ski mountaineering vanoise alps photo diary

This is the photo diary of Dave Butcher for a ski mountaineering trip to the Vanoise Alps, starting and finishing in Val d’Isere in France. Our ski tour is known as the Haute Route of the Tarentaise.

The colour photos (shown here for the first time) are scans of the Fuji slides/transparencies mainly taken to show the people side of the trip to complement the black and white landscapes.

Guide

Jon de Montjoye

Hilary Sharp, Jon’s wife, joined us at Chabod Hut for second half of tour

No Polenta Club Members

Mark Rogerson, Phil Moorhouse, Graham Arthur, Lovejoy, Dave Butcher. We were a group of friends who all met on previous ski mountaineering trips and had a mutual loathing for the type of nondescript polenta served in many mountain huts. 

Ordering Black and White Fine Art Prints

If you would like a memento of your trip or a gift, all of the black and white images are available as fine art black and white prints. Most of them were taken with a Mamiya 6 camera on Ilford 120 film and are available as high quality hand made darkroom prints in a range of sizes from 40x30cm to 70x70cm (size refers to mount and frame, image is a few cm smaller).

They all have a 6 digit number at the end of the title to uniquely identify the negative to help ordering – just type this number into the search box in the World Landscapes Gallery and it will show the image and ordering information. Not all images are included so if you can’t find the ones that interest you just send me an email using the Contact page form on this website and we’ll sort out the details between us.

Friday 11th April 1997 Travel to Bourg St Maurice

Mark, Phil and I met at Manchester Airport and flew to Geneva. However at Manchester, having taken a lot of time and great care in packing my rucsack so that everything was well protected and contained, we all had to empty everything at the luggage check area. Rucsacks are relatively easily torn by the luggage handling equipment at airports so they were treated differently to suitcases and they were too densely packed for the x-ray scanner to penetrate and identify everything. Interesting that this was the first time it should happen, my 5 previous trips were all fine. It was the first time I had travelled with Mark and Phil so I blamed them, they obviously looked shifty! Fortunately, as the rucsacks were all going in the hold they weren’t too worried by the ice axes, crampons and other mountain gear! From Geneva we caught the train to Bourg St Maurice and walked to the Hostellerie au Petit St Bernard, 74 Avenue du Stade. A large old building just outside the town centre.

Saturday 12th April 1997 Les Arcs Skiing

It was just a short walk and a funicular railway ride away from the ski area of Les Arcs, which the 3 of us used to find our ski legs with a day of piste skiing before we started our tour. The snow wasn’t brilliant but at least up high there was enough to get the legs going.

We were joined in the evening by Lovejoy and Graham as well as our guide Jon de Montjoye.

Day 1, Sunday 13th April 1997 – Val d’Isere to Fond des Fours Hut

Jon drove us to Val d’Isere where we caught two lifts from Val to reach Ouille de Cugnai at 11.15am. Here we ducked under the ropes, put skis on and traversed around into the corrie before going down to the southwest. We stopped to put skins on and then skied up to the Fond des Fours Hut, reached at 12pm. There were 2 huts, one for sleeping, one for eating and we were well looked after. The one for sleeping looked like the roof of a building had just been dropped onto the ground, it didn’t have any walls, just a roof! There was standing room in the middle but we had to crawl onto our sleeping mattresses laid out side-by-side.

We had a bite to eat, dropped off some gear in the hut and made our way to the Col de l’Arseille at 2pm. It was mixed ground from here so we dumped the skis, put on crampons, took our poles and ice axe, and made our way up the snowy ridge, which was steep and soft near the top, to reach the top of Mont Pelaou Blanc at 3pm. We stayed on the top for about 30 minutes taking photos before returning to the skis and descended to the hut at 4pm.

Peak: Mont Pelaou Blanc (3135m)

Hut: Fond des Fours (2537m)

Day 2, Monday 14th April 1997 – Fonds des Four Hut

We were up at 7am, had breakfast a few minutes later and were skiing away from the hut at 8.20am with Jon telling us how slow we were and had to get up and out within an hour in future. 

