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5 Days
From January to March
Mont Blanc is a world mecca as a base for ski mountaineering and this 5 day course gives you the opportunity to sample a superb variety of challenging mountain ski journeys.
By making use of Courmayeur famous high altitude lifts, spectacular glacier routes can be completed as day tours from the valley. We also aim to visit some quieter, less well known parts of the Valle d’Aoste or Swiss Rhone Valley, both easily accessible from Courmayeur.
This course includes an overnight stay in a historic Monastery with monks in order to access a higher summit or col. It is designed for folk with some existing ski touring experience and a good level of fitness, wanting to do some more challenging tours.
✓ Complete some classic medium to long length ski mountain journeys in the Courmayeur Valley and surrounding area.
✓ Spend a night in a mountain hut allowing a good journey to be made and early start to complete a long tour.
✓ This course has less structured training than the Intro Ski Touring Course and is aimed at folk already competent in the basic ski mountaineering skills. Whilst these skills will be revised during ongoing training throughout the course, the emphasis will be on getting some big journeys and great skiing done.
✓ Provide an excellent spring board, at the start of the classic hut to hut touring season, for other challenging ski mountaineering trips in the spring.
✓ Have an enjoyable and sociable week meeting up with other like minded ski mountaineers who you may end up skiing with again in the future.
DURATION
Five days in the mountain
Fitness level required
GROUPS
4 peoples.
COST
€ 1000 per person.
$USD 1,089 per person
£ 857 per person
INCLUDE
✓ Services of an Mountain Guide
✓ All transfers as shown in the program
✓ The cablecars tickets as shown in the program
✓ half board in the Monastery, including the half board of the Mountain Guide
NOT INCLUDE
✗ Accomodation
✗ Lunch in the mountain
✗ Mountaineering – Off Piste/Ski Mountaineering Insurance IMPORTANT: Please read this section.
✗ Transfer from/to airport,
✗ Airfare
✗ Anything not specified
NB Trip is confirmed from 3 peoples.
Your guide will run through safety routines and kit checks, as well as hand out rental equipment for the week, before we go on to a detailed discussion of everyones ambitions for the week, together with the current weather and mountain conditions and how these affect our planning. We’ll also have maps and guidebooks to show you, so if you’ve any further questions or last minute requests, then this is the ideal time to bring them up before we head on to dinner.
Introduction to the week ahead and kit check. Brief revision of ski mountaineering skills and complete some ‘micro-ski-tours’ out of one of the Courmayeur resort e.g. various interesting skinning journeys from Courmayeur ski area. Opportunities to refresh skinning technique, avalanche emergency procedures and some basic mountaineering elements.
Transfer from Courmayeur to Super Saint Bernard - Switzerland via Gran San Bernardo tunnel.
From here in three hours ascent through the 'Combe de Mort' we reach the Monastery. After a little rest, we ascent Mont Fourchon (2902m), the classic ski-touring peak of the area giving breath-taking views of Mont Blanc and the Grand Combin.
Retourn to the monastery for the mid afternoon. Rest, overnight and Half board in Monastery
This day you’ll need a packed lunch, as we’ll be out in the backcountry all day.
1240m ascent - 450m descent ~7-8hrs.
From the Monastery descent along the ascent route of the day before up to 2276m. Turn right and go up the immense, narrow Combe de Barasson until we reach the Col de Barasson est. From here, with crampons on, we proceed along the southwest ridge to the top of the Pointe de Barasson.
This day you’ll need a packed lunch, as we’ll be out in the backcountry all day.
700m ascent - 1240m descent ~5-6hrs.
There are many different interesting ski mountaineering itineraries and we pride ourselves on always doing something different to make the most of prevailing conditions. It’s a great opportunity to combine all the skills developed throughout the days before and quiz the Mountain Guide on any final burning issues.
This superb ski mountaineering traverse to the Le Tour glacier and down to the village of Le Tour is very popular and rightly so. With the Argentière lifts we reach the top of Bochard. From here in ski mountaineering continue to the Col de la Rachasse. A descent on a glacier will allow us to reach the moraine located at the base of the slope that climbs to Col Passon. Going up the slope and, with crampons, the last couloir we will reach Col Passon where the wonderful descent that leads to Le Tour village begins.
This day you’ll need a packed lunch, as we’ll be out in the backcountry all day.
750m ascent - 1750m descent ~5-6hrs.
After a night of well-deserved rest, departure from Courmayeur for your destination.