 Poster: A snowHead
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@rdsweb, Yes that’s also a good option but adds time on to getting back to Belle Plagne if the name of the game is maximising time over Montalbert way.
@ecureuil, Noted re OpenSnowMap
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@chopkins13, They claim it’s 7 mins from the mid station to Roche de Mio so you wouldn’t lose much (assuming no queue as it was in December when we were there) 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| chopkins13 wrote: |
| @thehighlandcowboy, Thanks! |
Just done this today - absolutely possible. As your other correspondent says, come off Petite Rochette and start on Les Ours. The first section is flattish, but at the end of that section there’s a stone building and a crossing - you either turn left to continue down Ours, or pole across to the right and join Belle Plagne.
No issue with the new mid station either - just go past it at the end of PR onto Ours.
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@thehighlandcowboy, Thanks - I recall the stone building you're referring to so that's great! When you come off Petite Rochette do you keep to the right or left of the new mid-station?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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thehighlandcowboy, is quite correct: we also did this today.
If you go from piste to piste - Ours to Belle Plagne - then you have turn slightly right and up a small incline which does involve some polling. You can instead be a bit more adventurous and ski straight across from the "stone building", do a short section of "off piste" (one side of a triangle) and on to the Belle Plagne piste. With the wind in the right direction and some good wax, you can just about get enought momentum to make it without any polling  .
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Jonpim, Thanks - challenge accepted! 
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| chopkins13 wrote: |
| @thehighlandcowboy, Thanks - I recall the stone building you're referring to so that's great! When you come off Petite Rochette do you keep to the right or left of the new mid-station? |
Keep to the left of the mid station - not sure where else there is to go based on where you come out from PR - it just carries onto Ours I think. You can go up to the mid station but no need to for this.
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@chopkins13, Keep to the left but Ours is the right of the two tracks there.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Thanks all - will be giving it a go in 4.5weeks!
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I took the new Glaciers gondola up to Live 3000 this arvo - great conditions with superb visibility and just a little breeze. Took the red Combe run down to the mid station, which was glorious, and couldn’t help wondering why it was a red? Really felt like a nice blue to me in terms of both gradient and width. I know grading of runs is a black art, but do any other LP regulars have any thoughts on the grading, or any background?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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La Plagne regular here - imo only four sectors I’d stay: Centre, 1800, Villages, Soleil.
I’d add Belle Plagne but I’m ruling it out solely cuz you can’t ski back there after The Bergerie apres ski!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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@thehighlandcowboy, 100% agree it’s a blue by most standards when in great condition as it was when I did it yesterday. If you compare it to the blue off the top of Becoin down to 2000 it’s way nicer and easier. That’s as steep a blue as anywhere I think I’ve been and usually chopped up or icy
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Someone once told me that the Combe is a red to try and put off beginners as it’s so remote from resort villages that any accident likely requires helicopter extraction rather than snowmobile.
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You know it makes sense.
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Yes agree it’s a blue.
Did it today and it was A1. Off piste left and right too.
Conditions perfect here. This could turn out the best week of the whole season conditions-wise.
Blue skies - got some great GoPro vids today.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@thehighlandcowboy, This has inspired me to go and do some digging. I haven't been in years but returning next week so taking a look at new and old piste maps.
Combe used to be accessed via the Traverse chair on the glacier, please someone correct me if I am wrong, but the new gondola doesn't go as far left as the old chair used to? But perhaps further left than the old gondola station? Hard to tell with different piste map artists over the years!
But, if I am correct, Combe used to start over the traverse chair and the top was always bumpier and darker red before it evened out and it was lovely down towards Col de la Chiaupe. So perhaps justified its red colour back then and it has just stuck even though the route has changed slightly
Also noticed that one of the runs on the Col de la Chiaupe (Lanche Ronde) used to be blue and was changed to red... Distant memory but another that feels much more blue, but looks like it changed around 2015. Suspect there is an element of truth in them being more cautious because of the altitude and remoteness
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Biscuits9, I have the old and new piste maps in front of me and have skied both the old and new lifts.
The old piste map indicates that Traverse would have ended slightly higher then the new gondola station does and that there was a short section of piste before reaching where Combe and Rochu. Shown here (sort of): old and new: https://laplagne360.com/la-plagne-glacier-changes-update/ But my feeling having been there is the gondola station is pretty much were Traverse would have arrived. There is a short run before the red/black split.
The picture here might help as it shows the top station under construction: https://www.ice-fire.co.uk/la-plagne-new-lift-2023-2024/
I don't have a problem with Combe being red tbh.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Interesting background - I knew the hive mind wouldn’t let me down!
I’ve seen that they restrict the top to “good skiers only” and the logic regarding rescue makes absolute sense. I also noted that from the mid station your option is either black down towards Bauches, or the gondola (which is what I took). So from that perspective it makes sense to keep it somewhat restricted, and label everything red or black (with the exception of a blue run down to the Chalet de Bellecote chair). I don’t have an issue with the grading, I was just interested in the reasoning. Thanks for all your replies!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Layne, thanks! Yeah, looks like it's further over!
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Found this from a YouTube video - confirms the old glacier bubble arrived further up and then the Traverse chair would take you higher and the Combe red started just above where the new bubble arrives:
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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This is zoomed in
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Combe from a fairly newbie's perspective: on sunny, calm days last month Combe was a very straightforward run for me, but on one windy and icy morning when we were some of the first people on Combe following a late morning opening for the Glaciers 2 gondola, Combe was a tad challenging and rather less forgiving with the wind whipping around, poorer visibility and the piste itself unpleasantly icy in places.
Incidentally (and not sure if old news) but I see this morning that there are small discounts currently on lift passes in March and April on the La Plagne website, in case anyone else is heading out.
