Le Brevent is an imposing and statuesque snow drenched mountain ascending up from the charming valley of Chamonix that lies below. For skiers and snowboarders who wish to reach the summit of Le Brevent, there are two options available to them. First, there is a monstrous 6-person lift which whisks them through the green forests at the base of the mountain up to the mid station. The second option is a large gondola that begins its ascent over an area that initially seems void and barren, but then quickly rises alongside the towering dark peaks of Le Brevent. And the summit offers up a restaurant fit for even the most finicky gastronome. There is also a snack bar and terrace areas from which to take in the most spectacular views from 2525m high of Mont Blanc, Le Buet and all of the snow covered mountains in the valley below.

When the Chamonix valley becomes drenched in sunlight, skiing and snowboarding at Le Brevant becomes a memorable experience, indeed. The sunlight lasts for quite a long period of time there, so don’t be surprised if you have a nice tan by the end of the day. From the summit of Le Brevent, weather conditions permitting, it is quite possible to ski or board from there and descend down all the way to the Chamonix valley. Which all makes for an amazing and unforgettable experience of descending down a total of 1500 metres of vertical drop. As you begin your journey above the treeline, you quickly descend and are provided sensational views of the surrounding mountains that take your breath away. As you end your journey, you will have to navigate your way through the thick, green trees that come upon you quickly. There is also a vast array of trails at the summit of Le Brevent which, for the most part, start out easy enough. This is quite deceptive though, because once you come around the corner of the first cliff, you are immediately faced with difficult skiing and boarding. As long as you stick to the marked area on your right hand side and avoid the cliffs below you, everything should work out fine.

The Col Cornu area of Le Brevent provides visitors with some great on and off-piste skiing, couloirs, and a very large bowl area which is ideal for boarders or skiers. On the opposite side of that bowl is a gondola that can take you to the La Flegere resort if you wish. The beginners area, located around the mid station area, is accommodating to all levels of skiers and boarders. This is because it features a variety of gentle slopes for all the newbies and beginners as well as slopes for moderately experienced individuals. A word of caution regarding skiing or boarding in the open bowl located below the mid station. Don’ t do it. This is where paragliders take off from and unless accompanied by a guide or the ski patrol declares the conditions safe, you would not want to traverse those avalanche prone cliffs.

When you are hungry and exhausted from a hard day of skiing or boarding, Le Brevent offers you a variety of dining options.

First, you could dine at the mid station in the Col Cornu area of Le Brevent. The restaurants located there serve descent food at a reasonable price. But if you decide to bring your own lunch with you, seating may not be available to you (other than sitting in the snow). If you prefer mountain top dining, then look no further than Le Panoramic. Located at the peak of Le Brevent ski resort, this wonderful restaurant serves up traditional Savoyard fare while providing its customers with breathtaking views of Aiguille du Midi, Mont Blanc and the Bossons glacier. It is the perfect locale for skiers and boarders alike to have coffee, snacks, drinks or lunch. It is accessed by first taking a gondola and then transferring to a cable car that runs up the mountainside. Le Panoramic provides high quality home cooked meals using local ingredients that you can enjoy while sitting outside on their sun soaked terrace dining area.

Grand Montets ski and snowboard resort, on the south side of the beautiful Chamonix Valley, is the largest and most popular in the region. Grand Montets offers world-class options for skiers and boarders including bowls, glaciers, tight tree-lined slopes, breath-taking vistas and a total vertical drop to Argentière of around 2100 meters.

On powder days at the Grand Montets, it is absolutely essential to arrive early if you want to get first tracks and or get in some good early runs. You have a choice of detachable quad or a gondola. However, a busy day, queues for the gondolas can be horrendous so your best bet would be to use the Bochard lift, especially if the summit is closed.

From the top of the Bochard lift you have two options: the Chamois bowl and the Bochard bowl. They both give acces to beautiful powder runs but be aware that the Chamois bowl may be closed if there has been a recent heavy snowfall as this will increase the avalanche risk.

Whether you ski or snowboard, you should be aware that the terrain is glacial for the entire first section of the Bochard trail. Stay alert to the dangers that this may present. On the right hand side of the trail you might come across hidden rocks. Another word to the wise, whether skiing or snowboarding in the Chamois bowl or trails area, would be make sure you return to the lift in plenty of time or you may find yourself left behind to navigate down trails in some more risky avalanche-prone areas.

So, what will you experience when making the descent from the peak of the Grand Montets? Long exhilarating runs with perfect snow conditions and a nice vertical drop all the way down. In fact you will experience everything that is right with skiing and boarding. Stunning views of glistening white powder and dark moutains against a clear blue sky await you at the Grand Montets.

The runs leaving the summit are varied and have all something different to offer. One run curves around to the back of the mountain before splitting in two. You can then follow one of these as it continues along the hillside or take the other for an exhilarating run straight down. Both options are great, but remember that the area is glaciated, so stay alert to the dangers and take care not to veer too far from either trail.

A good tip for mogul fans would be the check out the the trails leading from the area below the Herse lift. The runs there may be shorter than average but are still definitely worth it.

