Just back from Skiing

[igmac]

Just returned from first ‘proper’ trip, 1824 mile round trip from south Cumbria to Samoens in the French Alps, eight nights in total including one night on-route in Calais. Here are a few details from the trip which you may find of interest/use

1824 miles using 269.5 litres of diesel, dash recorded mpg 33 whereas calculated 30.7 delta equates to 18.5 litres which is most likely parking heater for a few hours per day over the eight day period. Speed was largely 80mph so was quite content with MPG on 140 manual with only 1500 miles on the clock.

Minimum temp was about -5 with no impact on gas or water (if the gas had stopped working then I would have ditched the water through fear of freezing)

Top tip: electric blanket and normal house bedding duvet....nice and toasty. The Wife and I slept upstairs and our two Labs downstairs, parking heater was never above no.1 and we had a little oil filled rad between the seats

negatives: cold bridges causing condensation: bedding needed to be clear of canvas and clothing kept in shelves at rear became damp where in contact with vehicle bodywork .

A jolly good time was had

 

[Paulro]

Sounds great. How was the snow?
I can't imagine doing this in winter.
Did you have an electric hook up or was there sufficient power in the batteries to keep everything going?
Do you have a roof cover?
Now you have me thinking.....

 

[igmac]

photo now added, yes was on hook-up, yes was plenty of snow!

Ian

 

[soulstyledevon]

I went to the 3 valleys over Christmas. Great snow, great place, sometimes wish I was French :smile







This wasn't you was it...???

 

[Goldie]

photo now added, yes was on hook-up, yes was plenty of snow!

Ian

I see you have steel wheels and winter tyres. How were they and did you need snow chains??

I notice that there is a greater range of chains for the 215/60/17 tyres and they are a lot cheaper.

Andy

 

[igmac]

Goldie, yes winter tyres from Ben are excellent, the campsite at Samoens is low level with no high passes so I took the chance without chains

Soulstyledevon no thats not me I'm PK13 with an awning, did you camp or just drive to accomodation? excellent photos BTW

 

[soulstyledevon]

Cheers bud.
We drove to accommodation. Almost as quick as the plane, 3 hrs off.
We did discuss camping in the van. Would it be possible with just a diesel heater or too cold...?

 

[maui2512]

Fab photos Igmac. We have friends who live in Samoens and were wondering about driving out to visit them this summer and having a holiday up there...looks gorgeous in the summer too...which campsite did you stay on?

 

[IanE]

Hi Ian - looks wonderful! Whereabouts in S Cumbria are you? We're in Kendal. We've had our 180 manual from new in Sept 2010.

Also called Ian!

 

[igmac]

Thanks Jane, yes Samoens is a really nice place and one i would like to visit in the summer months for the walking. We stopped at Camping le Giffre which is ideal as it's right next to the cable car.

IanE, We're in Barrow, not many of us around here! I think there may be one in ulverston I've seen a couple of times but they might have just been passing through

Ian

 

[fordyski100]

Hi Ian ,
Photos in Samoen look great .
I have been considering taking the Cali for a winter ski trip and have a few questions if you dont mind , as probably like a lot of Cali owners i have only been away spring and summer (apart from the odd trip to wales / cumbria for mountain trip.
My concerns with going to ski resort in winter are

1, Are camp sites open and do i need to book
2, where do i find above info
3,Are toilet blocks open
4,How damp did you find the clothing became and was this a problem?

If it was just me or a couple of mates going , none of the above would worry me , but as i am trying to convince"her indoors" that it would be a great way to hit the slopes in Late Feb/March (and its not been very well received as of yet(hence why we are flying to Austria next weekend) ) i could do with as much info as poss on Winter/ski resort camping with the Cali.

Oh and by the way Samoens would have been one of my top choices as well. Fantastic village and great ski ing, but would also choose any other resort that has facilities for Cali (and "her indoors would like heated toilet block!"

Thanks for starting this post …..i needed someone to start this kind of topic so i could open up my discussions(arguements) at home again…………….Its just such a waste looking at the Cali sitting on the drive all winter ……….and adding insult by flying away !!!!!


Thanks
(Another Ian) (Appears a popular name for Cali owners ………..maybe we should have a pole of the most poular christian name?!)

