Top 10 Pistes to do before you die (or go home)

In my opinion these are some of the best runs in the 3 Vallyes; listed in order of proximity to Chalet Broski

1. Pramint - St Martin (intermediate) our home run but its a beauty
2. Jerusalem - St Martin (intermediate) this run has almost mythical status - am must do
3. Grand Lac - St Martin (easy) lovely run, views from roc des 3 marches are superb
4. Choucas - Meribel (easy) my favourite easy run; when i take beginners we go here first
5. Balnchot - Meribel (super easy) but its good for boarders and its nice to be in the trees
6. Lac Blanc - Val Thorens (intermediate) great views of the glacier and the snow here never fails
7. Gentiane - Val Thorens (easy) lots of little hops for boarders
8. Creux - Corcheval (intermediate) holds the snow well - take Chanrossa lift after for great views
9. Pyramide - Corcheval (easy) massive open pistes - great for trying off piste at the edges
10. Bouchet - Val Thorens in Orelle - (intermediate) the highest point of the 3 valleys with views to match

Let me know if I forgot any!

Lac d'Aiguebelette - Vertes-Sensations

We have teamed up with friends of ours near Chambery to offer a cool day out in this wonderful location at the gateway to the Alps. I did the canyoning trip with my 12 year old son last summer and it was amazing. We are booked in for the Rhone Kayak trip and cant wait.

Vertes Sensations are based by the lake and operate a number activites ranging from a gentle paddle on the lake to more adrenalin orientated via ferrata or canyoning. At the end of the day there is frequently live music and a BBQ with a few beers at their club house by the lake. Check out their web site at http://www.vertes-sensations.com/

P.S. the photo was from a tandem paraglider flight - you can book that too :-s

7km run from Chalet Broski

This run is only 7km but it has some steep sections. To compensate, the scenery is marvelous. From Chalet Broski go down onto the lane towards St Martin de Belleville. After about 1km - just on the far side of les Varcins - take the lane steeply down to the right. At the main road turn right for about 100m before taking the track to the left. Follow this track to Villarenger, where you will find the old roman bridge to the right. Cross the bridge and follow the track to the right (north). After 100m or so keep left (up) where the track forks. Keep going for 1.5 km throught delightfull woodland until you see a sign (mountain bike route 5) to the right - take this. This much narrower path takes you down to the river, which you cross by a foot bridge (2km). On the other side there is a steep ascent until you come to a T junction. Turn left - up the hill. This takes you back on the route you descended from chalet broski.

robin 7th may www.broski.co.uk

4km run from Villarenger

Althought the moutains are pretty steep there is some good running to be found near the chalet. One of my favourite short circuits (4KM) starts from the old Roman bridge (pictured above) at Villarenger, only a few minutes from the chalet. Cross the bridge and follow the track to the right (north). After 100m or so keep left (up) where the track forks. Keep going for 1.5 km throught delightfull woodland until you see a sign (mountain bike route 5) to the right - take this. This much narrower path takes you down to the river, which you cross by a foot bridge (2km). On the other side there is a steep ascent until you come to a T junction. Take the track to the right; down hill. This track follows close to the river all the way back to Villarenger.

robin 5th may www.broski.co.uk

Orelle Again

We went high today - concerned that the snow lower down would be slushy, but in fact the north faces at val t were in pretty good shape. Franc came up from Chambery and we had a good blast before heading down to the piano bar in St Martin de Belleville for a few beers. I found out that the piano bar stays open all year, which is cool becuase most places are closed outside ski season except in July and August.

robin

2 of my best off piste runs in the 3 valleys

Last week of the season at Val Thorens and fresh show... Great! Colin and I made an early start, and were waiting for the lifts to open at 9am.

We started by dropping straight down the side of boismint on perfect untouched powder. It was only about 10cm deep and below it was a hard layer - so we stuck to the gullies where it was deeper. Having got to the lowest point in Val Thorens and decided the snow cover went low enough.. it was time to do something a bit more ambitious.

From the top of Cime Caron the views were spectacular - its was competely clear. I started down col de l'audzin, and just before it crosses into back into the Val Thorens valley dropped off the piste. From here there is about 17km of amazing off piste. The valley is behind Val T - so there are no lifts to spoil the landscape. There are a series of gullies bowls and open flanks - eventually leading to lac de lou.

Next it was Orelle. From the top of the second lift you just duck under the fence and go! There is a long sweeping descent following the curve of the valley to the left. It was a bit later in the day now and it was already fairly tracked. But becuase the area is so big, it was possible to find fresh powder. This is a relatively easy run, but there is some avalanche risk, so best avoided if the risk level is high.

This was one of the best days of the season - and it was May! Hats off to late skiing :-)

robin white
www.broski.co.uk

Newsletter 27 April

Hello Skiers/Snowboarders

Today was the last day of the season in St Martin de Belleville, and what a week its been! We had powder on Tuesday, and its been sunny ever since. The snow management seems to get better and better each year - with most of the runs still open. We stripped off to T-shirts and cranked up the music and did run after run of completely empty pistes :-) By mid afternoon I was still finding pistes untouched since the basher went down last night. I think the last week of the season is the best kept secret in the Alps - it was one of the only weeks we were not full.

So we have had our best season yet - a big thanks to all who stayed this year - and for all the wonderful things you said in the guest book and by email after. I have already taken several bookings for next season - so if you have a week in mind, please let me know and I can put it by for you.

Turning to summer... I am working on a multi-sports week, including white water rafting, canyoning, via ferrata, mountain biking, canoeing, summer luge, plus of course good eating and drinking, and a party at lake Aiguebelette. I need to put together a group of about 8 people to get this off the ground... Anyone interested?

Cheers

Robin White
Chalet Broski
www.broski.co.uk
+33 (0)617 75 03 19
+44 (0)207 193 9803

today on the piste... :-)