We spent a few days in Portes du Soleil – cycling out from Morzine. Never been before and hoping for great things. I have to admit I was a little underwhelmed with the established sign-posted routes, but we did find some really superb off-piste stuff.

So my questions are:
1). Was I expecting too much from the trail system?
2). Did we not spend enough time there to really appreciate what was there?
3). Is the better stuff elsewhere? I was also in Annecy and that looked really like it may offer some great things.
4). Or is the approach we settled on to find the find off-piste stuff really the way to find the best of the region?

Also, riding a Specialized Enduro and Lapierre Spicy we were considerably less ‘biked’ than nearly everyone else we saw, would we have had more fun with bigger bikes…? I am not sure we would but am open to the collective wisdom.

Thoughts everyone?

Not that I am impatient at all… But anybody have an opinion on this?

Bump!

Bump!

Depends what your after.

I rode round Morzine & Chatel on a 100mm XC bike (as that’s all I owned at the time) others hardtails, in my view a 140mm travel bike would have been ideal for the trails I did – i.e, not hurling downhill or doing gap jumps etc.

Went to PDS for the first time last year and was also underwhelmed with the Morzine stuff until a fellow Brit showed us one or two of the off-piste runs. It’s the same as here in the UK, the locals/regulars know where the hidden gems are. We’re hiring a guide for a day to break up the waymarked runs this year. There are better marked runs in the other resorts too IMO. Loved Pre La Joux and Avoriaz, hoping to try some of the Swiss ones this time!!

Berm followed by tabletop followed by berm ad infinitum is not my idea of a great trail – so the off piste trails we found really made it for us. Some even involved climbing…!