aostavalleyfreeride X vdamonamour: grand saint bernard.

A month has passed since our last day on the snow, and now i’m here writing about those days at the Grand Saint Bernard Pass. We started our trip on Saturday, little cloudy, and a bit of shy sun. We left the car a couple of meters before the barrier closing the road, skis on the back, comfy shoes and the way up the pass starts. Luckily the walking is not too long, and as soon as snow patches starts, we can start to skin up on slis and splitboards. I’s a nice experience to walk on a national road which is very very busy of cars and motorbike in the summer! The snow was now absolutely the center of the scene, and its presence made me think about the times the asphalt road was still not built; people walking up, or skiing with the first woodden skis, when nature was the queen and its rules could not be overtaken. We reached the hospice after about 4 hours of climbing, clouds still there but the air was smelling some changing, and after being welcomed by the monks, owners of the hospice, with nice soup, sausages and cheese, the sun finally came out strong and Massimo had the chance to take the group for a couple of runs over the hospice, followed by a nice dinner and an early bedtime. Church choirs wake us up in the morning, and we go out after a big breakfast. No sun, only fog. We still decide to try to climb the Mont Fourchon. The visibility is very poor, but on top we get to see for few minutes the Mont Blanc in the background; almost a reward for our stubborn climb in the dark. Quick t-shirt change on top with the wind almost taking away our stuff and we begin the descent. The visibility gets better going down, we even meet some Chamois. The spring is coming! While skiing down, i think about the last couple of hours spent in the hospice, the kindness of the monks, to the sweetness of the bread freshly made up there, the dinner, the visit to the Hospice museum, to the strength that this place holds, I think to modern times full of borders, absurd laws and so much suspicion. I think to what the borders where for our ancestors, to the exchange and the richness (not that made of coins) that people used to earn and donate. I think that you should go to the hospice, but do it by foot, ski or bike, it certainly has another taste.