Ski Areas > Northern Alps > Isère (38)
The Isère department is situated in the Northern Alps region. It is part of the ancient Dauphiné kingdom. The area was also a crade to French skiing development with the first skis introduced to the region by Henry Duhamel? in 1878. Duhamel's early forays were on the nearby Chamrousse summit which was later developed into a ski area by the Isère department and hosted the 1968 Winter Olympics. An event where French ace Jean-Claude Killy won a record breaking gold in all three men's downhill events. The department also saw France's first draglifts built in 1935 at the Col de Porte and at l'Alpe d'Huez by the legendary Jean Pomagalski?.
Today the area is home to two world class resorts l'Alpe d'Huez and les Deux Alpes. Les Deux Alpes also has Europe's largest glacier served summer skiing, one of the two remaining full time summer ski areas in France. Skiing is divided between the towering peaks of the Oisans, the broad plateau of the Vercors, the wooded glens of the Chartreuse and the infinite variety of the Belledonne summits and valleys. The area is also a mecca for ski mountaineers from the gentle beginner routes on the Charmont Som to the 1700 meter Couloir d'Infernet, one of the longest and most extreme routes in the European Alps.
Special units of the Gendarmerie (PGHM) and National Police (CRS) operate mountain rescue in shifts. They have a joint telephone number in the Isère department: 04 76 22 22 22. You can also call the general number: 112.
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