If you are looking for a good place to take a break, the mid station presents a good opportunity but more importantly it offers up some great skiiing and boarding opportunities that take you through the dense, dark pine forest. You will also find a half pipe to keep you entertained near the mid station. Remember this area if the weather conditions become too stormy to venture onto the upper trails.

Grand Montets and Argentière offer some of the finest skiing and boarding in the world. The area boasts stunning powder fields, as well as piste and off-piste skiing and boarding. Not to mention the breathtaking high mountain routes, freeriding, secret combes, moguls and couloirs available to all. Some of the world’s best skiiers and boarders are attacted to the area but it also welcomes newbies on the beginners slopes at Les Chosalets. Intermediate blue trails are found at Arolles and Marmottons, red trails at Borchard and then black trails at the peak of the Grand Montets.

The Chamonix valley is an amazing and wonderful part of snowboarding lore. This region is noted for its steep and high mountain terrain, and it is no surprise that the area is also known as the “European Alaska.” You will have to search Europe high and low to discover such diverse attributes as are found in the Chamonix valley. It offers you spectacular domes, peaks, pyramids, needles, glaciers and bumps to ride. While Chamonix is world renowned as a seasonaires and freerider’s Mecca, it is perfect for snowboarders of all abilities. The Chamonix valley actually consists of six snowboarding/skiing areas which are all accessible by a free bus service that won’t leave you waiting long to get to your favorite mountain or resort.

Located just above the picturesque town of Argentiere are the Grand Montets, which is the most popular and largest of all the resorts. And since it has a north-facing slope, off-piste snow conditions are still quite good even a few days after it snows. Due to its popularity, the best runs at the Grand Montets are usually tracked out around lunchtime. If weather and lines permit, you absolutely must ascend to the summit of the mountain. The summit is 3300 meters high, and provides spectacular views as well as a great amount of powder runs on the way down. And if you have an insatiable urge for powder, then the Lavancher Bowl is the place for you. The bowl offers riders endless amounts of powder, rock drops, cornices and chutes. Or maybe you are more in tune with freestyle or snowpark riding. If that is the case, take a look at these exceptional boarding areas.

Also located at the Grand Montets skiing and boarding resort is a new snowboard park. This park is equipped with a whole host of modern features such as rails, boarder cross courses and kickers. A half pipe is still in the works, though. If you plan on freesytle riding, then you need to see what La Flegere and Le Tour have to offer. They are absolutely overflowing with quarters, gullies and natural jumps. As the season begins to wind down, La Flegere seems to turn into one gigantic snowpark. And it is home to Europe’s largest natural kicker, which has been dubbed the Big Tit (seriously). After experiencing all that La Flegere has to offer, take a cable car ride over to Le Brevent. After the Grand Montets resort, La Flegere is the second largest skiing and boarding resort in the Chamonix valley. The mountain is full of steep peaks and powder runs. To access the most exceptional powder on the mountain, ride up on the Col Cornu chairlift, and then navigate down to powder, natural jumps couloirs, on-piste riding, and hips on the way down. Also, be sure to set aside time in order to go to the Aiguille du Midi and the The Vallée Blanche.

If you are a freerider or not, it shouldn’t matter one bit. Visiting this area is an absolutely essential part of your visit to the Chamonix valley. This is because Aiguille du Midi is home to Europe’s highest cable car. It reaches an astounding 3842 meters. If you are a freerider and you do plan to experience this once in a lifetime thrill, then go ahead and drop in. You will begin your descent by navigating your way down a small ridge before coming across any rideable terrain at all. Endless variations, great snow and off-piste riding await you. A word of caution, though. This area is mostly glacial terrain, meaning only experienced and properly outfitted boarders should even attempt it. For those who do, there is 22 kilometers of uninterrupted boarding that takes you past ice formations of various hues of blue, and glaciers that sparkle in the sun.

Check out this video of the Vallee Blanche on Ski Sunday:

And the last bit:

Check out this off-piste skiing video from TV mountain.

Some great images from around the Chamonix Valley, (Mont Blanc area of France) as well as some great skiing footage.

The Vallée Blanche in Chamonix is probably the single most beautiful ski run in the world, and certainly the most famous off-piste route in existence. The route winds down from the massive Aiguille du Midi cable car, (3800m) zig zagging through a truly beautiful mountain environment.

A word of warning though, this is off piste skiing. There are no safety rails or attendants, and the route can be littered with crevices that could gobble you up in moments, never to be seen again.

Only recently a skier wearing jeans and a leather jacket emerged at the Aiguille du Midi asking “where’s the piste?” He disappeared not long afterwards.

You would be well advised to take an off-piste skiing course before you attempt your first descent of the Vallée Blanche – and if you have never skied off piste before, at least make sure you are with a group of people who know their stuff. Being familiar with avalanche transceivers and crevice rescue should be an absolute minimum.

The skiing (all 22 kilometres!) down the Vallée Blanche is technically not that difficult – it is the hazards – crevices – and potential avalanche that makes the route dangerous.

A guide is highly recommended, as people die on the Vallée Blanche every year. Helicopters are regularly seen looking for missing skiers and boarders.

