A day never to be forgotten | Mountain Mavericks
Waking in the mountains is great even just in resort. To look out of the window and already be at 2000mtrs in the middle of untouched alpine splendour on the dawn of a bluebird fresh powder day, that’s what dreams are made of.
As soon as breakfast was done we suited up and headed out, legs a bit stiff from yesterday but fully powered by excitement. 2 hours up to the Point de Bostain, short break then headed down the south side towards Switzerland. A short ride bit of an up, then traverse over the col, to meet our first proper decent.
As we all re grouped at the bottom there were a group of mountain goats watching from the ridge above us, totally at ease in what we could truly believe was their world. We stood on a little knoll looking up at the most majestic cliffs and peaks rising above us on 3 sides, whilst the view across the valley went on forever. There was no sign of man anywhere. Such a beautiful place to be and at the end of an awesome ride got us really stoked. Which was good, as we then saddled up again for our next ascent.
After an hour or so and a short section that blurred the lines between split boarding and mountaineering, we were getting back into riding mode. We had a short traverse, which was only the second time our guide was very specific about how he wanted us to proceed (a sure fire sign that the consequences were pretty serious) that brought us to the head of another huge couloir. Which was duly shredded.
WOW again.
We had one more hike, which took us round the head of the valley, more of a traverse, that brought us to the Col de Coux and back into France. The run down was awesome fun, lots to play on and I think that as we were no longer directly under the dominance of the peaks and cliffs we had been riding on and in a situation where the risks were not so obviously in front of you, we all underwent a sense of release and could stop trying to jump off everything and bounce around like kids.
This last run brought us full circle, which only left to return to the hotel and get a drink, apart from Ian who had a transfer to the airport with no time to spare for even a change or shower, apologies to who had to sit next to him on the flight.
As we sat and drank, I don’t think any of us could truly believe what we had just shared. We may have only had three descents for a total of nearly 4 hours walking. But the scenery made the hikes up truly memorable, any one of the rides down could have been the one to make a holiday and the whole experience together was unforgettable. Sure did make that first beer taste good too.
I would truly like to thank Guilluame and Olaf from Esf Morzine who were our guides, I would recommend them highly and after this respect them properly. Props go to all those that came with us on this trip. It was the first time we have done anything like this and were not sure what could be achieved both on split boards and in The Portes du Soliel, but that door has well and truly been opened, watch this space for where it goes next.
All photos courtesy of www.sammellish.co.uk