Viewing 26 posts - 1 through 26 (of 26 total)
  • Multi day (1-2 weeks) MTB adventure across the alps, where to start
  • grubbish
    Free Member

    Want to ride across the alps using chair lifts (don’t mind peddling up hill either) good quality natural tech trails. Don’t really want a guilde. Anyone done this, any suggestions, any wise words?

    jam-bo
    Full Member

    GR5?

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    Start at the top?

    martinhutch
    Full Member

    There was a thread earlier this year with various videos and mapping from a couple of guys who did GR5 – looks fantastic.

    http://anyexcusetoride.com/2017/02/15/bike-packing-the-gr5/

    drnosh
    Free Member

    That is a really well put together blog site.

    How about Turin to Nice Rally? Lots of ideas on there, even if you don’t want to ride in a group.
    https://torino-nice.weebly.com/

    drnosh
    Free Member

    oops. Double post edited out.

    richardthird
    Full Member

    Want to do this sometime. They sent paper maps and info for free by post too.

    https://www.tyrol.com/things-to-do/sports/mountainbiking/bikesafari

    thegeneralist
    Free Member

    watching this with interest. Would love to do a lift assisted trans alps with the kids.
    I’m intrigued by that Tyrol site, but unfortunately the first picture confirms my suspicions. The headline picture shows found blokes stopped for a break on a **** fire road. We did Saalbach 3 years ago and this picture sums up all that it wrong in Austrian biking. They think cross country is fire roads.

    ho hum

    richardthird
    Full Member

    Having read their site they promise alternative descents single track or fire roads. It’s a very well put together site.

    Andy_K
    Full Member

    Not many chairlifts on the GR5!

    AnyExcuseToRide
    Free Member

    Oooo the any excuse to ride stuff if by me and thanks Drnosh ;). If you want, there is a full series of articles here and the ‘Day 9’ should be up tomorrow!

    I’m actually just putting together the last post about that trip today! The last day riding down into Nice, it has taken me an age to write it all and even though it feels like a distant memory sometimes I feel like I have to finish it so the ‘set’ of articles is complete. Anyway!

    We only did Briançon to Nice part of the GR5, as far as i’m away the other half, Thonon – Briançon passes through many more ski areas so there would be much more opportunities for lift assisting. I would say just man up though 😉 you will appreciate everything soooo much more plus the areas where the mountains have’t been totally destroyed by ski resorts are so much more beautiful.

    madedgar
    Free Member

    I’m also curious about whether the OP’s question is plausible.
    So, my question is …
    Would it be possible to buy the relevent Alps maps. Find the resort’s with lifts and link them from the top of the lifts along footpaths etc down to the next resort, thus being able to sort of transverse the Alps.
    In theory would this be possible?
    I’d be happy to go in any direction, but would like to ride for say 7 days. Without having a guide.
    Cheers

    Ewan
    Free Member

    We did this in 2015 over 8 (Edit) days. It was epic – approx 400km ish with 22km of vertical descent.

    It involved a fair amount of uphill riding (8000m IIRC) but I was pretty unfit at the time and managed it ok ish. We went from Geneva, built our bikes in the airport and left the bike bags in left luggage.

    We then got a train to Champery and caught a lift up – the rest of the details are a little vague but I believe the GPXs are on strava somewhere. Essentially, we worked out which were the best trails we’d ridden in the alps (we’ve been to pretty much all the resorts over the years), strung them together into a route (this took about a year of debate), and then booked alpine refuges to stay in – judging by the reaction at some of the refuges, bikes were not a common occurrence! Once we got to the end of the route we then organised a private transfer back to Geneva. All in all the holiday was actually very cheap for what it was. If you wanted a guide for the lot you’d probably be paying a fair amount – I think Ben Jones does a similar trip, tho not quite as long.

    Easily the best trip i’ve done (frame of reference is lots of alps trips, romania, morocco, finale, whistler, touring BC, + all over GB and highlands).

    EDIT: We did it completely self supported, with 25L backpacks + spares split between us.

    200 Photos to make you jealous here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ewanpanter/albums/72157656091410162

    [url=https://flic.kr/p/D5gPvW]DSC00779.jpg[/url] by Ewan, on Flickr
    [url=https://flic.kr/p/wdW91W]DSC00326.jpg[/url] by Ewan, on Flickr
    [url=https://flic.kr/p/vYDpaW]DSC00350.jpg[/url] by Ewan, on Flickr
    [url=https://flic.kr/p/weMhJ2]DSC00429.jpg[/url] by Ewan, on Flickr
    [url=https://flic.kr/p/wvBz55]DSC00529.jpg[/url] by Ewan, on Flickr
    [url=https://flic.kr/p/DRyPuN]DSC00724.jpg[/url] by Ewan, on Flickr

    Grump
    Free Member

    @madedgar Yup, it’s completely possible. Though you need to find out which lifts are open when (because some are only open on certain days of the week) which trails are open to mountain bikes (there’s all manner of MTB bans across the alps) and which trails are good to ride (against which are more suitable with absail kit….)
    All this is either a good reason to hire a guide, or even more reason to do the trip as you get to spend a year in advance pouring over maps and internet articles 😉
    If you want any suggestions for getting through the 50km or so around Chamonix let me know and I’ll try and help though.

    madedgar
    Free Member

    Cheers fellas, they were solid, positive responses.
    Ewan, pictures look AMAZING, Will have a look at the rest after work.
    Ok, so some serious planning to be done then. Firstly, I guess, buy some maps start browsing.
    If possible, I would love to do it unguided, just appeals to my more adventurous side…
    Ewan, 25ltr packs, self supported, fair play. How many of you were there to spread the load?

