In the first of a short series showcasing the areas we operate in, we take a look at the Ecrins massif. This range encompasses the Oisans, Briancon and Valbonnais areas. The next article will cover the Mont Blanc range and our home in the Chamonix valley. In the Southern French Alps lies a mountain paradise…
This archive post is about the 2018 Off-Piste course. Watch out for details of the 2020 course to be posted very soon, or send us an email to bookings@whitemarmotte.com to make an enquiry. After the success of our previous off-piste courses, we will be back with the second edition of the European Ski School Off-Piste…
Under normal conditions you need to get up really early after (or during) a snowstorm to ski La Grave on untracked snow. This is especially true on the more popular routes. Getting to the top of your chosen itinerary first is not enough. You need to keep moving if you want to stay ahead…
After months of uncertainty, a rejected crowdfunding bid and the withdrawal of the biggest company in the running, the conseil municipal (town council) of La Grave has awarded the concession to run the ski lifts to SATA – the Alpe D’Huez lift company. The decision was made following a unanimous vote at a public meeting…
The Vallons de la Meije and Vallons de Chancel might not be everybody’s idea of easy skiing, but ease is relative. In La Grave these long off-piste runs provide the standard routes down for those who want to avoid extreme terrain, couloirs, crevasse zones or ropework. Like the Valley Blanche in Chamonix, they are skiable…
The European Ski School’s Off-Piste:Freeride Course is a new product this winter, taking advantage of the wonderful terrain Les Deux Alpes has to offer. We will cover the techniques, skills and safety aspects of off-piste skiing over five full days, whilst exploring the mountain world beyond the marker posts. This course is running in conjunction…
Chazelet has to be one of my favourite resorts for a day trip. A small, alpine village that retains a timeless charm – this is one place that truly deserves to be called ‘unspoilt’. The resort statistics are underwhelming on paper – there are 5 lifts serving a staggering 6 kilometres of pistes, but the…
Chazelet is a tiny but beautiful little ski resort with south facing slopes across the valley from the La Grave lift. It has five lifts, five pistes, and one very nice mountain restaurant. A reasonable skier will exhaust the on-piste possibilities in a morning, but the off-piste can be great on the right day and…
The Couloir de l’Ours in La Grave is one that I had often looked up at whilst skiing one of the common variations of the classic Vallons de la Meije in La Grave, both with friends and with clients. My favoured version of the classic route follows a scenic little valley between moraine ridges which…
