski teachers coming down the Bellevarde Olympic slope
with torches followed by fireworks. Simply splendid.
Val d'Isere, like many ski resorts in France, has a swimming pool, movie theater, ice skating rink, loads of
restaurants and shops.
I attended a lecture and tour (in French) about the town's history which was
ever so interesting.
Winter sports were developed here as early as the 1930's and sports fans may well
recognize the names of Jean-Claude Killy and Henri Oreiller from Val, as it is called by the locals.
Even if you don't ski, there's a lot to keep you busy.
Hôtel Les Lauzes
Val d'Isère web site
Le Chabichou - Courchevel
The choice was not easy, but we opted for the 80
euros menu and we were so pleased!
The mise en bouche started with cappachino de palourdes,
homard gratiné and The omble chevalier en meunière was a perfectly done
deep water mountain fish, which had a delicate 'trout' flavor. The
Roulade de cochon du Cantal that Pierre had was mouthwatering.
The wine waiter suggested the Pinot Noire 2001, vin de Savoie, to
accompany our meal. It was an excellent choice.
Dessert was heavenly - pomme confite au miel de sapin - apple
with honey and an assortment of chocolates and other delights followed
by an excellent coffee.
I shook hands with Chef Rochedy and he told me his team of 18 was
'an orchestra'. Our lunch was an unforgettable dining experience on the sunny terrace
accessible directly from the ski pistes. Simply amazing!
From the web site: "Dans un décor alpestre et la chaleur des
boiseries, découvrez une des meilleures tables de Savoie. Fort de
son restaurant entièrement rénové, Michel Rochedy vous propose sa
cuisine toujours inventive, à la fois traditionnelle et originale.
Vous pourrez déjeuner sur la terrasse ensoleillée au bord des pistes,
ou dîner dans la salle à manger principale ou en salon privé dans
une ambiance feutrée et luxueuse, pour le plus grand plaisir de vos
sens."
Skiing in Courchevel was delightful and so was the Chabichou.
Ski Courchevel and be sure to book a meal - which you will never forget - at le Chabichou.
Hotel & Restaurant Le Chabichou
Megeve France Skiing and Guided Ski Tours
How to get to Megeve - but don’t tell anyone!
Megeve is well known by few and is a jealously guarded secret among those that frequent its ski slopes;
Michelin Guide rated restaurants, high-end shopping stores, Casino and quaint narrow cobbled streets.
The village is dominated the traditional church belfry, by a square all in a pedestrian friendly atmosphere.
Horse drawn sleighs carry tourists all over during the peak periods adding a festive and memorable
experience for young and old.
The ski area is laid out to almost always have the summit of Mt Blanc in view when skiing Megeve ski runs.
The runs are cut through the trees a very welcome change to most ski areas in the Alps that are
above 'tree line', adding a touch of green to this Haute Savoyard village!
Great skiing for all levels with a particularly pleasing predominance of upper intermediate skiing terrain.
The Espace Mont Blanc domain is a whopping 445 kilometers and with over 111 lifts make Megeve and partner
ski areas (la Giettaz, Saint Gervais, Saint Nicolas de Veroce, Combloux, les Contamines Montjoie and
Cordon) in the top 6 longest ski able areas in France.
I often bring my clients on a beautiful day to see and ski what I think is the best vantage point
to view the French Alps and the Mont Blanc:
You should be a good intermediate skier to do this run, in several places it is quite narrow
and in whiteout conditions not advised at all.
However on a brilliant sunny day you will want
to look around you and capture a visual picture that even the best of cameras could never
capture... the whole of the French Alps in all their beauty right before your eyes!
After taking it all in, it's time to ski all the way down to Chatrix, the longest of
runs in the domain. But don’t tell anyone how nice it is !
If you are flying in to ski the French Alps and Megeve you have the following possibilities:
Chambery Airport, Geneva Airport and Grenoble Airport are all approximately a one-hour
drive away. This makes Megeve a highly accessible ski destination, area even for a long
weekend, from any airport in the UK. Leave the UK at 08:00 and you’re on the
pistes by 12:00 noon. Be aware that the above can vary depending upon traffic and weather conditions.
Driving: From Geneva you will go to the A40 direction Mont Blanc/Chamonix and turn off at
Sallanches and about 17 kilometers direction Albertville, to Megeve.
Driving: In the event of bad weather: If you drive from Grenoble and Chambery, direction
A 41- E712, to Annecy/Geneva/La Roche sur Foron and get on the A40 direction
Mont Blanc/Chamonix and turn off at Sallanches and about 17 kilometers direction Albertville, to Megeve.
Good weather alternative: If you drive from Grenoble: A 41- E712 to the A 430 direction
Albertville. Take the N212 at Albertville up the beautiful Gorges de Arly to Megeve.
Please note however that this route can be closed due to rock and mud slides and traffic can be a problem!
Mike Beaudet also known as 'Megeve Mike' is the founder of Ski Pros Megeve.
Megeve is located in the French Alps, at the foot of Mt. Blanc, a one-hour drive from Geneva
International Airport. Day ski tours, private and small group ski lessons for skiing
enthusiasts of all levels and ages are available in the French Alps, Italian Alps and Europe.
Mike has an extensive background in skiing, teaching group and private ski lessons.
Mikes credentials include Full Certification in Professional Ski Instructors of America-RM,
the prestigious French Government Ecole National de Ski et d’Alpinisme in Chamonix as a
Moniteur de Ski Diplome and a member of the first PSIA National Academy held at Mount.
Hood Timberline, Oregon. Mike has over 30 years of ski teaching and coaching experience
in the US and in France and has taught in all the major ski areas in France and America.
Copyright © 2006 Megeve Mike - All Rights Reserved Worldwide.
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Hills and trees and fields were stunningly white. The temperature
hovered around zero degrees centigrade.
We were so glad to be out of the snow and by a cozy fire, with a wonderful
dinner and evening with Hans, Ruth, Theo and Edu. Vielen Dank!
Tomorrow we'll be in another part of the ski resort that is
exclusively in Italy and our 6-day ski pass gives us that one day option for the Italian resorts
connected to Montgenevre.
Twelve days of sun, sun and more sun. And this is in the month of March.
Saturday morning off we went to La Plagne. Our apartment was ready at about 15:00; ahead of schedule
as normally it was not until 17:00 that we would be able to 'move in'.
Skiing in the French and Italian Alps this year was a wonderful treat.
On the Marmotte piste in la Rosière Pierre and I had to take off our skis
and slip and slide down a few meters of the cow pastures.
The restaurants in la Rosière were not overly exciting, so we cooked dinner
most evenings.
Pierre and I ate twice at la Ferme in Villaroger on our ski trip to Les Arcs in 2007.
We just had to go back.
Much to my chagrin, I did take a nice fall on a black slope which was photographed for
all to remember!
We went twice to La Ferme for lunch. Not to be missed at any price... the best
restaurant at Les Arcs. Delicious, hearty food and drinks served at the speed of light
even when the entire place is packed with skiers.
The best of winter can be the snow, particularly when one goes skiing.
gaspacho avec guacamole. Devine. Pierre had the mushroom consommé
and I was delighted with a Beaufort cheese starter.
I can indeed confirm that our meal was a 'symphony' from start to
finish. The 2 stars awarded by Michelin and the 18 out of 20 rating
from the Gault Millau were spot on.
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Paris
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Linda Thalman
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Email – Linda@wfi.fr
Web Address – http://www.parisinsites.com/
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