We had been patiently waiting since the start of the season to go on our splitboarding course and the week finally arrived. We were both equal parts nervous and excited and were glad we had a pre meeting the night before to meet our guide and the rest of the group and talk through what we were going to be doing. When we arrived we were told that the others in the group had pulled out so it was effectively a week of private guiding for us! Couldn’t believe our luck!
We met our guide Johan and he seemed like a nice man. In his late 40’s (we were both glad we didn’t have a 20 something whipper snapper 😂😂) with over 20 years experience in mountain guiding. So after a pretty short meeting we left with instructions that Johan would come and pick us up from our Mazot first thing in the morning.
Johan assured us that day one would be on the easier side as we headed to La Tour where Johan would get to assess our riding skills and see what we were capable of. We soon found ourselves riding through the trees in beautiful powder and already deciding that the money we had spent was well worth it and we hadn’t even done any split boarding yet. After a few laps of the trees Johan had us hiking up a ridge to then give us an option of 2 couloirs – one steep, one not as steep or to go around on an easier route. Tim left it up to me to decide so I went for the easier of the two couloirs. It was only day one after all.
Johan being the awesome guide he was went the easy route to allow me to cut first tracks and of course video us. Best run of the day so far. We then finally split our boards and put on our skins and did our first little bit of splitboarding where Johan took us through the basics. All of this was before we even had lunch!
After lunch we then did some more off piste riding and then we headed into the woods where Johan tested our avalanche rescue skills. Johan then gave us his tick of approval and was confident we could rescue him in an avalanche and that our riding skills were up to scratch. We then went out and did a few more runs and by the end of the day I was pooped. So much so that I left Tim and Johan to it for the last run which was a super technical scramble all the way down to town while I caught the cable car down.
Day 2 had us being picked up bright and early again and this time we were headed to Brevent mountain which we can actually see from our balcony. We started the day with some skills training on steeper slopes and both Tim and I were given things to work on. Johan was a beautiful snowboarder who crazily spends most of his time on skis. Splitboarding is a relatively newish sport to allow snowboarders easier access to backcountry terrain, so it is actually difficult to find guides who can snowboard as most are skiers. Luckily for us Johan can do both which was great as even though splitting the board has the same principles as ski touring there are subtle differences which make splitboarding harder such as the bindings and boots being softer, the shape of the board etc so it was great having a guide who was also on a board.
Once we did a bit of skills training we headed up to the top of the mountain and then dropped off the back to board some beautiful powder before splitting our boards, putting our skins on and then split boarding back up through some of the most spectacular scenery. We were not very far away from the lifts but just having that ability to get a little off the beaten track and you get the mountains pretty much to yourself. As we were making our way back up the mountain Tim and I had huge smiles on our faces and we both said that this was exactly how we imagined the experience to be. Out in nature away from it all just soaking up the amazing scenery. Bliss. Lunch was had in the sun with views of Mt Blanc. It couldn’t get much better than this. Once we got back to the lift we were given the option of an early mark and I grabbed it with both hands.
The morning of day 3 arrives and I was sore. Chasing Johan and Tim all day was tiring. I am the slowest of the group both going down but especially up the mountain so by the time I catch up to those two we are off again which means I don’t get much rest throughout the day. But no rest for the wicked so they say so day 3 had us travelling to Les Contamines which was a resort Tim and I had been to a few weeks ago.
Day 3 started like day 2 with a little bit of skills training and then we were skinning up and traversing across the mountain. This trek was short but the wind was howling so not as enjoyable as the last few days but the prize was an untouched bowl of powder we both had a blast zooming down. Considering the last snow dump was nearly a week ago we were astounded that Johan was finding us fresh tracks. We stopped off at a little summer chalet for a spot of lunch and then back up we went. This time to the back side of the resort for another trek up a mountain with our splitboards on to board back down. By this stage Tim and I were getting pretty good at splitting our board, putting skins on and then putting it all back together at the top. Though we had nothing on Johan.