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Thanks for the heads up, just saved a few Euros for our April trip
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@jas915, glad to hear it. For anyone else heading out, the La Plagne website says that the discounts are first come first serve.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Les Arcs does something similar with their glacier run "Aiguille Rouge", which has easy path routes at the top which let you avoid the steep way down and then the actually steep bits (which are decently steep) are always pisted so there are no bumps to contend with.
In fact, this run used to have both a red and a black route marked on the map and the piste but it was changed to only show the black runs within the last few years, despite the red route still existing. I always got the impression it to reduce crowds as they have a slow cable car system, not a gondola, but the rescue safety issue also makes sense.
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After much contemplating, data crunching and sifting through historic webcams, now booked for Easter up in Plagne Soleil, CGH Le White Pearl
Haven't been to La Plagne since 2007 so looking forward to revisiting
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Looking for info on the Yuge app. How is it?
I'm primarily asking as I used to have ski tracks and iPhone but have since switched to an android, and dont want to pay again, especially as another thread has mentioned subscriptions.
What's the tracking output of Yuge like? Does it overlay a piste map?
@Specialman, similar position, around 20 years for me but heading out Sunday, can't wait!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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We’ve been using both ski tracks and YUGE this week and have found they both give pretty much the same stats. The YUGE app shows you your route on the piste map, it’s quite cool actually! Sometimes it doesn’t separate the runs, but for mileage etc it’s okay for free. We’re just cruisers not hard core skiers so it suits us. Hope this helps!  ️
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@Biscuits9, have found Yuge to be OK - tracks with accuracy most of the time but can miss the occasional lift/run from time to time. There's badges to be earned for completing certain challenges but have found the success of these a bit hit and miss - e.g. someone I've skied all day with got one, but I didn't etc. Overall nice to see your route overlayed on a piste map at the end of the day for that extra feeling of satisfaction.
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You know it makes sense.
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@chopkins13, super useful, thanks!
Too old to care much about the speed stats these days, much more interested in distance, where I've been ann map overlay. Wonderful!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| Specialman wrote: |
After much contemplating, data crunching and sifting through historic webcams, now booked for Easter up in Plagne Soleil, CGH Le White Pearl
Haven't been to La Plagne since 2007 so looking forward to revisiting |
We stayed in there the other year. Only downsides were the run directly in front of the hotel is a tiny track that runs down to Bergerie (which was always busy and you needed to use it every day).
Coming back, you have to go up Dou Du Praz (I think) drag lift if you want to ski back to the hotel. A lot of the time, we just got off Escarte in the main village bit and walked back.
Place itself was fantastic.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Specialman, we have been to White Pearl and it could not have been better from a ski perspective.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@paulhinch, @snowymum, that's good to know. CGH places seem to offer everything you need in good locations it seems. It looks way swankier than we're used to, the pool sold it to us, as we have a few in our group of 8 who may have shorter ski days and lots of pol time. It was a bargain through Sunweb, 'only' comes with the La Plagne lift pass which will be more than enough for most of the group for the week; myself and the boy might do the Paradiski upgrade (£23pp) but I think we'll suss that out closer to travel.
Just gotta plan the drive down and work out if we need to get to resort early to beat the infamous Tarentaise changeover day traffic at Easter.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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paulhinch, and others who stay at The White Pearl, do not dispair if the Bergerie lift has a long queue: just ski on past the top of the Melezes lift and then right over the bridge down to Plagne 1800. Ski past the bottom of Melezes and on to the 1800 lift up to piste Golf.
The 1800 lift rarely has a queue, and from Golf you have a multitude of choices. The Golf lift itself is very slow, so if wanting to get up to 2000 then we go down to Envers or La Roche lifts. The red runs down to La Roche are great fun and well worth repeating. The La Roche restaurant is very good.
You can also go over to the Montalbert area, which is full of interesting runs and excellent restaurants.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Or take the Boulevard chair (just to the left of the bridge) to access all the lifts in Plagne Centre
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Le Bois piste down to Champagny - used to be red, now a black. Saw a video someone posted today and thought it looked like a mild red - and only because it’s narrow in places with a couple of steeper pitches although nothing like say Kamikaze! Obviously videos can be deceiving so keen to hear views on what it’s actually like as have never been all the way down to Champagny. I suspect the answer is something like fine when pisted, nightmare when not?! I can ski down Combe from glacier fine and quite enjoy Sources. Kamikaze however is my nemesis 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Jonpim, thanks for the info, stuff like that is helpful to make things ‘work’ from day 1 of the holiday.
Pawing over the piste map, really looking forward to the reds and some of those blacks that lead down to Montalbert.
Just gotta find the unicorn; a French ski resort bar that isn’t €10 per pint
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| Specialman wrote: |
| Just gotta find the unicorn; a French ski resort bar that isn’t €10 per pint |
Pretty sure that Monica’s at Plagne Soleil charges €9 for a pint of Jupiler if that helps
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Just back from a week in La Plagne and really conditions don’t get much better than that. A lot of fresh in the big dump the weekend we arrived and blue skies all week apart from Friday when the light was pretty flat.
The whole area skied great. Few patches of hard pack here and there and the inevitable moguls built up on the steeper runs as the day progressed. In short just couldn’t fault it. Sketchiest run was actually the blue track Bauches but even that turned out to be hilarious fun watching my snowboard chum navigate the tight hairpins! Champagny side was probably the best in the afternoon sun and down to Montalbert sector and Roche to 1800 a close second. All in all fantastic week
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First day in La Plagne (arrived last evening from the train). Weather was fine, not cold, overcast with flat light for much of the day. I ducked out around 2 as my boots needed adjusting but back out for what looking like another cloudy morning, hopefully sunny afternoon
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FAQ
- Hara-Kiri is not fun though! 
