308: Ski Mountaineering 101 in Chamonix, Sundance & the Best Refuges in the World

We go on a ski touring adventure in Chamonix, staying an unmanned refuge at 3000m, and also take a closer look at some of the most spectacular Alpine refuges in the world. Plus we find out about the ski resort synonymous with Robert Redford – Sundance in Utah.

We also learn of a post-Olympic spike in visitors to the UK’s snow centres, plus we have snow reports from Madesimo, Gausta and Les 2 Alpes, plus your feedback.
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Tirol in Austria sponsors The Ski Podcast, which means this winter we’re are finding out more about some of the great destinations in Tirol, and how you can connect with the Austrian way of life: ‘Lebensgefühl’ – that you’ll find there.
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SHOW NOTES

Katja Gaskell was last on the show in Episode 242 when she reported on Saint Gervais (1:30)
Aaron Rolph is founder of the British Adventure Collective (1:45)
Aaron skied on the Dome de Miage (4:00)
Claire Harrison reported from Madesimo in Italy (5:30)
Mike Richards was in Gausta in Norway (6:45)
Alex Armand from Tip Top Ski Coaching is in Les 2 Alpes (9:00)
The new Entry/Exit System EES with the EU will scale up to 100% on 10 April (09:15)
Freddy Carrick Smith picked up the silver in the slalom at the Junior World Championships (9:30)
Ian Brown, MD of The Snow Centre, reports on a bump in traffic in both Hemel Hempstead & Manchester (10:00)
Iain was guided by Brad Carlson on a ski mountaineering 101 trip (14:30)
Iain stayed in the Bivouac de l'Envers des Dorées (17:30)
Brad was on the podcast in Episode 240 discussing the impact of global warming on the Mer de Glace (18:30)
The kit you need for ski mountaineering adventure (20:45)
Aaron’s bookis ‘Alpine Refuges: The Architecture and Culture of Mountain Shelters’ (25:45)
What is a bothy in Scotland? (26:45)
What is an Alpine refuge? (28:30)
Choosing the 30 refuges featured in the book (29:20)
The Bivacco Gervasutti is one of Aaron’s favourites (31:00)
The Hannibal Bivouac (32:00)
Aaron has visited around 60 refuges (34:00)
Aaron is the founder of the British Adventure Collective (34:30)
European refuges v. North America (35:30)
Sundance is famous for the film festival (38:00)
Films that launched at Sundance include Reservoir Dogs, The Blair Witch Project, Get Out and Memento (39:00)
Robert Redford bought it in 1968 (39:40)
There is a focus on conservation (41:00)
Redford felt it should be ‘“developed a little, preserved a lot” (41:30)
The skiing (42:00)
His ownership meant it developed as a hub for the arts (44:00)
Who is Sundance suitable for? (47:00)

Feedback
You can leave a comment on Spotify, Instagram or Facebook – our handle is @theskipodcast – or drop me an email to theskipodcast@gmail.com

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Martyn Crawshaw: “I'm currently skiing in Champery, Switzerland which can be reached by rail direct via a funicular from the mainline station at Aigle”

seanski: "It’s such a great podcast and look forward to it every week, I've been particularly inspired by your series on the Tirol, and as I write I'm en route by train to Landeck"

Linley Lewis: "Just wanted to drop you a line let you know I greatly enjoyed your Ste Foy episode. Ste Foy has become an annual pilgrimage for my family. It's an absolute gem and I think you summed up its joy perfectly."

Claire: "We have just returned from a week in Fugen in the Zillertal after listening to your feature in Episode 272. We were very impressed with the ski area: the efficiency of the transport, range of slopes, wonderful mountain "hutte" and friendly hospitality everywhere. We will be back for sure!"

Colin Tierney: “I love skiing in Austria: you could do a different resort every winter without ever having to repeat.”

There are now 308 episodes of The Ski Podcast to catch up with and 187 of those have been listened to in the last week, including interviews with Winter Olympians such as Andrew Musgrave, Eddie The Eagle, Dave Ryding, Graham Bell, both Izzy and Zoe Atkin, Chemmy Alcott, Bode Miller and Kirsty Muir.

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