Le Brevent & La Flegere Ski Area

• Brevent & Flegere Piste Map
• Chamonix Valley Lift & Piste Map

In general the Brevent-Flegere skiing area is excellent for those of intermediate ability or above and has enough runs at different levels to keep mixed ability groups happy all day long. Mostly it’s necessary to take the cable cars back to the valley floor although when the snow conditions are good lower down there are some very scenic runs through the forests from the main ski areas back down to the valley. There are generally black runs though and in the main tend to be cat tracks. Whilst one or two of the classified black runs aren’t very steep and even flat in places, they may not be for everyone as they are fairly long, narrow and require some precise control!

Le Brevent is perhaps a little harder than La Flegere, but as an intermediate rider if you stick to the front bowl in La Flegere, you shouldn't get into any trouble. Le Brevent offers some steep skiing off the top with some exhilarating hikes along the ridge line with lots of gnarly descents down the mountain face. From the Col Cornu, there are some traverses that get you into all sorts of fun, and down the backside towards Flegere, the runs are steep, as is the off piste. ... more

The ski area of Le Brevent and La Flegere is one of the quieter areas on powder days and makes it a favourite of ours for that very reason. Often we can find fresh tracks all day, long after the snow has been tracked out at Grand Montets!

One area, which requires a little bit of hiking, is the ridge at Brevent, which gives us the option of dropping into various steep chutes above the Charles Bozon piste. The steepness of these chutes makes them avalanche prone so we take care as slipping here could result in falls over cliffs and avalanches that could take out skiers below. We get to this area by talking the top Brevent cable car up and then follow the Bozon run down until it turns sharply to the right. Here we take a left under the avalanche warning rope, passing this means you need to be responsible for yourself and others, be equipped, and know what you’re doing. Following the ridge, there are a few sections where we have to go uphill and so have to walk a little bit. Depending how far we go there are various narrow couloirs that drop down to the right. After a 10-15 minute hike along the back of the ridge we reach the Col de Brevent, an open col with views on the right down to the Bozon piste and Chamonix Village immediately below. Another one of our favourite runs with plenty of steep and deep stuff to amuse us. The snow is usually good here for a few days after a fresh dump but will get unstable if the sun gets to work on it and the temperature rises, so we don’t do this run late in the afternoon on warm days. In the spring you’ll see the pisteurs setting controlled avalanches off on these slopes. ... more

Chamonix is a mecca to freeride and backcountry, with riders from all over the world converging on the mountains here. There is a vast amount of fantastic off piste and the whole area is one giant natural fun park. La Flegere and Le Tour are known locally as having some of the best natural terrain for freestyle, with gullies that form natural half pipes, rollers, cornices and jumps everywhere you look. From the Index lift at the top of Flegere, you’ll often see some pretty big kickers built by locals with equally impressive tricks being nailed.

These are just a few suggested routes for backcountry touring from Flegere. They're far from comprehensive but is just a taster of what’s possible if you want to stray away from the regular piste skiers and don't mind a bit of a hike to get there! Most of our routes finish in Le Buet which is at the foot of the Berard valley. At Le Buet, you can catch a train back to Chamonix or take the Vallorcine lift if you fancy skiing further and exploring the Le Tour lift system. ... more

In good snow conditions at Le Brevent it’s possible to combine the Charles Bozon run with the Nants run back down to the valley to clock up nearly 1500m of vertical descent. At the start of the Charles Bozon run there are two variants of this run; one that offers very, very steep moguls for those on a mission to prove their skiing credentials, or a one that’s slightly more sedate and zig-zags down the cat tracks for the more cautious skier amongst us.

Both of the variants lead to the Planpraz sking area where skiers can then select from a host of easy blue runs that lead to the bottom of the Parsa chairlift, where the Nants black coloured piste starts. Of all these blue runs our favourite is the leftmost, Blanchots as it’s the least travelled, is slightly shadier and often therefore has the best snow. ... more