{"id":565,"date":"2014-08-14T14:34:06","date_gmt":"2014-08-14T12:34:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mountainpassions.com\/wordpress\/?p=565"},"modified":"2019-04-12T12:44:10","modified_gmt":"2019-04-12T10:44:10","slug":"ski-valfrejus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mountainpassions.com\/winter\/ski-resort-reviews\/alps\/ski-valfrejus\/","title":{"rendered":"Valfr\u00e9jus"},"content":{"rendered":"
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T<\/span>he drive up from Modane only takes a few minutes, yet somehow we seem to have repeatedly passed Valfr\u00e9jus by until now, when we finally get to satisfy our curiosity. Maybe we should have come sooner. In a typical year January should find the Maurienne (and the rest of the French Alps, in fact) subsumed in snow and enduring temperatures well below freezing. Our visit, though, turns out to be anything but typical, and while it\u2019s bitingly cold the snow-cover at lower-lying areas looks distinctly patchy. Fortunately, at 1550m things are altogether more reassuring, and as we roll into Valfr\u00e9jus at nightfall there\u2019s little doubt that we\u2019re in a ski village \u2013 and as far as we can tell in the darkness, a rather stylish one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\nThis is just the beginning \u2013 the Jeu piste offers a further 10+ kilometres (along with almost 800m vertical drop) of blue cruising along the sides of the valley, all the way back to Valfr\u00e9jus village.\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\n\"Arrondaz
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The Arrondaz gondola.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\n\"Gentle
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Gentle novice terrain served by simple draglifts on the Plateau d'Arrondaz.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Onwards and upwards in Valfr\u00e9jus<\/h2>\n
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Next morning we peer out onto an appealing picture of mountain scenery, complete with extensive forests of pine and larch. After heading over to the Arrondaz gondola lift we start get the bigger view, and a rapidly-changing one, too \u2013 operating at around 6m\/sec this is one of the fastest lifts we\u2019ve ever ridden. Once above the tree-line the steep climb eases as we cruise smoothly over the Plateau d\u2019Arrondaz, where the first of the day\u2019s skiers are now assembling for their respective ski-school classes. The surprisingly good snow-cover confirms everything they say about the area catching just about every weather front heading across the nearby border with Italy.<\/p>\n

Once the lift has touched down we snap into our skis and pole our way towards the nearby chairlift for another high-velocity ride, which this time will take us to Punta Bagna, at 2737m the highest point on the mountain. This time the climb begins gently before ramping up the angle of attack for a more dramatic final ascent, which in early morning shadow adds to the chill-factor. Much more so, in fact, than would have been the case for this lift\u2019s predecessor, the trade-off being that the old Punta Bagna II gondola would have been affected much more by gusting winds than the powerful six-seater chairlift. Whatever the logic, at the top we\u2019re more than glad to be back in full sunlight once again. Better still, despite the altitude, today there\u2019s barely a breath of wind, so before putting in our first runs of the day we head onto the large panoramic sun-deck of the nearby bar\/restaurant to warm up and take in the scenery.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Ahead lie jaw-dropping views of the snowy vastness of the Italian Alps, while somewhere to our right lie the linked ski areas of Valloire and Valmeinier<\/a>. Faced with this awe-inspiring sight today, it\u2019s easy to understand how Valfr\u00e9jus and its French and Italian neighbours once dreamed of linking their terrain to create a ski domain of epic proportions. Sadly the project (named Croix du Sud<\/em>) never materialised, although the more modest aspiration to a link over to Bardonnechia could still happen one day. We certainly hope so.<\/p>\n

For now, though, there\u2019s plenty to see right here in Valfr\u00e9jus, so we snap back onto our skis and head off on the blue-graded Cr\u00eates for a long cruise which takes us first along the spine of the mountain before turning sharp right onto a quite steep descent on Col, which is still graded blue, since it\u2019s more than wide enough to reassure timid intermediates. Right now it\u2019s also still in shade, but lower down we ski back into the sunlight as the pitch eases for the final run on the Plateau d\u2019Arrondaz. It\u2019s a great run and underlines the fact that the cruising terrain here is perfect for those who like the occasional steep on which to develop their edge control and build both confidence and fitness.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\n\"The
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The Punta Bagna chair-lift arrives at 2737m, far above the tree-line and the Maurienne Valley.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\n\"Excellent
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Excellent snow quality and perfect peace beside the Italian frontier, behind Punta Bagna.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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More fresh snowfalls…<\/h2>\n

The Punta Bagna is a point of departure for other options, including speed-riding. Sure enough, after a second haul up to the sensational viewpoint, just beyond the top station of the lift we watch in awe as two paraglider-equipped skiers launch themselves off the ridge and take off from a steep, unpisted section of mountainside. It\u2019s hugely impressive, and not without a degree of risk for those who get it wrong.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile something altogether more benign had caught our eye while we\u2019d been taking in our surroundings from the viewpoint. Heading left from top of the lift is a gentle-looking blue-graded cruise which accesses the Punta Bagna black for the rather more direct, mostly-ungroomed run back to the Plateau. Just past the exit, though, the blue turns hard right towards all that glorious virgin Italian territory we\u2019d seen earlier.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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