Alpe d'Huez Activity Review: 19th August 2009
When you live in a small town it’s always good to get away, even if it’s just for the night. Tourist resorts are no exception and – when the masses descend for the August rush – the prospect of the open road becomes even more tempting. Thankfully it’s my birthday in mid-August and this usually gives me a great excuse to pack a bag and head-off for a little break.
We spent a day in July touring the local mountain passes – Cols – but didn’t make it south of Les Deux Alpes and Alpe d’Huez to Col d’Ornon. Compared to some of the other mountain passes in the Isere region, the Col d’Ornon is fairly tame and pastoral. The elevation is just 1371m above sea level and the road is wide. The scenery however, is very beautiful. The lower peaks here are reminiscent of the gently rolling pastures on the route from Albertville to Bourg St Maurice, in the northern alps.
Our destination for the night was Corps, an old but thriving French village right on the D1085. We checked into the Hotel de la Poste and made our way up to the Catholic shrine of La Salette. It was here in 1846 that two local children saw a vision of the Virgin Mary whilst caring for their flock of sheep. It’s one of the most famous visions in Catholic history and – despite much contention at the time and since – Notre Dame de la Salette was completed on the site in 1856.
Surrounded by grassy peaks and with a fine view of rocky mountain ranges in the distance, La Salette does feel like a holy place. However, it does seem to have become quite commercialised over the years, with a gift shop and hostel, which provides accommodation and services for the thousands of pilgrims who visit the site every year. It’s also possible to park your camper van in the car park, should you so wish. Despite this, the statues and iron cross raised in commemoration of the apparition are beautiful and there are many stunning and gentle walks that start and finish at Notre Dame’s extensive car park.
As the sun set we returned to Corps, stopping outside l’Obiou at the memorial to Canadian servicemen and priests who died in a plane crash there on 13th November 1950. Safely back at the Hotel de la Poste, we ate at the widely recommended hotel restaurant. With various set-menus to choose from we dined on langoustine, oysters, trout and lamb, followed by a deliciously rich chocolate mousse cake. The owners also have a chateau just outside town, with a similar half-board service. Both hotels are very popular and reservations are recommended, especially in August.
The next morning we decided to take the more scenic route home, via La Mure and Laffrey. In the area surrounding Corps there are plenty of activities, making the town a great destination for a longer visit. We found via ferratas, sailing, windsurfing, climbing and hiking routes, as well as bungee jumping, rope bridges across gorges and a miniature railway for the less adventurous.
We passed through La Mure and promised to come back for a little tour of the area in the Autumn. I’m also keen to visit the ancient town of Pont de Royans which backs onto a river. The route from La Mure to our nearby town of Vizille, is flanked by lakes, most of which are large enough to sail small dinghies and have hire facilities for various watersports. These are quite unusual in our area and we stopped by the lake at Laffrey to investigate further.
There’s a hotel and a campsite on the edge of the lake and you can hire boats, windsurfs and pedalos from the beach. Within a few minutes are a paintballing centre and Laffrey’s Air Park, which is an outdoor assault course/adventure playgound, much like the Aventure Park in Les Deux Alpes. It looks like this would be another great place for a trip out of town and with the resort closing at the end of August, we’ll have more time on our hands to explore.
