Bearded vultures, ibexes and wolves live on the Bessans plateau. But they are no danger for snow hikers.
Image: Rob Kieffer
Winter sports are also melting away in the French Alps. But in the Haute Maurienne Vanoise, people are fighting against climate change, the energy crisis and changed holiday behavior with nature and environmentally friendly projects.
EIt hadn’t looked good, not good at all. New Year’s Eve was the warmest that has ever been measured in France, even then the temperatures remained spring-like, and the planned skiing holidays in the French Alps threatened to melt away. But when we arrive at the train station in Modane on a late January evening after a four-hour train journey by TGV from Paris, an unexpected gift from the weather gods awaits us. Thick snowflakes swirl through the air, icy wind pinches our cheeks, waist-deep snow lines the streets.
The Haute Maurienne Vanoise valley, which stretches forty kilometers in the department of Savoie and borders Italy, lives up to its reputation again: despite climate change, it is considered relatively snow-sure, and the main destination for skiing and snowboarding, made up of five villages Val Cenis, can usually open its 125 km of pistes as early as mid-December, even if you have to help with artificial snow. Despite the temperatures playing yo-yo here too, you can rely on the snow. The height of the slopes, which climb up to 2,800 meters, as well as sun-protected northern slopes and a microclimate with cool easterly winds all contribute to this. A study by the Climsnow research group, which includes the national weather service Météo France, has forecast sufficient snow for the region by 2050. For winter tourism, however, this means only one gallows respite. Nobody knows what comes after that.