We headed south at a steady plod into the coire below the Glacier des Fours. Then across an icy ski-rutted glacier to a steep section to reach the ridge. It was time for our skis to come off and to put crampons on to do the final steeper climb to the rocky top of Pointe de Mean Martin which we reached at 11.30pm. There were good views in every direction for photos, we then returned the same way and were back to the hut by 1pm.

Peak: Pointe de Mean Martin (3330m)

Hut: Fond des Fours (2537m)

Day 3, Tuesday 15th April 1997 – Fond des Fours Hut to Carro Hut

Up at 7am once again, had breakfast and were skiing away from the hut with all our gear at 8.05am. It was quite a steep pull up to the icy and bitterly cold Col des Fours (3019m). We quickly took skins off and set off – it was too cold to hang around. We traversed around a huge snow bowl followed by a great ski down to the road above the Pont de la Neige (2528m). From here it was time to take our skis off and carry them on our shoulders as we crossed the snow covered road, then over a snow bridge over the river to avoid having to go down to the bridge, and up a short section beyond to reach snow again. 

From here it was steep snow up to Le Pays Desert and time to put skis and skins on. It was a long steady skin to the col which was a bit steeper and icier at the Col de l’Ouille Noire (3229m). Jon asked if we wanted to go the ordinary route from here or try a new route he hadn’t used before, we opted for the latter. We traversed around and down to a steep couloir. Mark then caught his skis on something and hurtled head first down the slope to where Jon was waiting – Jon stopped him and helped him up unhurt. From here we continued down to another plateau at around 2600m at 2.30pm then skinned up to the Carro hut, reaching it at 4pm. Hilary Sharp, Jons’ wife, joined us late afternoon using the Val d’Isere lifts to get most of the way.

Hut: Carro (2759m)

Day 4, Wednesday 16th April 1997 – Carro Hut to Prariond Hut

It was the usual up at 7am, have breakfast and then we were away in record time at 7.45am. Outside it was a blue sky day and cold. We retraced our tracks of yesterday across the steep slope before heading back in a long traverse to the Col du Montet. The slopes up to the col were dreadful – covered in large windblown rime standing up maybe 1 to 2 feet high, especially difficult to do kick turns on it.

It was very cold and my skis were sticking in the snow so Jon rewaxed them on the col before we moved off. Then it was a short ski down before a skin up to a small level area where we left our skis and climbed along an airy ridge to the rocky top of the Grande Aiguille Rousse. There was a large French group here having a mega picnic, so much for getting away from the crowds! 

We retraced our steps and had a good ski down to the Prariond Hut at 2pm, although the last slope was dreadful breakable crust where we had to do downhill kick turns as we didn’t have the energy or expertise in this rubbish snow to do jump turns. It was a comfortable hut but a bit cosy in our room with all 7 of us in together, including one on a mattress and the rest of us in 2 high-rise bunks.

Peak: Grande Aiguille Rousse (3482m)

Hut: Prariond (2324m)

Day 5, Thursday 17th April 1997 – Prariond Hut to Benevolo Hut

Up at 7am, then breakfast and away at 7.50am. It was snowing, cold and overcast as we left but cleared later with some sunshine. We walked up a steep track behind the hut heading northeast and were soon able to put on skis as the patches of snow joined together.

We headed up to the Glacier de Bassagne then east to Pointe de la Galise. Steep in places but we seemed to be traversing for ages with my left leg higher than my right, my left knee became very painful. We were in the clouds all the time and reached the top of the Pointe de la Galise at 11.15am, not that we could see anything. 

It was a tricky route down with no view and we went too low then had to climb up a bit to get down the steepest part. That took us below the clouds after this but the lower plateau was covered in wind-blown rime which kept knocking my ski tips off direction as the last section was schussed. 

Jon then thought it would be a good idea to head down a snowed-up river gorge (Dora di Rhêmes) to a steep ice cliff that we side slipped down, then a narrow rock section just wide enough to ski through on the frozen snow-covered river, up another ice slope where we had to jump our skis sideways before we lost all momentum, finally side stepping to the top. I asked Jon how often he had done this, as I had never skied anything like it before, and he said he had never done it before either but thought it would be interesting! Interesting wasn’t the word I had in my mind at the time. 

