Question about the Passportes Du Soleil route - a few of us were eyeing up the Sunday for this but in typically unorganised fashion we've missed the entry date.
If we were to join the route unofficially does anyone know it the standard lift pass covers you for the lifts they open specially for the PPDS? Or are the lifties looking for your entry number-wrist band and likely to say "non"?
I've admittedly lost interest in Morzine with all the off-piste closures and the rework to pleney black. They really were the defining feature of the place for my group. For machined bike park trails there's much better places in the alps that aren't savaged with braking bumps. The ease and access to the off-piste tracks was what made the place so good and losing ~80% of the pleney tracks after the supermorzine side was shut down a couple years back sucks. Currently Finalie or Les Arcs being discussed instead.
Just sorting last couple of bits for this weekend, including lift pass.
Seems you can add insurance via liftpass with Snowrisk. Is this a reasonable option versus a third party like Yellow Jersey? Price seems more attractive but little in the way of reviews or discussion here.
I'm not saying that I'm counting the days....but it's 23 days until I leave work and drive to Morzine in the Dadwagon GTi. (I might have an empty passenger seat if anyone wants to chip in for petrol)
There's currently weather warnings in place for extreme temperatures and thunderstorms. Videos show absolutely bone dry trails in danger of crumbling to dust.
Hopefully it cools down a bit. I also hope we get at least one day of torrential rain because bombing down Pleney in the mud is amazing.
30 days and counting for us. First proper MTB holiday without the kids and the wife is champing at the bit for DH runs and peace.
Just back - Was very dusty everywhere on Linderet, Chatel and Super morzine side, but whilst looking like killer front wheel wash out material actually had loads of grip. In the woods on the Les Gets side had a bit more residual moisture and made for lovely riding. Biggest let down was that one of my favourite lift-accessed but natural rides from the top of Mossettes (the section after the climb from Lac Vert down to join the built the blue under Chaux Flourie when hit hard and fast) has been flattened and ruined. Literally they've taken a double track grader to it...WTF!
Enjoyable fwe days (I'm still rubbish at jumps though).
I finish work in 3h then it's holiday time.. fly over on the 26th. Can't wait.
Weather is looking decidedly mixed. Sunday - Tuesday look stormy but then lovely after that. Fingers crossed that it's not too grim. I remember everything getting VERY slippery when it gets wet.
I'm looking forward to some mixed conditions. It's brutal riding in the sun all day and the marbly dust is fast but sketchy. It's much more enjoyable with a bit of moisture. Or pissing rain, doesn't bother me!
I'm finishing work today and starting a slow drive down tomorrow. I'll be there midday Saturday but mates arrive late in the evening so might not ride until Sunday. I'll still get at least 7 full days before the family arrive.
Got some new toys on the bike to try out. 155mm cranks and a wobbly chainring...
Rear tyre is on it's last legs. Hoping to pick up a DH casing replacement from somewhere.
Biggest let down was that one of my favourite lift-accessed but natural rides from the top of Mossettes (the section after the climb from Lac Vert down to join the built the blue under Chaux Flourie when hit hard and fast) has been flattened and ruined. Literally they've taken a double track grader to it...WTF!
Was that the trail which sort of starts from the small lake with the small cafe/restaurant in the stone building by it? We didn't ride that this year.
Biggest let down was that one of my favourite lift-accessed but natural rides from the top of Mossettes (the section after the climb from Lac Vert down to join the built the blue under Chaux Flourie when hit hard and fast) has been flattened and ruined. Literally they've taken a double track grader to it...WTF!
Was that the trail which sort of starts from the small lake with the small cafe/restaurant in the stone building by it? We didn't ride that this year, shame if it is.
I've admittedly lost interest in Morzine with all the off-piste closures and the rework to pleney black. They really were the defining feature of the place for my group. For machined bike park trails there's much better places in the alps that aren't savaged with braking bumps.
I was speaking to the Les Gets park manager (he was the first responder) whilst waiting for the chopper to lift one of our group out of 'Canyon' (he's 'OK' relatively speaking). We discussed the work that had been done this year (more than previous I'd noticed) and he said that natural was being replaced with flow as that's what the masses want (don't think he was all for it).
Last year that trail from Lac Vert had a massive rain gully down the middle of a large part of it, so I can see why they done some 'maintenance' to it.
A few years Mrs Ambrose broke her pelvis on the Linderets blue when her front wheel went out on the slippery clay. Not good.
Trail conditions look absolutely prime
Was that the trail which sort of starts from the small lake with the small cafe/restaurant in the stone building by it? We didn't ride that this year, shame if it is.
Yes that's the one. often used on passportes du soleil.
Bit soggy today - it's been pissing it down non-stop since 6pm last night.. we're eying it up thinking of a trip out in waterproofs but stoke levels are low!
Some of those trails are treacherous! Nothing like Aberdeenshire or Inners soil that gets grippier with a bit of moisture in it.
Bit soggy today - it's been pissing it down non-stop since 6pm last night.. we're eying it up thinking of a trip out in waterproofs but stoke levels are low!
