This is a lovely ‘quiet’ touring region that makes a great first hut to hut trip. We meet in Briancon, before travelling to Val Claree to complete an excellent six day tour around the local hut network. The touring in the region is extensive and the huts are small and friendly, with a great atmosphere.

Tour Info

This is a more relaxed paced tour with a wide variety of terrain, making it suitable as a first full week long hut to hut tour, or for anyone looking for a relaxed ski touring holiday. The region is full of superb ski terrain, with many options available for skiing in different conditions and it’s little known outside France – meaning the huts are small and friendly, with mostly just local skiers around.

Suitability

This is an relaxed/introductory level trip. To take part you should be at Fitness Level 2-3 and Tech Level 2-3 (see our Fitness/Experience guidelines). You need some previous ski touring experience in order to join this tour.  For reference, Ski Club of GB High Silver/Purple off piste ski standard is required for this trip.  As this is a multi day tour, if you haven’t skied with us before, then we may ask for a reference to confirm your experience/ski ability for the trip.  The week includes 5-7 hour days with 750-1000m of climb a day, so you can expect to be skinning for 3-4 hours a day. Type of ascent: We use 100% skinning on this tour – approx 5500m skinning up and 5500m skiing down.

Guiding ratio

One IFMGA guide skiing with 6 clients, or occasionally 2:7, with one Aspirant guide joining the team too.

Included in price

• 6 days of guiding/instruction
• All guides expenses
• 2 nights accommodation in Briancon, including breakfast
• 5 nights accommodation in mountain huts, including breakfast and evening meals
• Transfer from Briancon to Nevache

Excluded from price (see course factsheet for cost estimates)

• Uplift
• Evening meals in Briancon
• Lunches and drinks
• Flights and transfers
• Insurance
• Equipment hire

Hotels

Our meeting point is at a comfortable hotel in Briancon. Rooms are provided on a twin (or occasionally triple) sharing basis, but if you wish to book a single room please let us know at the time of booking and we will confirm availability. Hotel details can be found on our Accommodation page.

Huts

For overnights in the high mountains we will use mountain huts. The huts in this region of the Alps are small, quiet and very friendly, with excellent food. For more info please read the Using Alpine Huts article which provides an overview of typical hut facilities, average costs to help you budget for lunches/drinks, and general info on hut etiquette.  Also, our Ski Touring FAQs page answers some of the most common questions we are asked about multi day ski touring and logistics etc.

ABTOT Protected

This trip is protected by ABTOT – Alpine Guides Ltd, Membership Number 5394.  For further information, please visit our Financial Protection page.

Subject to weather and snow conditions, the plan is as follows. Please note that this is a sample itinerary only – on trips like this, itineraries are always subject to change as the current snow, weather and avalanche conditions need to be taken into account. This is an essential part of safety planning for all backcountry skiing, so please be ready for changes as part of your trip.

Saturday

You should arrange outward travel on Saturday, arriving by 6-7pm latest in time for the briefing at your accommodation. Your guide will run through kit checks and safety routines, as well as hand out any rental equipment, before going on to discuss the current weather and mountain conditions and how these affect our plans. Overnight in Briancon.

Sunday

Skin up to Refuge de Buffere

Transfer to Val Claree/Nevache (20-30 mins drive).  We’ll drive as far as possible (ie however far the road has been ploughed!) before skinning up to the Refuge de Buffere.

From here we’ll head out on a half day tour, including brushing up on some touring skills – we’ll choose an appropriate objective for the group, taking into account local snow and weather conditions. ~900m ascent, 500m descent ~5hrs.

Overnight in the hut.

Monday

Day Tour from Refuge de Buffere

There are plenty of good day tours above the hut, on both sides of the valley.  We’ll pick a suitable tour for the current conditions – eg Crete d’Echaillon, Crete de Baude, Le Grand Area etc. ~900m ascent and descent ~5hrs.

Overnight in the hut.

Tuesday

Refuge de Buffere to Refuge Laval

Depending on conditions, we may either take a loop south via the Col de Buffere and Roche de Monetier, or ski down into the main valley and do a tour up a side valley en route to the hut.  ~1000m ascent and descent 5-6hrs.

Overnight in the hut.

Wednesday

Day Tour from Refuge Laval

There are several options, depending on conditions – eg Tour de la Moutouz (2726m), Crete des Gardioles (2935m), Col de Tempete (2917m) etc ~900m ascent and descent ~5hrs.

