UKH

My first post here on UKC. I’m a hillwalker who seems to be making the transition towards easier mountaineering after trying and enjoying some harder scrambles / easier rock climbs over the last couple of years (e.g. sections of the Cuillin, Cyfrwy arete, Cneifion arete). I've also done some Scottish winter climbs at Grade I and II as well as Tower ridge in winter.

Currently based in London and with a timetable that gives me two Fridays free a month, I’ve been able over the last few years to get up to Snowdonia and the Highlands pretty regularly for walking and scrambling weekends. I don’t really consider myself a rock climber. I have climbed a couple of routes at Severe at Polldubh and a 4c sport climb with a guide in the Alps. I have no experience leading anything but have scrambled at grade I and II solo.

In the new year I’m moving to Brussels for a new job. It’s just as far from big hills as London and at first I was a bit down in the dumps that weekend escapes to Snowdonia and Scotland are possibly a thing of the past for me. However, I have realised that Brussels is only about 5 hours by train from Grenoble (with one change in Lyon). This summer I did a week’s alpine intro on one of Graham Frost’s courses and climbed Mont Blanc de Cheilon and the Pigne d’Arolla. Next summer I’d like to head back to the Val d’Herens and see how I fare on more difficult routes at perhaps AD grade.

So, my question to the UKC community is, how would you use long weekends from Brussels to get in some quality mountain days before the summer alpine season? As a non-skier I realise my options may be limited early in the year but have thought about engaging a guide to do some winter mountaineering near Grenoble (Belledonne perhaps). Any other suggestions? I have reasonable French so am thinking about looking for partners in and around Grenoble on the French language forums at camptocamp.

As the year progresses and the snow becomes less of an issue, where would you be heading on a train from Brussels? Later in the season I am going to need a guide when I go back to Switzerland. But in late spring / early summer I want to pack in some QMDs in the French Alps on my own and below the glaciers if nothing else to make sure I am hill fit for the Val D'Herens. In the UK I know exactly where to go to do this sort of stuff (maybe 6 to 8 hours, 1000m -1400m ascent, some grade I or grade II scrambling terrain) - but I’ve never been to the French Alps before in my life so am very grateful for any suggestions you may have. It seems straightforward to find information on alpine mountaineering on and above the glaciers but much harder to find information on challenging mountain days below the glaciers.

Thanks

In reply to Riverman:

Thalys to Paris on Thursday after work, take the 21.20 Intercites de Nuit train from Austerlitz getting into Briancon early Friday morning?

In reply to yorkshireman:

or getting off at one the stations between Gap & Briançon & heading into the Ecrins, Queyras etc. But check the bus connections - I arrived at Mt Dauphin on a Saturday morning only to be told the next bus was on Wednesday (this was between the ski & summer seasons).

Unfortunately many of the other night trains have now stopped running, it used to be possible to get the Bernese Oberland overnight from Paris with one change but I'm not sure if that's still possible

In reply to Riverman:


There are a couple of great trail running guides from Cicerone and also the publishers of Damilano's "Ice, Snow and Mixed" guides, which take you up to about 2500m. Much of the UTMB route would also be good terrain, in addition to hut approaches such as the Envers or the Aiguilles Rouges.

The conditions are fine for many of these routes now due to the lack of precipitation, though I wouldn't expect that to continue, and of course the days are very short.

In reply to yorkshireman:

Hate to put a spanner in the works but they are talking of stopping the overnight train to Paris / Briancon, not 100% on when, I only know as my neighbor ( I live near vallouise) went to a protest about the proposed closure a few days ago, I could try and get more info if anyone is interested? Maybe there is some where you can sign objections?

On a good note we used to do long weekends from Nottingham to Briancon, sharing the driving not a lot of sleep and quite abit of redbull, in the end got to old for that so moved here instead.

Cheers

In reply to ecrinscollective:


I know - my local village station is Lus-la-Croix-Haute - it's not on the Briancon line (I get the night train between Veynes-Dévoluy and Paris, or go Lus-Grenoble and pick up the TGV during the day) but we're threatened with closure too and we had a protest on Saturday as I think all the stations on the line did.

They've been saying it for years and it may actually happen but for now it's still running so all the more reason to support it if you can.

https://www.facebook.com/ligne.grenoble.gap/

In reply to yorkshireman:

Fairly sure that in the last review of night trains the Paris-Briançon & the Paris-La Tour de Carol were the only two which seemed safe.

In reply to Doug:

Thanks for everone's helpful suggestions. The night train does sound like a great option. Trains in Europe are great and it's a shame that night services are threatened with such fierce (and arguably unfair) competition from budget airlines. Flying from Brussels to Toulouse or Geneva is cheaper than the train but flying is generally such a miserable experience.

As well as night train options (if any are left by the time I arrive) I've also figured that if I can escape slightly earlier on a Thursday afternoon (around 4pm) I could reach Lyon around 8 or 9, pick up a rental car and then overnight somewhere en route and have all of Friday and Saturday in the hills.

I hadn't realised there are forum members in that part of the world either. Once I'm all set up in Brussels and am starting to plan my first trips south it would be great to meet some English speakers in French Alps and perhaps climb some stuff together?