BRO-SUMMIT(S) - JESSE & SAMBO MAKE IT TO GRENOBLE
After over two years of threatening and scheming, friends Sambo and Jesse finally made it out to our neck of the woods for an all too brief week+ visit. Our initial plan to ski over 75 miles from Grenoble to Briançon meta-morphosed under the influence of weather, prospects of slogging and the desire to ski good snow with light packs. After receiving a meter of new snow and lots of wind during the first weekend of the trip, primary goals became 1) not getting caught in an avalanche 2) skiing to Italy and 3) sharing a mix of novel and familiar terrain with these guys in hopes of boosting the odds of future visits.
Hosting East-coast friends and skiers was more fun than I could have imagined. I think Sambo would have happily sessioned one alpine cirque (and the forest leading up to it) for the duration of the trip, based on his unrelenting motivation to ski every gully, glade, snowfield and cooler in sight. Frequent references to Nashoba Valley made whatever we were doing, even if it was low-angle skinning through risk 4 windslab, seem like a grand expedition. And it was, especially when the baseline meant hanging out with these two wonderful characters and getting to mix friends from home with people and places over here.
LAUSIERE - le Bellachat (2484m) & la Pointe des Marmottes Noires (2339m)
 |
| Olivier leading Team America from the comfort of his splitboard. |
 |
| Skinning past heady aiguilles on Day 1. |
 |
| Sambo happy with his choice to tele "for esthetic reasons." |
 |
| Ian getting it done on the northeast side of les Marmottes Noires. |
 |
| Meadow skipping |
 |
| Hillary making a weekend appearance and scoring one of the best days of the trip. |
QUEYRAS - Col Agnel (2744m) & l'Eychassier (2968m)
 |
| Lifestyle image from the hut picnic table, courtesy of Gubb. |
 |
| The man himself strolling to the Col de l'Eychassier. |
 |
| Sambo taking it to the summit. |
 |
| Bro self-portré. |
 |
| Ski incursion into Italy and timeless style, check. |
BELLEDONNE - la Grande Lance de Domène (2780m) & le Grand Colon (2394m)
 |
| Psyched on the summit with the Grand Pic de Belledonne in the background (no big deal, we traversed that ridgeline with Gus two summers ago...) |
 |
| Jesse casts off from the summit of the Grande Lance. |
 |
| Sambo, nobody cares that you tele. That said you're a hoser... |
 |
| Oliver shreds down B14.1, a real Belledonne classic. Lots more snow than when we skied this with Thad, Carrie, Brian and Hill last winter. |
 |
| Le vieux bouqetin en action! |
 |
| On the summit of the Grand Colon with Jono in our midst, with Grenoble and springtime down below. Alas, Jono is heading back to America this week and will be sorely missed as a provider of good banter on the skin track and over beers, not to mention as the man who brought All of the Lights to the Grenoble brassband scene. I plan to bombard him with constant Big Pretty Propaganda in hopes that he will be back in Grenoble soon... |