Some of those trails are treacherous! Nothing like Aberdeenshire or Inners soil that gets grippier with a bit of moisture in it.
Spare wheels with spikes mounted are the order of the day, can save a washout holiday (if you get really unlucky)
Rest of the week looks lovely so not despairing too much. Not many bikes out in the town today.. may introduce our friends to Bar Robinson and plan great things for tomorrow 😀
Rest of the week looks lovely so not despairing too much. Not many bikes out in the town today.. may introduce our friends to Bar Robinson and plan great things for tomorrow 😀
Yeah we're due next Tues and it's looking a little ropey, but in truth i'm not sure i'll be riding that much anyway, i need a bit of a holiday, especially if we have some complete insanity coming up.
Planning on doing abit more exploring this year, What's near the morzine area that's good for a DH bike? I've read mixed reviews about someons recently
A few thoughts, having just got back from 2 weeks in Morzine, preceded by a week around Verbier:
The Charniaz chair gives an easy way up to the top of Les Gets (via two 'magic carpets, a short climb then a blue)
Getting back to Morzine from Les Gets is still awful - almost everyone just batters down the main road, as the trail back is so boring (and slow), and with the old off-piste options down into town now off-limits, it's not great.
It's bizarre that the 'Lindarets Connection' is still there - basically descending 300m vertical on a ski piste to get back from Chatel, or even Mossettes. Yup, most of the singletrack down from the refuge has been flattened, but it was rubbish anyway (sorry).
Plenty of new stuff found though - it helps to get out walking/running and explore, which I did and found some ace new stuff.
Annecdotally, heard via friends that some folk were stung with 1,500 Euro fines and lift passes confiscated after being caught riding some of the closed off stuff under Super-Morzine.
Lift queues around Super-Morzine are still eye-wateringly bad most days, but avoidable if you just head up to Pleney or drive up to Ardent and get in that way.
That guide book mentioned above is a complete waste of money - most of the tracks that go over to Switzerland are now closed (signs in place), or use lifts that no longer run. Some good bits found using it, but found better stuff just exploring around.
Rest of the week looks lovely so not despairing too much. Not many bikes out in the town today.. may introduce our friends to Bar Robinson and plan great things for tomorrow
It dries up quick in the open with only the really dark bits taking a couple of days. A bit of rain is quite nice if it had got to that slippy dust stage.
It's just cleaning everything that gets a bit tedious.
GavinB's write-up makes me so glad I went to Tignes. Weather's bloody freezing today but should be good tomorrow.
Annecdotally, heard via friends that some folk were stung with 1,500 Euro fines and lift passes confiscated after being caught riding some of the closed off stuff under Super-Morzine
People have been having run-ins with the law there for at least 20 years. Some of the best trails in the area are/were on that part of the hill but, IIRC, a large part of the problem is that extraction is really hard when someone cripples themselves
Annecdotally, heard via friends that some folk were stung with 1,500 Euro fines and lift passes confiscated after being caught riding some of the closed off stuff under Super-Morzine
People have been having run-ins with the law there for at least 20 years. Some of the best trails in the area are/were on that part of the hill but, IIRC, a large part of the problem is that extraction is really hard when someone cripples themselves
The problem is this year, they have ramped it up to 11. There was a lot of folklore over occasional run ins, but this year they have been actively patrolling.
As someone who has on & off ridden there for 20 years now it’s been interesting to see it evolve - sadly not in a positive way. The absolute lack of trail building & maintenance is about the only constant over that period. Sadly in recent times, the development of the area is just endless jump lines of varying size.
We probably had the last week before the ‘tape’ went up properly. There was a little area on the Les Gets retour, but that was it, by the time we left, the hillside was basically taped from the retour, down to 10%.
Thankfully, we stayed with friends & know a lot of other spots to ride, but I can see the writing on the wall with their current approach.
There are endless hidden gems still, even more with e-bikes now. I think in a week I rode one official trail, and that was one too much.
@thegeneralist - how’s Tignes this year, we used to really like it there, much more chilled and quiet a few really nice long runs from the top down to Val D’Isere and pint in the Marmot in the evening
I'm thinking of a couple of arguably daft rides, last year my mate did his collar bone so I rode the Eeb up to Avoriaz, but I'm thinking this time I may pedal the Trek Fuel up instead. It kinda defeats the point of the gnar, but saves me £35 and I get to train as well.
I didn't have any way of getting up to Ardent one day (and had a plan involving heading over to find a nice few trails over in Switzerland, so was committed to Super-Morzine lift). Queue was too big early on, so headed for two runs over on Pleney, then headed to back to the Super Morzine lift at 11:05, spent 30 mins to get on, 10 mins on the lift, to then find the queue up at Zore was back around the back of the Super Morzine top station! 
**** that!
Anyone out here and would like to buy a 2 day non-consecutive adult bike pass? €55.
My son has done his scaphoid so we can claim for his unused days but my wife doesn’t want to ride anymore and they don’t do refunds (understandably).