 

[Cuba]

There's a well placed winter campsite in Bourg St Maurice...well placed for Val D'isere, Tignes, La Rosiere and especially Les Arc.

Le Versoyen. Never stayed there but drove past it yesterday on way home. Very Close to the towns supermarkets and McDonald's! Saw a UK reg Cali pulling in...

Further afield there's a very good campsite in Chatel for the Portes due Soleil (Morzine, Avoriaz etc.) Has winter facilities including laundry and a pool.

 

[igmac]

Hi Ian (this could get confusing!), I can only speak from personal experience. In terms of camp sites being open, if there is a campsite near a ski resort it will most likely be open in the ski season, if it’s open then yes the toilet block/facilities will be open, in the case of Camping le Giffre in Samoens these were very good and very warm. While I was there over Christmas it was not too busy however there was more people arriving every day so I would suggest booking. Condensation was a minor grumble not a big issue at all.

It was not a cheap trip and I dare say you could get a half board package in a nice comfy hotel for the same price, we did it that way because we had to. We have two Labradors that really don’t like being in a kennel therefore where we holiday they holiday.

Total cost was about £1500 of which was 550 ski hire and lift passes, fuel was 350 tunnel was 200 campsite was 180 tolls about 120.

Would I do it again? Probably not, it was really good fun and a nice little adventure but when your skiing it’s nice to have a little luxury to go back to. The Cali is more than capable for winter breaks but (in my opinion) better suited to somewhat more temperate climes where one can spread outside.

Hope this helps
Ian

 

[fordyski100]

Hi Ian
That is really helpful , thank you.
Cost is good (a lot less than I spend on a ski trip when you take lift pass and ski hire into account) but I think you have hit the nail on the head about the luxury of the hotel and so , on this occasion , I am going to concede to 'her who should be obeyed' and not book the feb / march ski trip with the Cali !
But I might do a quick boys trip for a long weekend with it!!!!

Really helpful

Thanks again

Ian

 

[bernie]

La Versoyen in Bourg St Maurice is a good camp site with warm shower/toilet blocks even in winter. The owner drives a free mini van to the funicular for Les Arcs or it's a 30 minute drive to Val or Tignes

http://www.leversoyen.com/#!/accueil

They also sell reduced price passes for Les Arcs to site residents

 

[ymfb]

Hi,

what channel crossing and route did you take ?

Im going to Le Plagne in March

Thanks

 

[bernie]

Not sure who you were asking but ferry Dover to Calais ( of course booked as CAR ), then Reims ( where diesel is very cheap and Formula 1 or Premier Class hotels are cheap ) Dijon towards Lyon. See BING route http://www.bing.com/maps/#Y3A9NDkuNjUzN ... A9MH4wfjB+
Good to fill up with low temp diesel as you get further south otherwise normal diesel can cause sluggish behaviour.
Good idea to take snow shovel and, of course, window insulation.

 

[ymfb]

thanks. what is low temp diesel ?

Did you use Ferry because of cost ? or height ?

 

[bernie]

You will see on pumps in Bourg St Maurice or any approaching ski areas, with diesel that is " suitable to minus 15 or similar" When it is very cold, you need it. Normal diesel freezes to a certain degree and there is a noticeable drop in performance.

Re ferry, I'm not keen on the tunnel. Just my preference.

But, on the ferry, make sure you book it as a car not a motorhome ( more expensive ) and on the French tolls always demand class 1. If they try and charge you class 2, the commercial rate, it is much higher. A car is class 1. If it is an unmanned peage and class 2 appears on the display, press the button to summon assistance and say " Je suis classe un" ( fluent aren't I? ) They will instantly change it.

 

[mike&agnes]

We're in the middle of skiing trip at the moment but, as not yet had the courage to take our Cali with us yet, I'm really interested & encouraged by some of these comments.

Some comments of my own:
Snow Tyres: these are really superb and I now keep them permanently fitted to our Audi which we use for skiing trips. They are a legal requirement in Austria where we are currently staying, but their performance in snow is outstanding, better than having 4 wheel drive and snow chains are really only for exceptional emergency situations. I highly recommend these & will switch the Cali to snow tyres next winter.

