Chamonix MTB
Having lived in
Chamonix as a keen mountain biker for 7 years until 2007 I was always
frustrated by the lack of interested the powers that be had in the sport. In
fact, many of my friends would chose to take the 45 minutes drive to the
neighboring resort of Les Gets to buy their summers season passes and make use
of their extensively developed bike park.
Chamonix has
historically has been more famous for extreme skiing and mountaineering and more
recently, hiking, paragliding and sightseeing. During the summer, tourists flock to the two cable
cars that whisk you from the town of Chamonix to the Aiguille du Midi at
over 3800 meters to take a quick photo of the spectacular views over the Mont Blanc and surrounding glaciers. Mountain biking in
the area was limited to hiking paths which, although plentiful with some
phenomenal single track, were often closed to mountain bikers during the high
season.
These days things
are changing in the valley. La Tour/Vallorcine and Les Houches, both popular
locations for the local rider, have developed fantastic mountain bike areas,
with specially designed downhill track on the front side from the Col du Balme as well as a track that drop into Vallorcien and others through the forests of Les Houches. Although perhaps not as well ridden in as
some DH tracks in Les Gets or Morzine, what Chamonix do offer are considerably
longer, wrist aching, calf burning runs with spectacular scenery.
However, were
Chamonix really excels now are the enduro style, pack a back pack and get lost for
a few hours, natural single track. From the col du Balme it is possible to ride
a number of different trails off the back of the resost into Switzerland. Don’t
forget you passport... From Les Houches again riding off the back of the resort
towards and St Gervais through forests and pastures and eventually down La Fayet where you can return to the valley free with your Carte d’Hôte tourist card by tramway.
Finally Chamonix
has embraced mountain biking for all the family. The valley stretches for 14
miles from Les Houches at the lower end to La Tour at the top and Chamonix has
developed and upgrades a huge network of interconnected family friendly and cross
country trails, linking from one end to the other. A tour to a secluded
mountain restaurant in the forest of Les Bois is a must for any family.
To get the best
out of the area is advisable, but not essential to take a guide. A number of different chalet businesses
provide taylor made services for their mountain biking clients. Chalet Tissieres in Les Bosson have an extremely good professional service where they can pick
you up from the airport and have your bike rentals already waiting for you at
their luxury chalet and provide a local guide for the duration of your
stay. Les Houches MTB Chalet located right next to the summer gondola and bike park, is owned and
run by very keen mountain bikers who offer a discover Chamonix week, with a
grogram that will introduce you to all the different areas and the best trails
of the Chamonix.
Alternatively a
comprehensive guide to mountain biking trails are available on the following
website Chamonix Bike Book
Will Corder -
BikeLodging
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