Getting to the start of the route can be a little hairy too. You emerge from the Aiguille du Midi by going through a tunnel in the ice, to find yourself at the top of a sharp ridge (shown above) which makes its way downwards, with lethal drops on either side of it. Normally, in winter, there is a path dug down the ridge and a rope to clip onto, as well as a handrail. Even with these safety measures though it can be a very harrowing experience to the uninitiated. A fall here would not be good.

Further down the Vallée Blanche there are a number of points where crevices have to be crossed using snow bridges, which can be tricky at the best of times. Do not linger on snowbridges. They do collapse.

The classic route, “La Vraie”, is the longest and most straight forward. Initially heading south, this route turns to the east and then the north. The the Glacier du Géant is the first major obstacle, which can be a little bumpy – but once this is over you’re ready for lunch at the Refuge du Requin – a welcome refueling stop in outstanding surroundings.

Further down you’ll cross the Mer de Glace, one of Europe’s longest glaciers – a sweeping mass of ice making its way down another beautiful mountain valley. Following this it is possible to actually ski all the way back down to Chamonix, or of you’re feeling it, jump on the Montenvers railway for a rack and pinion journey back into town.

Read more about the Vallee Blanche at Pistehors.

All Mountain Performance offer expert ski instruction in and around Chamonix for advanced skiers who want to improve their skills, or take things further by skiing off-piste.

All instructors are friendly, highly qualified and experienced, as well as having an intimate knowledge of the local area. Find out more about their Off Piste Courses.

Check out their video, below.

The Chamonix valley has five main ski areas, none of them particularly convenient for people staying in town. Le Brevent-La Flegere and the Aiguille du Midi are accessed by cable-cars that are rather too far from the centre for comfort, while Le Tour, Argentiere and Les Houches are within driving rather than walking distance. The gondola from Vallorcine to Aiguilette near the border with Switzerland has finally given Chamonix what it has always lacked, an area suited to all standards of skier.

Many insiders now find that driving to Vallorcine rather than Le Tour gives more efficient access to the inviting blues on the front of the Col de Balme and the rolling reds down the back, while experts can plunder the untracked powder through the trees above Les Esserts and Vallorcine. Advanced beginners get a real sense of adventure on the looping blue descent from the top of the Col de Balme at 2,186m to Vallorcine station at 1,264m, plus a just reward in the Arret Bougnette restaurant (04 50 54 63 04) at the bottom. There is extensive free parking, which is fortunate because the bus service could politely be called sporadic.

Up to 2,500 skiers a day take on the Vallee Blanche, Chamonix’s hugely popular, trademark off-piste adventure, rising to 3,821m in less than 20 minutes via the Aiguille du Midi cable-car. Vertigo sufferers are convinced they’re going to die the moment they emerge on to the infamous ridge walk from the top station to the start of the run. Not so: if there is no fixed rope, your guide and you must have one. This will link you to your fellow travellers. There will always be showboaters who skip down on crampons with their skis over their shoulder, but even those who take it centimetre by agonising centimetre get there in the end. And the descent is worth it, not so much for the run which is well within the scope of any competent and obedient intermediate, but for the chance to spend time in the most accessible ice wilderness in the Alps. In skiing terms, good brakes are key: the maze of crevasses where the glacier runs out take no prisoners, which means that those who stop beyond the guide risk more than a ticking off. Boarders be warned that the Vallee Blanche is too flat for easy riding. Experts note that there are more exciting variants, notably L’Envers du Plan and La Vraie Vallee Blanche.

The main town hill is Le Brevent-La Flegere, formerly two areas but now awkwardly linked across the intervening void by a low-level gondola that is designed to be eco- rather than skier-friendly. The slopes are south-facing, good for basking in the sun when it’s available but not for maintaining quality snow conditions when temperatures rise. The blue runs immediately above the mid-stations, Planpraz (from Chamonix) and La Flegere (from Les Praz), are suitable for beginners looking to progress beyond the tiny nursery slope at Le Savoy in the centre of town, but they?d be well advised not to stray on to the testing reds further up the mountain. Nor indeed down it because the only routes back to base are demanding blacks. The second stage of the Brevent cable-car goes up to 2,525m, but the pay-off is restricted to two black runs back to Planpraz. Regulars will be glad to learn that Flegere’s claustrophobic green L’Index chair now has a six-person replacement that provides a better connection by ending slightly further up the hill. Although advanced skiers would be fully extended on these slopes, the majority prefer to test themselves to the furthest limits on Argentiere’s legendary Grands Montets, accessed either by cable-car to Lognan or high-speed quad to Plan Joran. The Bochard people-carrier opens up much of the mountain, including the magnificent Combe de la Pendant and Lavancher bowls, but the jewel in the crown is the venerable second-stage cable-car to the top of the mountain at 3,275m, the starting point for a demanding clatter down 100 metal steps to the slopes.

The easiest way back to Lognan is on Point de Vue or Pylones, two long, often icy and usually bumpy black runs, but that is to miss the main event which is skiing off-piste on the glacier. Many self-styled mountain men risk death by exploring this incomparable terrain without a guide, which is definitely not a good idea.

This article is courtesy of Time Out Guides