Ski-Areas > Massif Central > Puy de Dôme (63) > Monts D'Auvergne > Chambon des Neiges
Chambon des Neiges is a small ski station on the North-East slopes of the Puy-de-Sancy. An extinct volcano in the French Massif-Central mountain range. After suffering from problems with lack of snow the station closed at the end of the 2001-2002 season. A real shame as 2002-2003 was a bumper year for the local stations.
Hotel Terminus?
We went up there at the start of August 2003 to take a look around and see what was left. The station is in a somewhat derelict state although all the lifts are in place. The domain itself is in a charming spot. The high slopes lead down into a steep canyon as can be seen in the piste plan.
Chambon des Neiges, Pistes Map
We found two piste bashers in the station. One parked up in an open garage at Chambon 1200 and the other in a purpose built garage at the top of the chair lift. The drooping headlamps made this neglected machine look particularly sad. Emblematic for the whole station. The basher was labelled 'le Mont Dore', presumably either a gift or acquired from that nearby station.
Piste Basher
The station has a 'wild west ghost town' feeling about it. A lot of the installations have been damaged and are badly neglected. From the top of the station it is possible to ski over to le Mont Dore, although the return trip would either by via bus or one of the couloirs leading into the Chaudefour valley.
Wild West
From the Chaudefour it would be a 3km walk back to Chambon 1200.
Hello Hello?
So is this the end for Chambon des Neiges? Well it is not certain. Some ecologists would like the lifts removed as they are close to the Chaudefour Nature Reserve. Apart from the climate, the area has suffered from lack of investment and from the bitter rivalry between Besse and Le Mont Dore. The first issue has started to be addressed by regrouping 8 local communes, including Chambon, into a super commune. It is then hoped that with some help from nearby Le Mont Dore the station can be made operational again. Although from what we saw it would take a large investment, somewhere in six figures, just to get the station up and running.
This brings us to the second crucial problem, can Super Besse and Le Mont Dore bury their differences and unite for the good of skiing? Already some progress has been made. A new director of tourism has been brought in from la Plagne in the Alps and a single brochure is being produced to market the Sancy resorts. Some 29.7 million Euros of investment are scheduled for the ski area over the next five years to restructure the ski domains of the four stations. This is to pay for new lifts, snow canons and better pistes. Le Mont Dore is currently focussing on upgrading its lift system to the standard of Besse/Super Besse rather than nearby Chambon des Neiges. Curiously the director of Super Besse, Bruno Malochet, has left the resort to run Auron and Isola 2000 on a project to link the two resorts. Politically things are confused because Besse and Le Mont Dore are part of different constituencies.
We have been told that the ski lifts have been partially dismantled during the summer of 2005.
In fact two drag lifts at the Chambon 1200 end have been removed. After a fantastic winter where Le Mont Dore managed to open until May 2006 there is once again talk in the streets that Chambon may be partially reopened for skiing although this would require a major investment and possibly snow canons on the lower runs. The lift office building has been completely renovated this year.
The second reason for our visit was to look at the couloirs of the Puy Ferrand. From the summit there are four main couloir systems. Le Moine, a fairly wide and not too steep couloir which descends to the left of the pinnacle of the same name. Either side of the summit proper are the two couloirs centrales.
Gigi and the Puy Ferrand
These are fiercely steep couloirs. The one on the left is around 50 degrees, just to the right of the summit (looking down the mountain) the couloir is slightly shallower.
Couloir Central and the aiguille du Moine
It is also possible to ski right off to the right and take the shallower couloirs there. Although funnels and cliffs add to the difficulties. Skiing the couloirs involves climbing, either on foot with crampons or skins. The Chaudefour valley is a nature reserve and cars have to be left at the car park where the road cuts the valley. A 3km walk takes you to the remains of the Chalet St Anne. This house was destroyed by a flood about ten years ago. All that remains is a spring where fizzy volcanic water bubbles up from the depths. Further along the track there are the foundations of a hotel, this building was never finished but was to have been part of a spa resort in the valley. Unfortunately the first World War interrupted the building work.
Category: Ski Areas
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