Cross Country Skiing Scheduled Departures

The Grande Traversée du Jura (or GTJ) is a fabulous journey over the Jura mountains crossing through France and parts of Switzerland. Located not far from Geneva, the journey is made on classic cross-country skis. This 175km, long distance ski trail was first completed in 1978 and is nearly all on prepared, pressed tracks.

The route starts in the Val de Morteau in the Doubs département and finishes at Giron in the Ain département crossing the Jura and the Haut-Jura regional nature reserves. The ski route with it's varied terrain and relief can't fail to impress you with it's natural charm and beautiful landscapes.

Each day we aim to cover approximately 20-30 km's of the tracks whilst carrying a day pack. Each night we arrive at our hotel or auberge to find our luggage waiting for us.

• Make a continuous 7 day journey across the Jura on skis
• Stay in characterful accommodation in rustic inns and hotels
• All luggage transported for you

This 8 day trip is especially suited to those who are regularly active and would like to experience a winter wonderland on both skis and snowshoes. It is aimed at those of you who have little or no cross country skiing or snowshoe experience. Both activities are very easy to pick up and enjoy in a week.

The world famous Chamonix Valley in the French Alps is a good base from which to explore the alpine valleys and plateaus of the Mont Blanc Massif. With Switzerland and Italy each just a 30 minute drive away it allows us to experience three different cultures in just as many days.

• Learn to cross country ski in both skate and classic technique on both Swiss & Italian snow
• Snowshoe peaks around Mont Blanc
• Ski along an Italian Valley, then snowshoe to a remote mountain hut for the night

Join us for a wonderful weekend of cross country skiing in Italy. These holidays are a perfect introduction to cross country skiing, as well as being ideal for those wanting to refresh their skills.

Based in the beautiful Val Ferret near Courmayeur, we get to enjoy stunning views of the Italian side of the highest mountain in Western Europe - Mont Blanc, or Monte Bianco. With our hotel situated at an altitude of 1580m we have snow on our doorstep throughout the season. Think cross country, cappucino, and comfort!

• Learn or improve your basic cross country skiing skills
• Ski in remote valleys surrounded by stunning alpine peaks
• Enjoy true Italian hospitality with good food high on the agenda!

DATES FOR 2011 COMING SOON

So you walk, run, cycle or work out regularly but feel the effect of the winter blues? Try cross country skiing to maintain and build that fitness level during the winter months. This week is designed to give you the chance to learn an excellent method of winter ‘cross-training’ by trying both skating and classic ski-styles. Arguably the most aerobic of sports, this low impact exercise, is a great way to improve your fitness - at all levels.

Your days will be spent working on technique and as that develops we gradually build up the daily mileage and different training intensities to allow you to work at your fitness. Not only will you experience 6 days of ‘personal training on skis’ but you will also enjoy the sense of freedom that cross country skiing provides and with ski tracks in a variety of terrains and locations it's a fabulous way to explore the Alps.

• Experience 6 days personal training on skis
• All inclusive package - staying in a beautiful chalet with hot tub
• Visit a variety of locations

The Rondane is a mountain area of 2000m peaks lying east of the Jotunheim group, and north of Lillehammer. There lies a high plateau running between two parallel valleys; this natural route-way is taken by the ‘Troll-løypa’, a trail for walkers and mountain-bikers in the summer - and ski tourers in the winter. Skiers benefit from an ideal terrain of frozen lakes, rolling meadows, plateaux and forests, studded with some small, but shapely, hills, giving a perfect environment for a multi-day hut-to-hut tour.

Each day is never too long and there is always time to do some extra skiing at the end of the day or climb a local ‘top’ for the the view and the ski down. On the otherhand you might want to simply relax and enjoy the surroundings of the night’s accommodation!

• A delightful point-to-point tour over six days
• Experience the wide open spaces of this Arctic environment
• Ideal first hut-to-hut tour or for those who prefer a 'relaxed' approach to touring

Gentle terrain with short hut-to-hut distances provides a perfect environment for learning and developing your Nordic ski techniques and skills. This tour is an introductory Nordic skiing course whilst ‘on the move’. Rather than learning skiing techniques stuck on a small nursery slope and a short section of machine-cut track, this week allows you to do straightaway what most people going to ski in Norway wish to do: a hut-to-hut tour. The location and the itinerary have been carefully chosen to allow novice skiers to learn and develop sufficient skills along the way. The terrain is always gentle and the distances are quite short; at the start of the week 5kms and gradually increasing to 15kms on the last touring day. Every day will start with some coaching, especially earlier in the week, and in this way we can ensure you will be technically ready for each day’s touring.

• Learn and develop Nordic skiing technique and skills
• Enjoy ideal skiing terrain with the stunning backdrop of the Rondane mountains
• Complete a hut-to-hut tour, with coaching as you go

A traverse of the vast open spaces of the Hardangervidda plateau.This tour will give a very rewarding adventure, from Finse, at the highest point of the Oslo - Bergen railway, all the way to the road at Haukliseter, crossing only one other road in the process! We head south past the Hardangerjokul and the icy tongues of its outlet glaciers, through more rolling country and then the great open spaces of the Sandhaug area. For the final two days we traverse the craggier country beyond Litlos to Haukliseter, the area of the Hardanger reindeer reserve where ‘sticks’ for trail marking are no longer allowed – we ‘boldly go’ where very few others go these days!

The skiing is a joy as the weight of sacks is kept to a minimum by using the DNT lodges, where food, fuel and bedding await our arrival – see the ‘Accommodation’ section below.

• A classic point-to-point tour across the vast plateau of the Hardangervidda
• A rare chance for confident Nordic skiers to complete this superb traverse
• Space, scenery and solitude

This delightful traverse of the Skarvheimen region passes through rolling hills, plateaux and open valleys dotted with frozen lakes and dark crags. It goes from Breistolen to Finse, both tiny isolated points on the map! It is overlooked by the mass of the Hardanger Icecap and the sense of space is enthralling.

• Ideal as a first hut-to-hut tour
• Relaxed days with plenty of options for different energy and aspiration levels
• Combine with the ‘Hardanger Crossing’ for a fantastic two week journey on skis

This trip spends time in the villages of Geilo and Finse giving us the chance to explore two areas. We begin in Geilo which is small and picturesque with many buildings of typical Norwegian style. It is set in scenic, wooded surroundings, close to a lake and provides us wtih 130km of prepared track. The slopes on either side rise to plateaux then mountains beyond. Then on day four we take the train Finse where it is often possible to ski straight off the station platform! We spend the rest of the trip touring the area in an arctic landscape of snowy hills and glaciers.

• Intensive instruction, developing confidence and experience on Nordic skis
• Touring in an awe-inspiring Arctic landscape of hills and glaciers
• Excellent preparation for more ambitious tours in Norway