Overnight in the hut.

Thursday

Refuge Laval to Refuge i Re Magi

Skin up to the Col des Muandes (2828m) via the Refuge des Dreyeres, followed by a long descent into the Vallee Etroite down to the Refuge i Re Magi. 750m ascent, 1100m descent ~5-6hrs.

Overnight in the hut.

Friday

Refuge i Re Magi to Nevache

On our final day we ski out to Nevache, back to our start point. Depending on conditions there are 3 possible routes back to Nevache – via the Col de Vallon (2645m), Col de L’Etroit (2489m) or Col des Thures (2194m). ~900m ascent, 1000m descent ~5hrs.

There’s usually time to visit a local bar or café for drinks and lunch here, before the pickup back to Briancon.

PM Transfer back to Briancon.

Course debrief and final hotel night.

Saturday

Return travel should be arranged on Saturday morning, after your final nights accommodation.

Your course base/starting point is Briancon on the northern edge of the Ecrins National Park. This mountain town sits amongst spectacular scenery and is close to a number of major resorts.

Arrival

The most common way to reach Briancon is to fly to Grenoble Isere Airport, then take a transfer bus from the airport to Briancon, or hire a car.

Flights and transfers

• Fly to Grenoble:
• There are 3-4 transfer buses to Briancon each Saturday – book tickets on the Bensbus  website – https://www.bensbus.co.uk/
• Four Saturday return Bensbuses run from Briancon back to Grenoble airport.

Alternatively, hire a car from any airport – driving times to Briancon are 2hrs from Turin, 2.5hrs from Grenoble, 3.00hrs from Lyon and 3.30 hours from Geneva.  NB you must hire a car with winter tyres or snow chains – as you will be crossing high mountain passes in winter, where special equipment is compulsory.

Other travel options

• Driving from the UK, take the ferry or Eurotunnel to Calais/Dunkerque, then 10-12 hours driving on the French Autoroutes (budget approx 100 Euros each way in tolls).
• Euroline coach: www.eurolines.co.uk/en
• Eurostar train from the UK to Lyon, then onward train/bus as above: www.eurostar.com/uk-en

Further information and travel links can be found on our Travel Planning page.

To enjoy this trip you should be comfortable operating at Fitness Level 2/3, and Ski Tech Level 2/3:

Fitness Level 2
You do 2-3 hours cv training/sport per week. At this level you should be happy doing either a 3-4 hr hillwalk, cycling 30-40 miles or mountain biking 2-3 hours without being exhausted. On foot: you should be able to walk from Ogwen Cottage in North Wales up Glyder Fach – Glyder Fawr – Y Garn – Ogwen in ~5hrs. Or in the Lake District Langdale – Bowfell – Esk Pike – Angle Tarn – Langdale in ~ 6hrs. On skis: you are capable of off piste skiing all day or doing a couple of hours skinning with out finishing up exhausted – ie you can do this for a number of days without taking a rest day.

Fitness Level 3
You do 3-4 hours cv training/sport per week. At this level you are happy doing a 5-6 hr hillwalk, 40-50ml cycle or 3-4hr mountain bike ride without being totally exhausted. If you are into challenges – then the thought of doing a road sportive, or training to do a 1/2 (or maybe even a full) marathon, wouldn’t seem too ridiculous. On foot: you should be able to do the full Langdale Horseshoe: Langdale – Pike of Stickle – Angle Tarn – Bow Fell – Crinkle Crags – Pike of Blisco – Langdale in a day without finishing up exhausted. On skis: you can skin uphill at 300-400m/hr for 3-4 hrs a day (ie 8-1200m of ascent each day)

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Tech Level 2
Improving Off Piste Skier. You enjoy black runs and the kind of tracked out off piste terrain found around many big resorts, but you haven’t skied too much in properly deep snow without a base to it yet. *Equivalent to Ski Club of GB Off Piste Level: Silver – Intermediate*
Likely to say: ‘I’d like to ski well in powder/link lots of short radius turns/go ski touring’
Our Advice: An Off Piste Skiing Course is highly recommended. If you’d like to try ski touring, then do either an intro ski touring course or an intro level ski tour.

