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Give yourself five days in La Grave and ski some of the best off-piste terrain in the world. The area is famous for steep, committing lines—but your guide reads the group and builds each day around your level. You’ll ski the area’s classic routes. And if you’ve already logged backcountry days and want to level up your skills, this is the trip to do it on.
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Day 1: Evaluation and classics in the area
On the first day of this electrifying adventure you’ll meet up with your guide who will evaluate the level of the participants so that he can tailor a perfect trip for you! You’ll head out to La Grave’s classics such as Les Vallons de La Meije and the Chancel route and get a chance to ski down some scenic routes and head down through several steep couloirs, all while taking in the glorious mountainous vistas that the French Alps offer.
Day 2: Experience the Girose Glacier, the La Banane and Patou couloirs
On this day you’ll experience some steep slopes and descents and ski on the Girose glacier, the highest point you can reach using a lift in the resort. On the Chancel Route, you’ll head down La Banane and Patou, the steep-sided couloirs, with La Banane being longer and, as the name suggests, a bit curved.
Days 3, 4 and 5: Conquer stunning couloirs, Saint Christophe, Trifides…
Over these three days, your guide leads you through a string of alpine valleys and legendary couloirs. Couloir de Fréaux is the gentlest entry—narrow and steep off the top, then a long, flowing descent that drops you into the village of Les Fréaux.
La Voûte opens on a broad slope and steepens as you go. The Chirouze sector packs three steep couloirs side by side, each better than the last. You’ll also ski toward the village of Saint Christophe en Oisans and drop into the Trifide couloir.
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What you get in this adventure:
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- An experienced, UIAGM High Mountain Guide with extensive knowledge of the area
- Five days of backcountry ski touring
- Avalanche safety kit if necessary (transceiver, shovel, probe and harness)
What’s not included:
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- Technical backcountry ski touring equipment
- Transportation of the participants and guide on the days that you leave La Grave, transportation to La Grave and all the trips during the adventure
- Food and snacks
- Accommodations
- Cable car transportation
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You’ll need to be in very good shape for this one. Expect five to seven hours on your feet, five days straight, over varied terrain—with controlled descents in whatever conditions the mountain serves up.
Everyone should be comfortable on challenging red-level resort runs or harder, and able to carry a loaded daypack while skinning. For the advanced program, plan on 1,000 m (3,300 ft) of climbing on uneven terrain, so bring your legs.
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You’ll need previous backcountry experience to join. The intermediate tour asks for a solid skiing level; for the advanced program, touring experience helps but isn’t essential.
Expect hours of skiing, touring, and summiting on glaciated terrain every day. Your guide handles the planning, keeps an eye on your technique, and coaches you on reading the terrain—and they carry the avalanche training to make the call when it matters.
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For technical backcountry ski touring gear, you will need to bring:
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- Alpine touring skis, telemark skis or splitboard with skins (can be rented)
- Touring boots and poles (can be rented)
For personal items, we recommend bringing:
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- Helmet
- Sunglasses or ski goggles
- Gloves and hat
- Wind and waterproof shell jacket with hood (Gore-Tex recommended)
- Ski pants (Gore-Tex recommended)
- Down jacket or vest
- Synthetic or wool base layers, underwear and socks
- One triple-action locking carabiner or two conventional locking carabiners
- Repair kit and Leatherman for your equipment (can be shared between several people)
- Water bottle and 1L of water
- Thermos with a warm beverage — optional
- Food you can eat on-the-go
- First aid kit
- Sunscreen
- Daypack large enough to carry all items listed (around a 30-40L backpack)
- Camera — optional
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All mandatory gear can be rented if you don’t have your own. You can rent:
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- Avalanche safety pack, including backpack, beacon, shovel and probe from Objectif Meije
- Alpine touring or telemark skis, touring boots and poles can be rented from Objectif Meije
Ski rental locations are in La Grave and should be picked up the night prior to your outing. If you need to rent gear, let us know and we can help make arrangements.
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Group sizes and pricing:
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- For this adventure, the max client-to-guide ratio is 4:1.
- Costs per person decrease as the group grows for this adventure, so it’s the perfect opportunity to ski with friends and family.
Backcountry skiing in La Grave can be arranged for larger groups. Contact us to make arrangements.
Min. age requirements:
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- If you are older than 18, you’re good to go.
- Minors may be permitted to join private tours on a case-by-case basis.
If your group has skiers under the age of 18, contact us prior to booking to make arrangements.
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To get to La Grave, most people fly into Lyon-Saint-Exupéry Airport, 2 hours away from La Grave. When you get to Lyon, you can rent a car or take a bus or train to Grenoble, and then take a bus directly to La Grave.
You can also fly into Turin Airport 2.5 hours away. From Turin, you can rent a car or take a train to Bardonecchia and then drive to La Grave for 1h 20 minutes.
The meeting place is in La Grave. Once you and your guide agree on the details of your itinerary, your guide will suggest the best place to meet, whether that’s at the guide shop or a predetermined location. The guide will choose the appropriate terrain dependent on conditions and the ability of the group.
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We highly recommend that you cover all your bases with insurance. To make your booking and traveling experience as carefree as possible, you’ll be offered to simply insure your trip with Redpoint at checkout.
Redpoint—the official 57hours insurance partner—tailors protection packages for adventure travel, offering a comprehensive travel program, even in remote locations! Trip cancellation, natural disasters, pandemic coverage, medical evacuation, primary medical expenses—regardless of the travel interruption that may happen, Redpoint will have you covered.
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