Day 4 we went up Flegere which was the mountain which we have spent the most time up since arriving at Chamonix. Though obviously with Johan we were soon off the beaten track and splitboarding up and across the mountain. We also had our ski crampons on as well as the track was a little icy. Ski crampons are like boot crampons but they attach to the base of your skis or in our case our splitboard. According to Johan we needed to use them more often then normal skiers due to our split board not having the same traction as skis. Needless to say when we were traversing the side of the mountain slope with a rather steep drop they were definitely nice to have. Tim and I both found our weakness rather quickly which was kick turns. When you are ascending a steep section and you can’t go straight up you have to zig zag up the mountain. When you get to the end of the zig you have to completely change direction which involves raising one ski and kicking it up and around, planting it, trusting that it will stick and then putting all your weight on it while you manoeuvre the other ski around. On flats it’s rather easy but when you are on the side of a mountain on an icy slope with the wind blowing it’s actually quite terrifying. Obviously Johan made it look easy. There was one particular time that I slipped and found myself in not a great position. One leg jammed in the snow and the other slowly inching down the steep slope. Johan came to the rescue very quickly and soon had himself positioned below me so I didn’t fall further and helped me up. All the while calmly maybe not a little patiently telling me that I didn’t use a very good technique for that kick turn. Talk about stating the obvious!
Crisis averted we kept at it and had another amazing lunch up the mountain while gazing at the Argentierre glacier. After lunch we put our boards back on and started the decent down. We knew it was going to be a little knarly as Johan got his ice axe out. We rode some really nice powder and then came to a rather steep decent. Johan went first and told me to slowly traverse across and down until I got to a point where I felt comfortable turning down which was about a third of the way down. Tim was allowed to turn from the top. He nailed it of course and was told that he had just completed a 45 degree slope! The rest of the run down saw us traversing over a little ice wall. Usually Johan goes before us but this time he told me to traverse across above him and he kept pace with me the whole time. It wasn’t until about 3/4 of the way over that I realised he was doing it because there was a bit of a drop below us. But we managed it just fine. Tim may have gotten a little stuck on a bit of a rock and was even handed the ice axe to assist him which I was a little jealous about!
The coolest thing about the day is after all that we arrived at a road. We were nowhere near where we started and had to cross and then board/walk another km or so until we reached a town (La Buet) with a train station where we caught the train back to where we started. 3 stops and about 20 mins down the road. We definitely felt very hard core that day. Made even more so when Johan told us that the line we had just completed was a pretty technical one.
Day 5 arrived and I had doubts I was going to make it up the mountain. I was completely mentally and physically exhausted and didn’t think I could do another day like yesterday. But after a hearty breakfast and about half an hour of me stretching I decided I could make it up, though we did ask Johan how hard today would be and he assured us that it was going to be a relatively easy hike up and board down.
What he didn’t tell us was that it was easy from an elevation perspective but not necessarily a technical perspective. It should have dawned on me when we were told we had to wear climbing harnesses for the day just in case we fell in a crevasse. 😳 It started off pretty easy but we soon found ourselves traversing across a face that was pretty steep and icy which brought our poor form kick turns into play. I may have had a moment at one stage where I had to stop and compose myself as I was a little overwhelmed. We also had another tricky little part where Johan positioned himself below us as there was a little rocky and icy outcrop that even the ski tourers had trouble with. But we easily got through that part and soon found ourselves on top of the glacier.
It was a surreal ride down to the base where we had some pretty knarley snow conditions where the wind had whipped the snow into almost mini waves. We had to navigate another steep slope and then we were walking out along the glacier and hiking with our boards on our backs up the side of the mountain. All the while gazing down at the undulations of the Argentierre glacier.
Lunch was back at Grand Montets where I insisted on a hot chocolate at a restaurant Tim and I had discovered previously for everyone. These hot chocolates come out in pint glasses covered in whipped cream. So delicious. I was pretty much thinking I was done for the day but after the hot chocolate and lunch the boys persuaded me to keep going where we went and did some crevasse rescue simulation over a little mini drop. Tim and I learned how to rescue someone and also how to get ourselves down something using ropes if it’s not boardable. It was a pretty awesome finish to a an amazing week!
After the week we had a beer was obviously in order so we all went for a pint in one of the bars in Chamonix before Johan dropped us off home. The week definitely took us out of our comfort zones but we were both super impressed with ourselves and the resilience and fortitude we showed. Yes Johan pushed us but we always felt that he was in control of the situation and had complete faith that he would never get us into anything that he didn’t think we were capable of. Our boarding has improved out of sight due to this and we cannot wait to go on our own little splitboarding expedition by ourselves. Though it will definitely be a lot more tame than the last two days of our week.
This week has definitely been one of the best weeks we have spent in the mountains and we are so glad we spent the time to do it. S