jamesdeluxe
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2020
Over our last two days at Val d'Isere, we didn't hire a guide, so @TonyC took over those chores to show me as much terrain as possible, including the huge Tignes sector. Most of the following on-mountain pix are from him. Here, Liz and I are standing at the Checkpoint Charlie dividing line:
Tignes is known as the highest ski area in Europe and for having the continent's longest ski season:
The 12,600-foot Grand Casse with a glacier to its right:
This is the lift-served Grande Motte glacier at approx. 12,000 feet high, which hosts lift-served skiing in most years for up to ten months:
It also provides inspiration for the 70s-ish logo of Tignes:
Lining up for the tram:
After waiting about 15 minutes, the tram finally arrived. Oddly enough, only one car seemed to be in operation. There wasn't a second one to "balance it out."
As promised, Grande Motte had the best conditions in the entire resort. Here I am enjoying soft, "carvy" conditions at the top of the world. The surface lift on the right is used for spring skiing.
With the village of Tignes far below, Tony mentioned that the "snow terraces" you see in this pic are built to protect the snow from wind during winter and it's then groomed out for late spring skiing:
He traversed to the looker's right and found this gorgeous offpiste pitch:
From the chair, you can see the glacier trail that I just skied at the top, which funnels down to a steep section below in the lower left. I'm told that glaciers usually don't have this much pitch. Look how small the people look from this angle.
The Grand Huit chair looks like it sits in a huge volcano crater:
A hand-drawn sign warning beginner snowboarders about long flat sections ahead:
Wide, mellow runs are especially fun when surrounded by this amount of gorgeous scenery and very few people to share it:
After I headed back to the hotel mid-afternoon, Tony and Liz paid a visit to the famous Aiguille Percée ("pierced needle") rock formation:
And also stopped at the Folie Douce for a round of drinks and Euro disco:
Instead of paying $25 in tolls on the highway back to Geneva, I took the scenic route past Lake Annecy. The town of Annecy is very pleasant and would rate highly as a headquarters to spend a winter:
I stopped in both directions at this Lidl with a mountain backdrop for snacks:
The obligatory photo of the airport bar that sports my son's name. I still haven't visited it because my incoming and outgoing flights always go through Geneva in the early morning when it's closed:
Keepin' it real with this oldtimer gondola at an airport cafe:
Tignes is known as the highest ski area in Europe and for having the continent's longest ski season:
The 12,600-foot Grand Casse with a glacier to its right:
This is the lift-served Grande Motte glacier at approx. 12,000 feet high, which hosts lift-served skiing in most years for up to ten months:
It also provides inspiration for the 70s-ish logo of Tignes:
Lining up for the tram:
After waiting about 15 minutes, the tram finally arrived. Oddly enough, only one car seemed to be in operation. There wasn't a second one to "balance it out."
As promised, Grande Motte had the best conditions in the entire resort. Here I am enjoying soft, "carvy" conditions at the top of the world. The surface lift on the right is used for spring skiing.
With the village of Tignes far below, Tony mentioned that the "snow terraces" you see in this pic are built to protect the snow from wind during winter and it's then groomed out for late spring skiing:
He traversed to the looker's right and found this gorgeous offpiste pitch:
From the chair, you can see the glacier trail that I just skied at the top, which funnels down to a steep section below in the lower left. I'm told that glaciers usually don't have this much pitch. Look how small the people look from this angle.
The Grand Huit chair looks like it sits in a huge volcano crater:
A hand-drawn sign warning beginner snowboarders about long flat sections ahead:
Wide, mellow runs are especially fun when surrounded by this amount of gorgeous scenery and very few people to share it:
After I headed back to the hotel mid-afternoon, Tony and Liz paid a visit to the famous Aiguille Percée ("pierced needle") rock formation:
And also stopped at the Folie Douce for a round of drinks and Euro disco:
Instead of paying $25 in tolls on the highway back to Geneva, I took the scenic route past Lake Annecy. The town of Annecy is very pleasant and would rate highly as a headquarters to spend a winter:
I stopped in both directions at this Lidl with a mountain backdrop for snacks:
The obligatory photo of the airport bar that sports my son's name. I still haven't visited it because my incoming and outgoing flights always go through Geneva in the early morning when it's closed:
Keepin' it real with this oldtimer gondola at an airport cafe:
Last edited:
The Alps.
