La Grave
| La Grave | ||
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A view from the nearby hillside
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 La Grave
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Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region
La Grave
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| Coordinates: 45°02′49″N 6°18′24″E / 45.0469°N 6.3067°ECoordinates: 45°02′49″N 6°18′24″E / 45.0469°N 6.3067°E | ||
| Country | France | |
| Region | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur | |
| Department | Hautes-Alpes | |
| Arrondissement | Briançon | |
| Canton | Briançon-1 | |
| Intercommunality | Briançon | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor (2014–2020) | Jean-Pierre Sevrez | |
| Area1 | 126.91 km2 (49.00 sq mi) | |
| Population (2012)2 | 487 | |
| • Density | 3.8/km2 (9.9/sq mi) | |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 05063 /05320 | |
| Elevation | 1,135–3,976 m (3,724–13,045 ft) (avg. 1,520 m or 4,990 ft) |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
La Grave is a commune in the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France.
It is a small ski resort in the French Alps, dominated by La Meije (3982 m). It was the birthplace of Nicolas de Nicolay; adventurer and Geographer Ordinary to Henry II of France.
The area is unpisted and although patrolled, has no formal avalanche control. The area is dangerous to ski unless supported by a guide, including much glacier travel at the very top.
La Grave is visited by off-piste and extreme skiers. The vertical drop totals 2,150 metres, although it is possible to ski below the resort to the road and increase the vertical descent to 2,300 metres.
Mechanical access to the mountain is limited to a closed, two-stage, pulse gondola system. The first lift starts at 1,450 metres, runs through one intermediate station (known as P1 at 1,800 metres) then terminates at Peyrou d'Amont (2,400 metres). The second stage of the gondola runs directly from Peyrou d'Amont to the Col des Ruillans (3,200 metres). The top of the gondola then allows access to button lift (which is the world's only fully suspended surface lift) to reach the top of the Girose Glacier (3550m). The Girose Glacier can also be reached from the resort of Les Deux Alpes on the other side, although this entails a one to two kilometre walk.
There are two main routes of descent. To the skier's right of the gondola station at the Col des Ruillans are 'Les Vallons de La Meije', a variation of which leads to the Trifides couloirs, and ultimately to the valley bottom and the Romanche River. Skiers can also make leftwards traverses to return to Peyrou d'Amont or P1 to avoid skiing the lower section which can be rocky or even grassy meadows in poor snow conditions.
To the skier's left from the Col des Ruillans is known as the Chancel route (also accessible from the Girose Glacier) which leads to several couloirs (the Banane, Patou, Couloir du Lac) around the Lac de Puyvachier and the Refuge Evariste Chancel. Below this point skiers can either traverse right to return to P1 or descend directly to the valley floor and village of Les Fréaux via the steep Fréaux Couloir.
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Wikipedia