Welcome to the Ecrins 2010 Expedition site
From 24 July to 7 August the Warminster Adventure Sports Club is planning a trip to the Ecrin Alps in Southern France.
The Ecrins get 300 days of sunshine every year. The trip will give you the opportunity to:
- kayak on some of the best whitewater in France (glacial-fed)
- climb on some of the best granite in France (better than Chamonix)
- mountaineer the 4102m peak La Barre des Ecrins (easy if you don't mind the altitude)
- discover Via Ferrata
- do downhill MTB
- go caving in the nearby Vercors
Itinery?
The itinery has yet to be worked out but the idea is for it to be flexible - if people want to spend the whole week doing one activity they can, if they want to mix it up that is fine too.
Who is going?
There is a growing lists of people going. To add your name then contact the organiser billfryer@fastmail.co.uk asap. The trip is open to paid up members of: The Warminster Adventure Sports Club, Frome Canoe Club and Frome Caving Group.
What about kids?
The expedition is designed to be family-friendly. Some activities are suitable for children and some are not depending on age and skill level. Several people are taking over their whole family including young children. And the plan is for each parent with smaller children to take responsibility for the smaller kids for one day of the trip. In this way the little kids get a great time and the parents get to do the activities they want to as well.
Why the Ecrins?
Few UK people have heard of the Ecrins. It is a bit of an undiscovered gem which Les Frogs like to keep to themselves. It has better quality granite for climbing than Chamonix, some of the best summer whitewater in France with a good selection of grades 2-5, some of the best downhill MTB in France and 300 days of sunshine. Try going to Chamonix in the rain - you cannot do a thing.
Qualifications
Obviously you will be taking part in these activities at your own risk. So you do need to be suitably qualified to take part. For the whitewater kayaking/canoeing we would suggest a BCU 3 star minimum with appropriate clothing - the water is glacial-fed so expect temperatures of 2-4 Deg C even if the sun is shining. For other activities like climbing, MTB, mountaineering it is more about having the right experience and equipment - we are happy to advise. A trip up the Barre des Ecrins mountain is suitable for a novice mountaineer if you are suitably well-dressed.
Accommodation
We plan to stay in a campsite at a small village called Argentiere La Bessee. There are electric hook-ups on site for caravanners. The site is on the banks of the river right next to the 400m world class artificial white water slalom course and there is climbing and via ferrata in the village. The campsite is probably not the best place to use as a base for going caving however. So, if you are a caver, you may want to spend some time in Argentiere doing climbing/via ferrata and then move over to the Vercors.
Costs?
This is being organised by The Warminster Adventure Sports Club which is a non-profit club. There is no specific charge for the expedition, you need to make your own way there but this table gives you an idea of likely costs for the average family/car load. We are planning to take a minibus and kayak trailer. There may well be room for you in the minibus.
Links
Here are some links which show you a bit about the area:
This is the website for the Argentiere la Bessee campsite. It is a great campsite - the French do campsites better than us Brits. Caravanners - it's okay they have 60 electric hook-ups - worth booking one asap.
http://www.camping-les-ecrins.com/pages/en/frame_vert.html
Here is some information about the climbing in Ailefroide
http://www.summitpost.org/area/range/189844/ailefroide-rockclimbing-area.html
There is a lot to offer in terms of mountain biking in this area...
http://bankesconsulting.com/act_vtt.htm
And here is some info about the whitewater kayaking. NB, there is a world class 400m artificial slalom course at Argentiere de la Bessee right next to the campsite.
http://www.alpsun.com/kayak_en.htm
And here is an even better guide to the local white water
http://www.alpbase.com/english/alpActive/alppaddle.html
Here is a link to the Barre des Ecrins Wikipedia page
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barre_des_%C3%89crins
Guidebooks
If you want to check out the local environmental resources:
White Water South Alps - this covers all the major rivers in the area.
Rock Climbing Guidebook for the Hautes Alps - Escalade en Haut Val Durance - How's yer Francais? The French still persist in publishing guides in French! Have they no consideration?
Via Ferrata - A complete guide to France - covers all of France. A great guidebook if you can actually find the start of each route. Inspiring photos.
Climbing guide to the Ailefroide area - but only available in French and from a tiny village in France - see they are trying to keep it to themselves. They seem to have forgotten that if it wasn't for us they'd still be speaking German.
Ecrins Massif - this guide details the mountaineering in the the Ecrins. If you just want to go up the Barre des Ecrins a guidebook is probably not needed.
Vercours Caving - the Vercours (nearby) is the largest caving area in France. This club is devoted to it and has a lot of resources on their website. The guidebooks come in two volumes: one and two. Both seem incredibly difficult to get hold of.
Maps
For those obsession with buying maps:
1:25,000 maps - as is typical Ailefroide is on the join but 3536OT looks like the best choice.
1:50,000 maps - this one is more generous, the 50k map covers the whole national park. Both 25k and 50k are available on this link.
Do you want to come?
If you want to come write to billfryer@fastmail.co.uk asap. There isn't really a deadline for people who are interested but if you want to come you may need to train in some areas, buy equipment, etc so the earlier you can tell me the better. I plan to arrange a meeting early to mid Feb for everyone who is interested.
From 24 July to 7 August the Warminster Adventure Sports Club is planning a trip to the Ecrin Alps in Southern France.