We carried on down the river gorge until almost at the hut, arriving at the Benevolo Hut at 1pm. We were now in the Gran Paradiso area of Italy, just north of the National Park.

Peak: Pointe de la Galise (3343m)

Hut: Benevolo (2285m)

Day 6, Friday 18th April 1997 – Benevolo Hut to Val d’Isere

Another day getting up at 7am, having breakfast and leaving within an hour. I foolishly left my vintage water bottle in the outside wash facilities at the hut (yes, no mod cons!). This was an old red Sigg 1 litre bottle that had accompanied me on every trip for over 15 years so although very battered it had a lot of sentimental value. Amazingly, Jon contacted the hut and collected it the following week and posted it on to me, complete with wrapping it up with a ribbon! I was very grateful.

There was a cold wind and clear skies as we skied south to go around the Truc Santa Elena then under the enormous cliffs of the Granta Parey. From here we headed to the Col di Rhemes with an easy and steady slog. It was a bit tiring because I kept skiing ahead to take pictures and then dropping back  to take different angles and so on through the morning. 

From the col at 12.50pm the slopes up the Roc del Fonds looked incredibly steep. Jon said it was too steep to take skis off once we start up so decide at bottom if using skis or crampons. I chose skis. However, I did 2 bad kick turns on the steep ice about a third of the way up and scared myself as the drop behind me was very steep with a few rocks showing through. I spotted a small ledge and went over to it to swap over to crampons and carry my skis, ignoring the instruction from Jon. Crampons felt much better and I was able to crampon straight up the slope and met the first 4 on skis just as they reached the top of the steep bit too. The other 2 on crampons were still quite a bit lower. 

All skis were left below the final steep slope to the top and we cramponed the rest of the way. It was a bit of a scramble to the top with snow and then rocks. There were good views from the top of the Roc del Fonds.

We came down a slightly different way as Jon threw a rope down a steeper bit and we used it to steady ourselves in a sort of abseil; it was very steep, but quite easy. We returned to our skis and made our way down the slope to the col below. I put skis on part way down this final slope. 

We all regrouped at the bottom, skis on, and then made our way down past the cliffs of Calabre on good snow. As we skied lower the snow thinned out and then disappeared so we carried our skis for a bit before putting them on again to ski down to the road below the Pont St Charles. This was used as a piste down to Val d’Isere and we used it to ski down to the Le Fornet ski lift (1900m) bus stop to finish the tour at 2.30pm. We took a bus back to the Relais du Ski Hotel (our lodgings for the next 2 nights) and had a few beers in the afternoon sunshine. A fitting end to a very enjoyable tour.

Peak: Roc del Fonds (3350m)

Saturday 19th April 1997 Val d’Isere Skiing

We didn’t think we had done enough skiing so Mark, Phil and I had a day of downhill skiing using the Val d’Isere and Tignes lifts after the tour ended and before we travelled home.

It was another sunny day, we were very lucky with the weather this trip with blue sky days except for the fifth day of the tour, which makes for a much more enjoyable trip.

Sunday 20th April 1997 Travel Home

Mark, Phil and I travelled back to Geneva Airport and flew back to Manchester together. Jan picked me up at the airport and whisked me off home to the Peak District.

Total ascent for the week: 5540m in 6 days, excluding lifts!

Camera

Mamiya 6, 50mm, 150mm lenses, yellow and dark yellow filters, Ilford FP4 Plus 220 film, I took 12 rolls – 288 negatives over the 8 ski days.

CCS Kobra Head camera case secured on front with neck strap and waist belt.

Nikon AF3 + Fuji Sensia 100 35mm Colour slide/transparency film, carried in a jacket pocket or slung over my shoulder.

Equipment

Skis: Kastle Tour Randonee 180cm skis

Ski Bindings: Silvretta 404 Touring bindings

Ski Crampons: Silvretta 404 Harscheissen

Ski Poles: Kastle Collapsible

Ski Climbing Skins: Pomoco (orange on left of photo)

Ice Axe: Mountain Technology 50cm ice axe

Crampons: Camp Arctic 10 step-in

Ski Mountaineering Boots: Scarpa Denali

Rucksack: Outside Rock 40 litre (made by POD, weighed 1kg empty) 14kg/30lbs, including camera