Re: Col de Cou.
I've only ever ridden up from the Swiss side. I find the climb a challenge and walk it for some of the way. Eating at La Laspisa is wonderful until you get to the climb- a plate of cheese and charcuterie is not the best trail food.
The descent is silly fast and I really enjoy it. The side route via Les Chalets de Freterolle isn't worth the effort TBH. Fiddly and fussy at first, followed by a lovely grassy descent that all too soon hits tarmac.
I'm really intrigued by the GR5 descent down to Samoens. Also, does anyone have any info on the grand Route du Pay Tour du Dent Blanche?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=haxmytGVpO0
This was the vid I referred to....looking at the maps it looks like it's the descent just off the ridge from close to the top
@Carlos yes its the ridgeline one as per map Stoner posted.
From memory its fairly fast bumpy singletrack/grass to trees. Then some nice singletrack with hairpins then wooded section with nice rooty bits, gravel track to singletrack to road climb/"transition" to Chantermerle then wooded singletrack past big rocksin video to village for an ice cream / beverage 🙂
We did the descent to Samoens from Col De Joux Plane last week - thanks Jambalaya for the map and notes. Fantastic trail, well worth the effort.
We got a lift back up to the cafe by the lake at the top from Taxi David - number is 0033 (6) 62 25 39 43. He has a multivan and can take bikes in the back, but not sure how many. price was 35 euro.
^^ top taxi tip thanks ! I got the route off folks here (freeridenick from SH/Nirvana Cycles freeride) maybe 5-6 years ago so good to share the love
Just a query/ offer. I have a whole bunch (9 I think) of electronic lift passes I'm keen to pass on. Some have bonus points on them too. Free to a good home(s). It would be nice if some cash went into the local Mountain Rescue/ Air Ambulance/ Cave Rescue pot though. Message me your address if you want any.
I'm there 8-22 and being of the XC persuasion with outbreaks of steep stuff I've been hunting for some decent GPx's to load up for 50-100k rides. Any pointers much appreciated as have only Skied out there. Equally if anyone fancies a meet up then let me know.
50-100k rides
unless you're as fit as a butcher's olympic athelete you will fine 50-100km routes entail a lot of climbing unless you just do valley bottom there-n-backs. There are few long distance contouring routes.
You can stitch together vtopo routes (see book linked to earlier).
I dont have gpx Im afraid. you may be able to download some from
http://www.vttrack.fr/
unless you're as fit as a butcher's olympic athelete you will fine 50-100km routes entail a lot of climbing unless you just do valley bottom there-n-backs. There are few long distance contouring routes.
I did wonder. Not averse to 2-3000m climbing in a ride - will have more of a hunt then.
I'll be out in August and would be up for the Samoens run (or another one) too.
Has any cunning chap or chapess started a doodle poll for dates and roll call yet this year?
@ade I think Amrose started one
@Phil you seemed to do (mostly) the yellow route not the one Stoner posted (mix of yellow then red)
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Just arrived back from a fab week in Morzine.
Did the Essert Romand route as recommended which was great fun. Also rode a descent known as Jenkins in Chapelle d'Abondance. Its in the VTT book...very very steep in places, technical and fun. I think the vertical drop is around 2000'.
There was quite a bit of rain during the week so we headed out to Pila, Italy one day. Here the trails were bone dry. If you get the opportunity you should go...there is an 8k downhill (3000' descent) from Pila to Aosta..all natural in feel, no firetrack, utterly superb. The upper lift at Pila is now open so you can extend this by a further 7k. Its 2hrs to get there but well worth it.
Unfortunately didn't get round to doing the Col de Cou ( Mosettes lift was shut for several days) or some of the other routes discussed but can't complain.
Yep can confirm the quality of the Jenkins descent, did this a few weeks ago, just what we were looking for, would also say if the point Mossette lift is running the Grande conche DH is a fantastic wild run on the Swiss side, you can then also do the red DH on the crossets lift, all fine on trail bikes and brilliant.
How does one get back from Chapelle d'abondance? Does the vtt bus go that far or is it a climb up the road?
We were staying in Chatel, other half to the rescue.
Bus is from the centre of Chatel to the bikepark, would be a bit of a ball ache riding it, but not that far.
A bit of my own research and it seems there is a bus. http://www.valleedabondance.fr/la-navette-colombus.html
Apparently it has a rack for 8 bikes
By the way the Chatel to bikepark bus is free.. every 20mins, happy trails.
We rode back from Chapelle to Pre La Joux on the road. It's probably 6-7 miles at a very slight incline. Have to say in the heat I struggled big time on the last few miles. We covered 50-60km that day. I forgot there was a bus...until I saw one pass with bikes on the back.
1year on and has anybody ridden the route shown on the map in the 1st post?
If anyone is interested i did Avoriaz to Morzinette a week ago, it's fairly good in the second half, ie below morzinette in the woods, initialy thought we were on the wrong trail at the start, a lot of rock gardens/boulders it gets better, so the first thirty minutes is a push carry.
Also the Col du Cou, Arete route now has no cycling signs, a Swiss walker in no uncertain terms told us cycling was not allowed, we were just pushing through a gate at the time.
^ Really ? Is that the route on the ridge down to Champery ? I did it 4 weeks ago and there was nothing then.
1year on and has anybody ridden the route shown on the map in the 1st post?
Do you mean the map in Stoners post? The order of posts is a bit messed up since the update. That route is the classic samoens route. Great fun and lots of down for little climbing, although you do need to find a way home.
nickjb - Yes, Stoners post. After riding Samoens for the day, last month, then driving on to Morzine, I never realised it was SO close, especially when you get to the top of the far lift from Les Gets where the café bar is. Keen to finally do the ride when I return in 2019 and looks like there are taxi options to get back up.
Yeah big no cycling sign from the start of the second section by the farm, he pointed to the sign and said this is the sign known internationaly, a red circle with a bike with a line through it, this was two weeks ago.
Another good singletrack descent in that area is Ripaille starts just below the Lapisa snack bar, keep following the track to the chalet (ripaille) then heads to Champery, starts on alpine meadow with lots of cow pats, where you think this is going to be rubbish but then gets really good in the forest.
Oh and this also has a no cycling sign! and it is in the VTT topo book, it does mention that access is sensitive when it was written.
What could we do, on the Col du Cou route we just took the route marked in the Vtt topo book, a gravel road to Champery, what a waste having come over from France, i didn't want to cause an altercation with the Swiss Walker, two british ramblers also piped in and said bikes were not allowed, in someone elses country i thought it best to be respectful of the regulations, i was with my 17 year old son and didn't want to set a bad example by ignoring them.
On the Ripaille descent we had ridden over from Chatel thinking this must be legit it's in a book, only to find the no cycling sign, we rode it anyway, it seems environmentalists in Switzerland really are clamping down, anyone else have experience of riding here, surely you can't just ignore the fact cycling is not allowed, i'm all for cheeky in my own country but this is really disrespectful abroad is it not, the guy in the bike shop by the lift just said ride late when there are no walkers around.
