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 New
Courchevel link
Those of you who used to love returning from Courchevel 1650 via
the nightmarishly steep and icy Creux drag lift will be devastated
to learn it has been banished and will be replaced by an incredibly
comfortable and speedy chair lift called the Gravelles. The rest
of us are delighted!
New Val T link
The most exciting news in the 3 Valleys is the new Funitel (a cross
between a bubble and a cable car) is being put in from Val Thorens
to the top of the Lac de la Chambre run which will make the arduous
return via chair lifts, Trois Vallées 1 and 2 a thing of the past.
This will make skiing Val Thorens a significantly more pleasant
experience.
The squirrel rises again
In Méribel the Écureuil (squirrel) is being resurrected. This black
run which used to start at the top of the Tougnète drag and run
between Faon and the Combe de Tougnete was erased from the piste
map about three years ago as it was almost always closed. (This
was due to piste bashers not being able to access the run.) It is
being completely re-graded and re-instated on the map as a red run.
Long live the Squirrel!
New Altiport - Chaudanne circuit
Elsewhere in Méribel a new circuit will allow beginners the possibility
of returning to Chaudanne from the “debutant” zone at the Altiport.
The Côtes drag just above Rond Point is being extended and a piste
added, so skiers coming back from Altiport can get up to the Rhodos
midway station in order to return to Chaudanne by bubble. The Côtes
will now be a free lift as will be the Altiport drag. Up on Col
de la Loze the primarily south facing red piste Pic Noir has been
re-modelled to make it less affected by the sun. How they will move
the sun remains to be seen.
Lift upgrades
In Mottaret the Fouine piste which starts at the bottom of the Roc
de Tougnes double drag has been re-graded to allow easier access
at the top and a smoother run. Les Menuires has a new Becca chair
lift which replaces the Becca and the two les Combes drag lifts.
So, no more freezing your gloves off on these slow drags.
For the future there is still talk of a bubble from Champagny to
Bozel and one from Bozel to Couchevel to link the 3 Valleys to La
Plagne, but as yet no firm plans. A chair from Raffort to the bottom
of the Olympic Express has some chance of becoming a reality according
to Jean Luc Santon of Méribel Alpina. What is definitely planned
for 2004-05 is a fast chair to replace the slow and rather annoying
Plan de l’Homme chair which will improve things at Chaudanne in
the high season.
Mont de la Chambre, but only halfway...
Finally, beware the rearrangement of the Mont de La Chambre Bubble
from Les Menuires. Last winter I sat in it happily assuming I would
be taken to the top of Mont de la Chambre. I got to the half station
and was rudely asked to exit. ‘Why?’ I asked. Because the second
stage doesn’t exist anymore. You really do have to keep up to date!
[Article by Chris Learoyd, The
Meribel Times]
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