{"id":469,"date":"2014-08-10T17:13:19","date_gmt":"2014-08-10T15:13:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mountainpassions.com\/wordpress\/?p=469"},"modified":"2023-09-25T12:48:06","modified_gmt":"2023-09-25T10:48:06","slug":"ski-alpe-d-huez","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mountainpassions.com\/winter\/ski-resort-reviews\/alps\/ski-alpe-d-huez\/","title":{"rendered":"Alpe d\u2019Huez"},"content":{"rendered":"
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S<\/span>eeing it from the inside, of course, turns out to be a much more hands-on experience. When we finally arrive by car Alpe d\u2019Huez<\/strong> actually feels a lot bigger on the ground than it had looked when we skied down into it from the mountain, a result of the purpose-built village \u2013 \u2018town\u2019 now feels a lot more appropriate \u2013 having gradually evolved and expanded over a period of more than seventy years.
\nArchitecturally things have changed a lot, particularly around the Jeux area, where the latest developments (and redevelopments) have responded to what today\u2019s increasingly-discerning visitors are looking for.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\nWhen TV coverage of the Tour de France included the gruelling climb to Alpe d\u2019Huez, it wasn\u2019t only the epic battle to win the stage which fired our imagination.\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Installed, up and away<\/h2>\n
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After making ourselves at home in our apartment in the R\u00e9sidence le Cristal de l\u2019Alpe<\/a>, we resist the temptation to relax and instead make our way over to join the nearby T\u00e9l\u00e9centre<\/strong> cabriolet-style lift. This endearingly-quirky device from the early-\u201980s offers step-on\/step-off convenience and transports skiers to and from the ski-school meeting points. It\u2019s not the speediest of lifts, but at least allows skiers plenty of time to enjoy bird\u2019s-eye views of the eastern side of the village, plus events on assorted pistes and drag-lifts.When we step off we transfer to the DMC<\/strong> (Double Mono-Cable<\/em>) gondola lift and join the other skiers and snowboarders heading smoothly up to 2100m. From this point it\u2019s possible to ski over into Oz-en-Oisans<\/a> without taking another lift, but we transfer instead to the gondola\u2019s second stage (or \u2018tron\u00e7on\u2019<\/em>), this time up to around 2700m.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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At the top, in addition to longer descents into Oz<\/strong>, you can continue all the way over to the Vaujany<\/a> -Villette<\/strong> gondola \u2013 in fact, competent Black-run skiers can even descend to below the village itself without taking a single lift. As we\u2019ve discovered, the lift system has been very well-planned.
\nOur target today is the 3330m Pic Blanc<\/strong>, which is accessible from the village either via the three-stage Marmottes gondola\/funitel<\/strong> lifts, or by our route today, the final stage of which uses the Pic Blanc cable-car.<\/p>\n

As expected, the ride is sensational, as the scenery slowly falls away all around us. At the top we surge out wobbly-legged to find the purpose-built orientation platform, from which it is said that in clear conditions around one-fifth of France<\/strong> is visible. Either way, there’s no doubting that it\u2019s one of the classic panoramas of the French Alps.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Sensational views from the Pic Blanc cable car.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The captivating panorama seen from the top of the Pic Blanc cable car.<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Alpe d’Huez Sarenne: the Big One<\/h2>\n
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But it\u2019s not merely the views, however arresting, which have brought us here. Right now both visibility and snow conditions are excellent, but not destined to remain that way for long, since an approaching depression looks set to bring \u2018substantial and potentially prolonged\u2019 snowfalls. Since our time in Alpe d\u2019Huez is limited to just a couple of days, if we\u2019re finally going to ski the legendary Sarenne<\/strong> (at 16km, the world\u2019s longest pisted run), it\u2019s clearly a case of now or who-knows-when.<\/p>\n

Sarenne is classified Black, mainly on account of the distance involved, but apart from two or three steep sections, it\u2019s not overly demanding technically. Once a steep and quite narrow launch-point is out of the way, the piste turns and then widens at the head of a steep but not-too-deep section, after which things ease to something more akin to a Blue cruise. Somewhere deep beneath the snow is the Glacier de Sarenne<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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On our right we soon pass the turn-off which feeds onto the famous Tunnel piste, said to be the toughest on the mountain. A few minutes later we\u2019ve passed the base of the Cristalli\u00e8re chairlift<\/strong>, and all is peaceful, apart from the occasional passage of a skier or snowboarder.
\nFrom now on the mood is one of away-from-it-all ski-touring, our progress being marked by a succession of steep walls followed by long, relatively gentle cruises. We can imagine that it must all feel very different in less perfect visibility, particularly after fresh powder lies deep, but even on a fine day like today it\u2019s a great place to be.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Part of the Sarenne piste, the world's longest groomed black run.<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Skiers take a break and admire the views from the Sarenne piste.<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The perfect picnic spot<\/h2>\n

We\u2019re not the only ones who feel that way; around the half-way point we pass a relaxed group of skiers and \u2019boarders seated around a perfectly-sited picnic table. Visible in the far distance beyond is what must be Les 2 Alpes<\/a>. Like everything else, right now it seems a very long way away.Further down things begin to narrow as we drop into the Gorges de la Sarenne<\/strong>, through which we snake our way serenely, enjoying the unspoilt landscape of dormant larch trees and the snow-covered stream after which the piste is named.<\/p>\n

As we drop ever deeper the shadows close in around us and temperatures drop correspondingly, so we\u2019re grateful to see ahead of us the first signs of life for a very long time, in the shape of a cosy chalet-style mountain restaurant. B<\/strong>eside it is a welcoming snack-bar, complete with a partly-sunlit area of tables for hungry and by now mile-weary skiers like us. We therefore grab a table, place our order and recharge our batteries, while reflecting on what we\u2019ve just experienced.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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