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Ever since Léa left for Annecy, we’d been planning to get together for a weekend of snowshoeing. We decided to spend the night at Le Nant du Beurre, a refuge situated at an altitude of 2080 meters in the Bauges massif.

We made an appointment for a weekend in early March. After a few withdrawals, we settled on four participants: Léa, Aditi, Romuald and myself.

Vehicle
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The trip was by train and car. We took the train from Paris to Albertville, where Léa picked us up by car.

Route
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Day 1: Departure from Paris and ascent to the refuge
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We left Paris early in the morning, arriving in Albertville around midday to buy sandwiches. This was followed by a 45-minute drive to the village of Grand Naves. From the parking lot, we took the shuttle bus up to the Tovet parking lot at an altitude of 1550 meters. From here, we put on our snowshoes and headed for the Nant du Beurre refuge.

The start of the trail was rather muddy, but we soon found snow. It took us about 3 hours to reach the refuge. This was a first for Aditi, and it showed on the last part of the climb.

Day 2: Ascent to Pointe du Dzonfié (2455 m)
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As Aditi wasn’t feeling too well (we found out later that she must have had the flu), we left her at the hut after a hearty breakfast.

The three of us then headed for the Pointe du Dzonfié. We weren’t sure what conditions we were going to find, but everything went very well.

We returned to the refuge by a similar route, and reached it for lunch.

In the afternoon, we took a leisurely walk back down to the Tovet parking lot, where we caught the shuttle bus to the village of Grand Naves. We took the car to Valmorel, where we had booked a room. We took advantage of the evening to rent ski equipment and go to the restaurant.

Day 3: Skiing in Valmorel
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We started the day as soon as the slopes opened, to make the most of the day.

Aditi took her first ski lesson and made her first turns.

In the late afternoon, we headed back to Albertville to catch the train back to Paris.

Budget
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The refuge does not accept credit cards. It is therefore important to bring cash or a checkbook.

The cost of a night at the refuge on a half-board basis is €51 per person (remember to book in advance), plus €12 for a picnic. Snowshoe hire is also included.

For a day’s skiing, you’ll need to budget around €35 for equipment hire and €43 for the Grand Domaine ski pass if you book online.