Chamonix Ski Maps

 

Situated near the massive peaks of the Aiguilles Rouges, Chamonix shares both the summit of Mont Blanc and the title of highest commune in France with its neighboring commune, Saint-Gervais-les-Bains. The commune is well known and loved by skiers and by mountain athletes of all types. Mont Blanc, at a height of 4810 meters, is the third most visited natural site in the world. This lends the area a notably cosmopolitan atmosphere. With an area of 245 square kilometers, Chamonix is the fourth largest commune in mainland France.

 

Chamonix is situated on the northwest side of the Alps. It developed in the valley of the same name, near the point where the French, Swiss,and Italian borders all come together. The valley, about 17,5 km in length, has about 10,000 permanent residents and was originally created by glaciers. To the northwest rises the rugged Le Brévent (2400m) and Aiguilles Rouges (3000m), while the snowclad summit of Mont Blanc towers above the valley from the southeast. At 4810m, Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in the European Alps. The Arve, one of the principal water channels in the department of Haute-Savoie, originates in Le Tour and flows through Chamonix, situated at 1050 meter. The Arve is joined by the torrent l'Arveyron, which rises in the famous Mer de Glace just above Chamonix, and flows for 100 km until it dumps into the Rhône in the Swiss city of Geneva.

 

The valley is connected via the Col de Montets (4795 ft) to Martigny (Switzerland) in the Rhône Valley.

 

Chamonix is a popular winter sports resort town in France. As the highest European mountain west of Russia, Mont Blanc holds a special allure for mountain climbers, and Jon Krakauer, in an essay in his collection Eiger Dreams, described the town as "the death-sport capital of the world" because Chamonix serves as an ideal playground for almost all types of outdoor activity, especially in their more extreme variants, such as ice climbing, rock climbing, extreme skiing, paragliding, rafting, and canyoning.

 

Chamonix is famous for its spectacular cable car up to the Aiguille du Midi (3842m). Constructed in 1955 it was then the highest cable car in the world. Together with a cable car system going up to the Point Helbronner (3462m) from Entréves in the Aosta Valley (Italy) it is possible to cross the entire Mont Blanc Massif by cable car.

 

In the summer months Chamonix is a mecca for alpine mountaineers, drawn to the area by challenges like the north face of the Dru, the Frendo Spur on the Aiguille du Midi, traversing the Alps on the legendary GR 5 footpath or more accessible challenges like summitting Mont Blanc (by a number of possible routes).

 

Apart from high-mountain summer sports, Chamonix is also a destination for the hardcore mountain biker. As well as the obvious lift-assisted areas for Freeriders there are hundreds of kilometres of challenging hidden singletrack trails - often only found with the help of guides.

 

Chamonix is also a haven for advanced skiing and snowboarding. The Vallée Blanche glacier runs down from below Mont Blanc du Tacul and the Aiguille du Midi to the valley. This spectacular route can be skied or snowboarded, though care should be exercised due to crevasses. Aside from that, the valley has about six separate ski areas, including Le Brévent (a short but steep walk from the town centre), La Flégère (at Les Praz), Les Planards (ski area for beginners and early intermediates), Les Grands Montets (at Argentière) and Domaine de Balme (at Le Tours). Many of these provide challenging terrain, especially off-piste, with runs down to Switzerland.