The Ecrins get 300 days of sunshine every year. The trip will give you the opportunity to:
- kayak on some of the best whitewater in France (glacial-fed)
- climb on some of the best granite in France (better than Chamonix)
- mountaineer the 4102m peak La Barre des Ecrins (easy if you don't mind the altitude)
- discover Via Ferrata
- do downhill MTB
- go caving in the nearby Vercors
Itinery?
The itinery has yet to be worked out but the idea is for it to be flexible - if people want to spend the whole week doing one activity they can, if they want to mix it up that is fine too.
Who is going?
There is a growing lists of people going. To add your name then contact the organiser billfryer@fastmail.co.uk asap. The trip is open to paid up members of: The Warminster Adventure Sports Club, Frome Canoe Club and Frome Caving Group.
What about kids?
The expedition is designed to be family-friendly. Some activities are suitable for children and some are not depending on age and skill level. Several people are taking over their whole family including young children. And the plan is for each parent with smaller children to take responsibility for the smaller kids for one day of the trip. In this way the little kids get a great time and the parents get to do the activities they want to as well.
Why the Ecrins?
Few UK people have heard of the Ecrins. It is a bit of an undiscovered gem which Les Frogs like to keep to themselves. It has better quality granite for climbing than Chamonix, some of the best summer whitewater in France with a good selection of grades 2-5, some of the best downhill MTB in France and 300 days of sunshine. Try going to Chamonix in the rain - you cannot do a thing.
Qualifications
Obviously you will be taking part in these activities at your own risk. So you do need to be suitably qualified to take part. For the whitewater kayaking/canoeing we would suggest a BCU 3 star minimum with appropriate clothing - the water is glacial-fed so expect temperatures of 2-4 Deg C even if the sun is shining. For other activities like climbing, MTB, mountaineering it is more about having the right experience and equipment - we are happy to advise. A trip up the Barre des Ecrins mountain is suitable for a novice mountaineer if you are suitably well-dressed.
Accommodation
We plan to stay in a campsite at a small village called Argentiere La Bessee. There are electric hook-ups on site for caravanners. The site is on the banks of the river right next to the 400m world class artificial white water slalom course and there is climbing and via ferrata in the village. The campsite is probably not the best place to use as a base for going caving however. So, if you are a caver, you may want to spend some time in Argentiere doing climbing/via ferrata and then move over to the Vercors.
Costs?
This is being organised by The Warminster Adventure Sports Club which is a non-profit club. There is no specific charge for the expedition, you need to make your own way there but this table gives you an idea of likely costs for the average family/car load. We are planning to take a minibus and kayak trailer. There may well be room for you in the minibus.
| Item | Cost | Comment |
| Ferry | £180 | Eurotunnel is £220 |
| Camping | £300 | |
| Mileage | £253 | 845 miles x 2 x 15p |
| Food | £300 | |
| Insurance | £100 | |
| Total | £1133 |
Links
Here are some links which show you a bit about the area:
This is the website for the Argentiere la Bessee campsite. It is a great campsite - the French do campsites better than us Brits. Caravanners - it's okay they have 60 electric hook-ups - worth booking one asap.
http://www.camping-les-ecrins.com/pages/en/frame_vert.html
Here is some information about the climbing in Ailefroide
http://www.summitpost.org/area/range/189844/ailefroide-rockclimbing-area.html
There is a lot to offer in terms of mountain biking in this area...
http://bankesconsulting.com/act_vtt.htm
And here is some info about the whitewater kayaking. NB, there is a world class 400m artificial slalom course at Argentiere de la Bessee right next to the campsite.
http://www.alpsun.com/kayak_en.htm
And here is an even better guide to the local white water
http://www.alpbase.com/english/alpActive/alppaddle.html
Here is a link to the Barre des Ecrins Wikipedia page
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barre_des_%C3%89crins
Guidebooks
If you want to check out the local environmental resources:
White Water South Alps - this covers all the major rivers in the area.
Rock Climbing Guidebook for the Hautes Alps - Escalade en Haut Val Durance - How's yer Francais? The French still persist in publishing guides in French! Have they no consideration?
Via Ferrata - A complete guide to France - covers all of France. A great guidebook if you can actually find the start of each route. Inspiring photos.
Climbing guide to the Ailefroide area - but only available in French and from a tiny village in France - see they are trying to keep it to themselves. They seem to have forgotten that if it wasn't for us they'd still be speaking German.
Ecrins Massif - this guide details the mountaineering in the the Ecrins. If you just want to go up the Barre des Ecrins a guidebook is probably not needed.
Vercours Caving - the Vercours (nearby) is the largest caving area in France. This club is devoted to it and has a lot of resources on their website. The guidebooks come in two volumes: one and two. Both seem incredibly difficult to get hold of.
Maps
For those obsession with buying maps:
1:25,000 maps - as is typical Ailefroide is on the join but 3536OT looks like the best choice.
1:50,000 maps - this one is more generous, the 50k map covers the whole national park. Both 25k and 50k are available on this link.
Do you want to come?
If you want to come write to billfryer@fastmail.co.uk asap. There isn't really a deadline for people who are interested but if you want to come you may need to train in some areas, buy equipment, etc so the earlier you can tell me the better. I plan to arrange a meeting early to mid Feb for everyone who is interested.