Tech Level 3
Confirmed Off Piste Skier. You can put down a reasonable set of tracks in powder, but difficult snow types – eg heavy wet snow, crusts, poor visibility or 40dg slopes – can all cause problems (though you can cope with them safely, if not elegantly!) *Equivalent to Ski Club of GB Off Piste Level: Purple – Advanced*
Likely to say: ‘I’d like to handle difficult snow/steep slopes more confidently in better style’
Our Advice: Off piste coaching still useful. Intermediate off piste weeks are at your level too. If you want to get into ski touring, try a touring course or intro level ski tour. If you’re an established ski mountaineer, then intermediate level tours are generally suitable.

To view all of our Ski Fitness Levels and Off Piste Technical Levels, please visit our Ski Ability page.

If you need to top up your fitness for this trip, please see our Ski Touring Training Advice page.

Off Piste Ski Ability Levels

To join this trip, you need to be skiing at Tech Level 2/3 or higher on our 5 point scale. Use the descriptions above and the following video to help work out your current off piste ski ability level.

Hut to Hut Touring Equipment List

Just remember, every extra kilo on your back knocks 10% off your enjoyment on the descents – so try and keep the weight down!

Technical Clothing

• Waterproof Jacket – preferably lightweight and breathable
• Overtrousers/ski pants – preferably with side zips
• Fleece mid layer – or equivalent
• Socks – specialist ski socks or a warm loop lined pair of mountain socks
• Wicking thermal top – not cotton please…
• Thermal leggings or ski pants
• Thin inner gloves
• Warm ski gloves or mittens, if you suffer from cold hands
• Warm hat
• Spare fleece/lightweight duvet jacket

Personal Items

• Water container – at least 1 litre
• Personal medications and blister kit – regular meds, zinc oxide tape, compeed and painkillers etc
• Lightweight head torch
• Ski goggles
• Sun glasses – CE rated 3 or 4 with side protection
• Sun and lip cream – factor 30+
• Wallet, passport, Alpine Club/BMC card (hut discount) and insurance docs

Hut Overnight Items

• Small wash kit
• Spare lightweight t-shirt/socks/pants
• Silk sheet liner
• Ear plugs
• (Hut slippers for indoor use, blankets/duvets and pillows are provided by the huts)

Technical Equipment

• Rucsac 35/45l – try and avoid ones covered in too many features, just ski and ice axe attachments required
• Ski mountaineering boots
• Skis with touring bindings – lightweight pin binding setup required. Heavy freeride setups not suitable. Older style bar/rail bindings (Fritschi Freeride, Marker Duke etc) not allowed – please update your kit!
• Ski strap – to keep skis together on your rucksack if we need to carry them
• Ski poles – with good size 5cm+ baskets (telescopic poles are not needed)
• Climbing skins – they come with the skis if you hire your kit
• Harscheisen (ski crampons) – they come with the skis if you hire your kit
• Metal snow shovel – must be a full metal shovel (plastic blades don’t work in real avalanche debris!)
• Avalanche probe
• Avalanche transceiver – must be a modern digital model (older analogue models are now obsolete)
• Harness, with 120cm sling and locking karabiner
• Crampons – lightweight model
• Ice Axe – lightweight model
• Ski Helmet – lightweight ski touring or backcountry model preferred.  Wearing a helmet is compulsory on descents and may be needed on other parts of the route depending on conditions

Your guide will have all other safety kit, first aid and survival equipment.

Recommendations and Advice
Visit the Knowledge Base section of our website, where we publish an annual review of the years best new skis, boots and touring equipment, plus a range of other interesting tips and recommendations. If you can’t find what you’re looking for, please get in touch!

Purchasing Equipment
Backcountry UK in Otley offer an excellent ski touring boot fitting service, one of the best ranges of ski mountaineering equipment in the UK and top notch advice.

Hiring Equipment
Please visit our Equipment Hire page for recommended hire shops in your resort, and Alpine Guides hire equipment price list (safety equipment is provided free of charge on certain courses – please consult price inclusions).

For this trip you must have specialist travel insurance providing medical, emergency search/rescue and repatriation cover for off piste skiing and ski touring, as outlined in the trip itinerary. We also strongly recommend that you purchase cancellation cover, in case you’re unable to attend your trip due to personal circumstances or injury. Please arrange your insurance as soon as your trip is confirmed to run.

Further details can be found on our insurance info page.