The Haute Route Ski Tour – France/Switzerland

The Haute Route Ski Tour – France/Switzerland

April 18 – April 27, 2008

Cost: $2,400

Difficulty Level: Intermediate
Participants should be solid black diamond skiers and be in good physical shape. No technical climbing experience is necessary, although previous experience backcountry skiing/skiing is recommended. Ability to ski in variable terrain necessary.

Chamonix, France is the start of arguably the most famous ski tour in Europe, if not the world. The Haute Route allows one to experience a truly aesthetic journey—starting in Chamonix, and ending in Zermatt under the shadow of the Matterhorn. Staying in isolated alpine huts, we travel each day to a new hut, traversing glaciers and crevassed terrain, immersed in the dramatic French Alps.

Most days start with an early, alpine wake-up, a warm breakfast provided by the mountain hut, and then skinning and skiing until mid-afternoon when we arrive at the next hut. One fantastic aspect of a European hut tour is that it allows us to travel light while enjoying many comforts of home. The huts are famous for providing delicious, four-course meals! Each afternoon, there is ample time to relax & enjoy the companionship of your group and the incredible scenery. The tour culminates with a dramatic entrance into the Swiss village of Zermatt.

In 2008, the Haute Route Ski tour will be led by Alpenglow’s owner, Adrian Ballinger. Adrian has been climbing and skiing in the Alps since 2000, and now spends at least one half of the winter ski guiding there.