Campsite Facilities in winter: we have found some campsites in Austria which each pitch has its own en-suite facilities; a heated room with shower, toilet plus on-site ski and boot room with drying facilities. We are currently experiencing a severe shortage of snow in our chosen resort & expensive apartment that we had to book three months back to ensure accommodation. If we have some spare time we plan to check out one of these camp-sites near St Anton. Despite the obvious space limitations of staying in the Cali for a ski trip, as we sit here waiting for some snow, it occurs to us that had we been in the Cali we could have much more easily switched to a resort which does have good snow conditions.

Mike & Agnes

 

[The Blue Merle]

Hi Ian

How did you get on with the dogs? I'm planning to go snowboarding in February and can't persuade the girlfriend to go so was going to take my mad collie instead. Was there a vets near your campsite so you could get there passports done, if yes what was it called? Just check samoens on web and looks good, I'm only an ok boarder so wanted to know what the slopes are like and lift queues.
Thanks
Dave

 

[igmac]

hi dave, dogs had a great time, we walked them in the morning then we went skiing for a few hours returning mid afternoon for another walk. slopes are good for beginners and intermediates with lots of boarders. the friday between Christmas and new year when the sun came out and there was lots of fresh snow the place was really busy But that said its a big place and there was no more than a ten minute wait on the busiest lifts.

there is an english speaking vet in samoens a five minute walk from the campsite I can dig out the name if you need it but its the only one in samoens anyway.

Ian

 

[Pupalelephant]

Slightly off topic, but in a similar vein, we are thinking of visiting the Lakes in February in our Cali. Thanks for the tip about an electric blanket, and home duvet. BTW, in my brief searches so far, the only camp sites open all year seem to be quite a drive from the centre of the Lakes. Anyone got any suggestions? Thanks, Debbie

 

[bvirc]

Me and my girlfriend have also spent Christmas & New Year holidays in our brand new Cali - ski touring Austrian Alps for 9 days with no problems at all...
Here is a public fb gallery to give you an idea how winter holidays in Cali can be a complete pleasure:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... ec56257f70

There was no need to use official campsites (although there are plenty opened all year round). Batteries were fine and we used public toilettes for emptying and refilling our Portapoti. We need to do it every 3 to 4 days. "Therme Amade" Spa with saunas and pools offered us a good way to relax and to maintain a personal hygiene. For the insulation of both pop-up roof and the front windows I use DIY screens made from 6 mm foils ( http://www.superfoil.co.uk ). I see it as a best solution to keep you warm and dry and still allowing to us roof bars.
The aux heater was essential, of course, giving us comfort both downstairs and upstairs. I still miss an official info about the max operating altitude for the heater finding different infos ranging from 1500 to 2000 m. We have used it up to 1700 m with no problems at all.
I took a risk and didn't drain a fresh water tank. The temperatures were down to -8C, but with keeping the interior heated, we were using the fresh water system normally. We were cooking and washing dishes everyday with a typical water consumption of 15l per day.
Batteries are really good. Even after two nights with the both heater and fridge on they fell down to 70% / 11.8V still giving us enough power for at least one night more. We were cruising around a lot, so there was no need for the external source. The 230V inverter gave us enough power for watching movies on a laptop and running an air dryer for the ski boots.
We use Thule roof box to keep skis, insulations foils and backpacks out. The whole setup does not exceed 50 kg but without the engine turned on the hydraulics has a hard job to lift it up.
Although it was snowing, there was no problems on the road. I have a 4Motion with Goodyear Ultragrip 8 tyres and snow chains for a possible emergency. With this configuration you are pretty confident to go anywhere and even narrow, steep and icy mountain roads are not a problem.

This trip was the first real test of our Cali and we are really satisfied and happy about it planning to use it the whole ski season here in the Alps. The only problem, already mentioned here, is a condensation. And I am considering how to add additional insulation on the left side of a van, behind both tanks and the cupboards. Does anyone any experiences with that?

Best,
Bostjan (from Slovenia)

 

[The Blue Merle]

Hi Ian

I've just googled vets so no need to dig out name, thanks though.
From pics looks like you had a lot of snow, did your Cali cope ok?
The guy I bought my Cali off gave me snow socks for tyres, not sure if there any good. I've only ever driven to the alps in 4x4 vehicles but couldnt stretch to a 4motion Cali was yours 2 or 4wheel