On Friday 7th December, the Whitedot testing team in Chamonix took advantage of lift pre-opening and superb early season conditions to get some uphill miles on the CarbonLite Ranger (all-access freeride ski due for release in the New Year). With the snow thumping down and the avalanche risk at level 4 of 5, the team decided to take on the forest trails of Les Houches to give ourselves a workout.
Les Houches is Chamonix valley's 'go to' location when the snow is falling hard. The forest runs really help counter flat-light conditions and reduce avalanche risk. Additionally, the history of the Kandahar Downhill is always inspirational - even on the uphill slog!
Getting going is always the hard part of ski touring - finding your rhythm, temperature control, and when it is snowing - finding the right combination of weather protection versus ventilation. After half an hour, inevitably you start to focus and the mind starts to unwind - all that matters is to keep a metronomic pace.
But getting to this point takes a little practice and the right set up. The key is to 'start cold' and to layer your kit properly'. The conditions we were working in on Friday were minus 3-4 degrees, and snowing at about 5cm per hour, no wind (thankfully!). For me, the combination of a wicking baselayer (LS Groundup), cotton tee, and the Changabang ME shell provide, along with a thin merino wool hat, were perfect.
After a couple of hours of uphill slog on forest trails, the Les Houches ridge line appeared and thoughts turn to chocolate, flask of hot coffee and warm kit. Ordinarily, the Les Houches ridge line is one of those places in the world which stops you in your tracks - the views are some of the best in the Alps. To the east is Chamonix valley with the Aiguilles Rouge on one side and the Drus/Mont Blanc chain on the other. To the south is the Mont Blanc massif proper and running away to the West are the valleys of Bionassey, Les Contamines and Megeve. The contrast of big mountain versus the closer stuff, are aweinspiring and you feel you can reach out and touch the peaks from this spot.
Anyway, this wasn't the case on Friday! It was a zero visibility day and the focus was definitely on a quick re-fuel and strip the skins off the skis and get a forest powder run back down to the Bellevue car park in Les Houches. I switched from Super Alpine gloves to Couloir gloves, and added an Arete down vest to add warmth on the descent. I replaced my woolly hat with my helmet and googles and was good to go!
Needless to say 30 minutes later, and back in the car park, we all had large grins on our faces and there was 'high fives' all round - how very 'early season'!
Mark - Director Whitedot Skis
