skiing Archives - Wild France

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Hiking tips

Sleeping in refuges (mountain huts) in France

Preparing a multiple days hiking trip in France, you have three main choices to rest and pass the night:

An hotel or guesthouse in civilised area
Camp or bivouac with the equipment you carry with you
Sleeping in a refuge or mountain hut

This article details how the mountain refuges work and the things you should know before you go.

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Destination The Alps

Vercors: the natural fortress of French prealps

South-east of France, draw a circle going through Romans-sur-Isère, Grenoble and Die and you will find the Vercors (vɛʁ.kɔʁ). It is a mountain range of the pre-alps, which name is supposed to come from the first men living there: the Vertamocorii. Especially relevant, the area is preserved by the Natural Regional Park.

Incredible landscape

We often refer to the Vercors as a fortress, historically because its large limestone cliffs gave few accesses to the highlands. The higher summit is called Grand Veymont (2 341m) and its name may come from vey = see (voir in French) and mont = mountain (montagne in french).

The Vercors has remained a rural area and few locals leave there all year long. The main activities are related to the wood industry and cattle breeding. If you are lucky, you can assist in June the transhumance departure in Die, where farmers lead their sheep to the plateaux, and enjoy responsibly a glass of Clairette.

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