Email me on my profile name with 76 at the end then hotmail.co.uk
I've been thinking about Morzine/Les Gets for a few days early season next summer when mini DBW #000001 has finished his GCSEs but none of the above is really making me want to go. Maybe Verbier/Aosta (again) is a better bet for stuff thats not flat out bike park trails??? When does the season start in the area? Assume its quiet still June???
Verbier doesn't open fully until early July, but before that the Medrans lift runs a few times per day. I've done it without the other lifts being open, but we did need some uplift help as well as good legs, as we then climbed back out from Vallon d'Arbi etc.
Morzine area makes loads of sense for bike park stuff (obvs), which is why we go there so that our boys can blat around all day long on the Pleney, Super Morzine, Chatel etc, but if you want singletrack, I'd go elsewhere, which is why we preceded it with a week in Verbier area.
I quite fancy riding Aosta area incl Cervinia/Zermatt, linking it with Verbier and then possibly over pass to La Rossiere and do a bit of riding around Tignes, plus anywhere else we can think of. (whether I can persuade my boys is another matter)
What about Tignes? It’s quieter and more chilled and there are some nice long trails all the way down to the bottom.
Anyone out here and would like to buy a 2 day non-consecutive adult bike pass? €55.
My son has done his scaphoid so we can claim for his unused days but my wife doesn’t want to ride anymore and they don’t do refunds (understandably).
Email me on my profile name with 76 at the end then hotmail.co.uk
Emailed @lister
In Morzine with the e-bikes and looking for some kind of longer loop we could do to give ourselves a break from park laps.
any recommendations?
how’s Tignes this year, we used to really like it there, much more chilled and quiet a few really nice long runs from the top down to Val D’Isere and pint in the Marmot in the evening
Loved it. We've done three trips there are it's by far our favourite destination. As you say, so much more chilled. We first went there with the kid on a 24" Islabike hardtail ( which he promptly broke on the first run ) and it was amazing being back with them grown up and trying some of the harder routes.
We did the routes down to Val loads but the highlight was definitely Moustache below Toviere and the long wooded run to Brevieres. Absolutely stunning. Far better than anything we found elsewhere in the Alps
In Morzine with the e-bikes and looking for some kind of longer loop we could do to give ourselves a break from park laps.
any recommendations
Half a mo, and I'll dig up the thread ...
Here you go
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/bike-forum/les-gets-help/
There are a few other threads too. Just search fir getforcejunky or La Bourgeoise ( SP)
Just back - Was very dusty everywhere on Linderet, Chatel and Super morzine side, but whilst looking like killer front wheel wash out material actually had loads of grip. In the woods on the Les Gets side had a bit more residual moisture and made for lovely riding. Biggest let down was that one of my favourite lift-accessed but natural rides from the top of Mossettes (the section after the climb from Lac Vert down to join the built the blue under Chaux Flourie when hit hard and fast) has been flattened and ruined. Literally they've taken a double track grader to it...WTF!
Enjoyable fwe days (I'm still rubbish at jumps though).
That's a shame, i enjoyed that pedal back from the Swiss National rather than using the lift. Is it still worth doing as an alternative to the lift?
Absolutely gutted. I was due to head out on the 10th of August for a week. Just been told I've got a suspected blot clot in my lung, so no flying or holiday for me. I don't know if you can transfer lift passes, but I've got 6 days from the 10th that won't be used. I'm away for a wee cry.
Massive thanks to TheGeneralist and GeeForceJunky for the recommendation of the route out of the back of Mont Cherry into Edward Romand. Although the wife was a bit grumpy about a few of the descents.
Would recommend to anyone
Climbed to Avoriaz on the Fuel, way way hot. Phew.
Beer in Rhodos now
Yes, it was rather toasty today, luckily we took a leaf out of the Mad Dogs and Englishmen rule book and set off for our long ride at about 12:30. Scorchio.
first day in Les gets today, few runs on the green with the little one and a couple of extra blues for me. Having never been before, it's all great fun, even the braking bumps for now. Got an early rider full suss booked for the little one later on in the week which she's well excited about.
I'm surprised how quiet it is, short queue a couple of times at chavanne, but mostly no problem and the town was pretty empty this evening.
We have an apartment which is just over from the bottom of the skills loops so super convenient.
Anyone want to claim ownership of this find on our coffee table... Subscriber copy, April 25
first day in Les gets
Pronounced to rhyme with sez pets, obv. I've still got 4 rides left on a lift card from this July. Franky found it a bit stressy staying ahead of the teenagers on the reds, plopping onto the middle of tabletops, so bailed early down the mainly natural trails (bourgeois) back to Samoens happy not to have broken something and realising that's probably more my sort of thing really. Every time I ride away from a bike park these days it's with a feeling of having got away with it again which is probably not the ideal attitude
I recommend the loop that TheGeneralist gave me, but I reckon you’d need to either have all day, be super fit or have an ebike. The only other people we met (or overtook us) were on e-bikes.