    Cheers.

    madedgar
    Free Member

    @grum p. Thanks for that info. I know it won’t be as straight forward as just following lines on a map. I don’t think abseiling with bikes is quite in my skill set!! Nor do I want to be caught out on the wrong paths at the wrong times…

    hot_fiat
    Full Member

    I’ve a mate in Germany who does this sort of thing every year. I look at his facebook piccies and think, WOW. The prospect in staying, at altitude, in some of the inaccessible heuttes along the way really appeals.

    I’m trying to goad my riding mates into it, but Lister is being all sensible and wanting to take along a guide which destroys the whole sense of adventure for me.

    There are lots of sites, usually in german with outline tours.My german mate uses this one

    alpin
    Free Member

    Done Bavaria to either Lago di Garda or Lago di Como umpteen times, both privately and as guide.

    Think I’ve crossed the alps by bike over twenty times. A couple of times without hotels, just sleeping under a tarp.

    There are plenty of routes to take depending on where you want to start and finish.

    I once managed Tegernsee, Bavaria, to Riva in for days using either buses, cable cars or trains to miss out the uphill slogs and long tarmac sessions into the valleys.

    Hit “transalp” into Google. You’ll get lots of hits in German.

    alpin
    Free Member

    The prospect in staying, at altitude, in some of the inaccessible heuttes along the way really appeals.

    The stench in the morning is what puts me off.

    Mate and I arrived late at a hut about St Anton, he’d fallen in a stream when pushing up what we thought would be a short cut. So late in fact that we had bang on the door to wake the staff.
    Fortunately they had two beds. “Awesome” we thought… Had this image of a small room where could sit and chill. Nope, the guy opened the door to the room and the noise of thirty people snoring and the stench of thirty sweaty unwashed stung.
    It stung again in the morning when it came to paying up.

    You can usually find accommodation in the valley for less with your own room, balcony, toilet and shower with somewhere to lock your bike.

    jameso
    Full Member

    We did the GR5 a few years back, following a trip report from ChrisE on here who does this kind of think most summers. We winged it with maps and bikepacking kit plus some research beforehand and it was one of (the?) best rides I’ve done. I think you need to be prepared to carry up and down some hills or use road cols to gain height. If you plan more you’ll know more of what’s coming up, sometimes you just see an incredible trail and have to see where it goes.

    As said above, move between Italy and France and there’s potential to gain a fair bit of the height via lifts. In reality, weather and timing isn’t always on your side so a flexible approach or a B plan is a good thing to have.

    Basically, do it. Guided weeks are great but nothing quite matches finding your own trails.



    Ewan
    Free Member

    Ewan, pictures look AMAZING, Will have a look at the rest after work.
    Ok, so some serious planning to be done then. Firstly, I guess, buy some maps start browsing.
    If possible, I would love to do it unguided, just appeals to my more adventurous side…
    Ewan, 25ltr packs, self supported, fair play. How many of you were there to spread the load?

    There were 4 of us in total. It really wasn’t that bad – i’ve taken more stuff on a week self supported in scotland! Only one set of riding clothes + some hut clothes + flip flops. Wash (or not) the stuff in the evening – if it’s not dry in the morning, then it will be in 10 minutes or at least at body temperature 😀

    We were fairly lucky it didn’t rain, would have been significantly less pleasant (tho we did have water proof jackets + shorts if needed).

    Amusingly it was my first time ever riding clipless – I think i’d managed one ride in the Uk with them. Certainly got me used to them quickly!

    I can dig out the GPXs if you want – ping me your email.

    madedgar
    Free Member

    Thanks for all of your thoughts! And Inspirations.

    @ewan
    I’ll pop you an email now pal.
    Not too fussed about sleeping high or low. Happy to sleep in the valleys for a bit of extra comfort…
    Any more thoughts, keep em coming!
    Cheers

    ChrisE
    Free Member

    We’ve done about 10-12 such rides. Always just making it up from hours and hours of map research and googlearth and stuff.

    Be prepared for adventure. Some days will be the best you’ve ever ridden, odd times might be a very long push but all part of the traveling adventure.

    Drop me an email if you want and I’ll send some pre-sorted information. Part of the adventure though is planning knowing where you’re going to be.

    Definitely need to decide whether you are bikepacking with sleeping gear or using alpine huts. I prefer the latter I think JamesO prob prefers bikepacking.

    C

    madedgar
    Free Member

    @Chris E. We will NOT be camping. Not that we’re soft but rather this would be our first time, and I think it sounds a little more palatable to us! So it will be a combo of alpine hits and hopefully, a couple of actual hotels / hostels or whatever along the way.
    I’ll pop you an email, that would be ace!

    Cheers

    hot_fiat
    Full Member

    Many of the big hotels in Austria have a variety of accommodation in addition to their main residences. I know people who’ve been put up in the attics of annexes having explained to the proprietor their budget and needs.

    madedgar
    Free Member

    @hot flat good advice that, always worth asking, you never know…

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