La Grave Advanced & Off-Piste Skiing
La Grave is famous for its couloirs, including the three Trifide couloirs. There are many long ski routes down to the valley road that leads up to La Grave, and also ‘off the back’ to St Christophe-en-Oisans. The Derby de la Meije in April is an off-piste race, which sounds suicicidal but it’s actually quite safe and great fun.On a good powder day this is as good as it gets. There is a wide variety of couloirs – some unthreatening in good snow, others much more severe, particularly in icy conditions when they are best avoided, no matter how skilful the skier. Negotiating a terrifying “no fall zone” traverse is necessary to get to the legendary Pan de Rideau (Curtain’s Edge) which is almost 50 degrees in places, with a bergschrund (crevasse between the glacier and the rock) at the bottom.
The three Trifide couloirs are probably the most famous ones, partly because they have been the scene of many tragic accidents over the years.
On the other side of the mountain there’s an excellent and not over-difficult off-piste run down to the remote climbing village of St-Christophe-en-Oisans – again, best done with a guide. it’s mostly south-facing so snow conditions have to be right. To return, you’ll need transport back to the picturesque little village of Venosc, from where you can reach Les Deux Alpes by gondola. Les Deux Alpes has good black run and off-piste skiing too, so you might wish to make a few detours on the way back.
Holding a race in a ski area renowned for its extreme off-piste might seem crazy, but the Derby de la Meije is over 30 years old and is actually one of the safest times to ski in La Grave because the more terrifying couloirs are roped off for a day. In theory the race is run from the top of the ski area to the bottom, but as it’s held in April, it usually ends at the river as there is not quite enough snow to reach the village and in a really bad season it might stop at mid-mountain (2400 m). Some racers, making as few as half a dozen turns, have completed the course in little more than six minutes! But you only have to a be a fairly good skier, not an expert one, to take part. Teams are encouraged to have men and women, boarders and skiers, and if you can’t win a prize for being the fastest, you might still get one for having the best fancy-dress. For more details see: https://derbydelameije.com .