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....well not a bar, but stw forum!
I'm after some advice for a bit of an Alps trip next summer. Biking, paddle boarding and maybe hiking/via ferrata.
I know the Alps through ski trips, but I've never been during the summer. We'd like to do some biking; none of us are particularly good, two of us are very much wheels on the ground types. Then some water based stuff and options for hiking and maybe via ferrata.
We'll be going in my motorhome, so decent campsites nearby ideally. They're both students on overseas visas, so I reckon getting them insured to drive the motorhome will be prohibitive....I'm aware that I'll be doing a lot of driving, but stuff much further afield might be ruled out.
My initial thoughts were either Morzine, Venosc (L2A), or maybe Annecy? Not sure if there's much riding around Annecy?
Not too fussed about nightlife, but the option would be nice I guess? Ideally keeping costs down though as we're all poor starving post-grad students (apart from the Canadian who appears to be loaded 🤣)
We'll be going end of June/early July. Flexible with dates and duration though.
Bump. Anyone?! 😂
Annecy is good for water sports but limited for mtbing from the shores so would need to drive east
Lake Garda would be my choice based in Torbole
Zell am See?
Morzine is a good bet- we did some rafting from there on a day off from mtb
How long does the drive to Garda take Tracey? Not sure if I CBA with it doing all of the driving myself.
Four hours to the tunnel and then drove through the night for six hours in to Switzerland. Then on for another seven hours to Garda. It was the first leg of the Alps trip and would do it again. Driving the camper in Europe is far easier than the UK.
Morzine, Le Gets & Chamonix for walking. You’re in a van travel about.
Briancon.
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Bourg st Maurice could work once the lifts are open. Easy to get around with only 1 vehicle as good bus service so access to La Plagne, La Rosiere and La Thuile in addition to Les Arc. Lots natural riding too of all different grades. Isere for rafting etc and swimming lake with paddleboard hire near Aime (is on the the bikepath). Various campsites along the river.
Briancon
... And, assuming that's the Chateau Queyras gorge in the first pics, you want to try and paddleboard that - I would happily come and take pics 😂
(I say this having swum down most of Chateau Q...)
Good shout though - lake paddling near Embrun as well, decent biking, good climbing and via ferrata, some decent stuff to do and not that hard to get to. We used to stay, like most paddlers, at Argentiere la Bessee.
Rock climbing is actually my main sport now....sadly the other two dont climb. Briancon was another place that I'd got in mind actually.
Cheers for the suggestions folks.
If you want easy, no need to spend time planning routes, driving from one are to the next for the next ride etc, mountain biking that gives you the feeling that you have biked in the alps then it's difficult to justify not going to the Morzine area based on purely those criteria.
If you want to explore and enjoy the mountains , maybe more from a hiking persepctive then please please get in touch. For this I personally feel you could get a more authentic and different experience away from the more beaten paths (that is admittedly popular for a reason) such as the Chamonix valley and Morzine.
I'm a complete advocate for the Oisans area around Bourg d'Oisans and La Grave (so where L2A and L'Alpe d'Huez stations are as well as further south Briancon and beyond as well as other authentic gems in the more overseas tourist popular northern french alps.
Would you be interested in engaging the services of a professional mountain leader who has been based in the real french alps for over 16 years and is fully integrated in local life and a memeber of the STW parish since 2002 to take you on custom designed great trek(s) and sharing with you many things you wouldn't discover by yourselves? Just saying like..... 😉
Could well be interested in that! I'll keep you in mind when properly planning the trip next year. The Canadian has only ridden a handful of times, so we could well just get you to babysit him 🤣
*professional mountain leader = for trekking on foot. Not biking!!!
Does sound more and more that Morzine is the place for your biking!!
Ah right! Cool, still good to know.
Im not a total alps expert. But if you haven’t been there in Sumer, Morzine is hard to beat for me. Lac du Montriond is just stunning for paddle boarding. You have Chatel close by to expand the Morzine bike park. And for walking, Chamonix is an hour away and is the best I’ve ever imagined.
im not dissing the other alpine suggestions on here. I’m sure they’re equally as good. But I’m quite confident you would love Morzine in summer, based on your criteria. (From memory, Annecy is only 1-2 hours away as well).
I liked Venosc when I went there. Really nice small village feel and on a road which is a dead end valley so quiet. Depends if you want bar life or not I guess, if you want something a bit more lively then Bourg, Briancon or Morzine would be a good bet.
I've stayed in Venosc in winter in the motorhome, also done Serre Che (so essentially Briancon) in winter too.
Morzine does seem tempting, if we're there end of June/early July, how busy is it likely to be?
I'm not too bothered by nightlife as I've done it to death and then some! I'm 10 years older than the other guys, so maybe they'll be more keen.