Winter Fun

[Calidevon]

Hi Folks,
just wanted to report in about my recent trip to the mountains and sing the praises of the wonderful Cali and fantastic France. I set off in my van on 21st Jan and drove down to Courchevel Le Praz. Crossing from Portsmouth to Le Havre on the overnighter. 10 hour comfortable drive down to the Alps. Upon arrival it was raining and little sign of snow. I found a great big car park with a height restriction barrier which I cleared ok with my bike off the rack. Parked for free right next to a red ski run leading into the village. 5 minute walk from the centre. My son is working there as a ski instructor so used his facilities for showers etc. The van was a perfect home from home.
As you can see from the photos the snow came in abundance and at one point the night temperature dropped to -20. However, with the heater set on number 2 and the thermal screen fitted I was cozy as could be.
I spent ten days in those conditions and after digging the old girl out I travelled around to visit friends in other nearby resorts. The Cali performed really well in the conditions and I only fitted snow chains for one of the journeys. Having completed the skiing part of the adventure I drove down to Barcelona to meet up with my wife but sadly I got sick and had to cut the rest of the trip short and return home.
So really all I wanted to say is that if any of you are thinking about heading to the mountains then I can thoroughly recommend it. I found all the facilities to hand. Launderette and local shops, bars and restaurants. The parking was free and such a quiet spot. Happy to answer any questions if any of you are in need of info, just don't want this thread to ramble on. Happy camping folks.

 

[Hotel California]

Very brave , guess you did not put the roof up , and as you say having a place to shower is a must.
You just sleep in it , incognito ...
Hope you had a snowshovel with....?

 

[ibis64]

Shows how good the Cali is even in winter, certainly beats my 5 inches of snow in Scotland a couple of weeks ago

 

[Aidy P]

I'm doing a four day dash to the Alps at the start of April in my new van with a mate and our 2 daughters. Can't wait! I've been researching carvaneige sites this this weekend. Plan is to get 2 days end of season skiing with them (fingers crossed).

 

[Calidevon]

Shows how good the Cali is even in winter, certainly beats my 5 inches of snow in Scotland a couple of weeks ago

Still a brave crew. Well done.

 

[Calidevon]

I'm doing a four day dash to the Alps at the start of April in my new van with a mate and our 2 daughters. Can't wait! I've been researching carvaneige sites this this weekend. Plan is to get 2 days end of season skiing with them (fingers crossed).

Good luck. Stay safe

 

[Calidevon]

Very brave , guess you did not put the roof up , and as you say having a place to shower is a must.
You just sleep in it , incognito ...
Hope you had a snowshovel with....?

I did put the roof up a couple of times with the topper on. Snow shovel a must.

 

[Calidevon]

I'm doing a four day dash to the Alps at the start of April in my new van with a mate and our 2 daughters. Can't wait! I've been researching carvaneige sites this this weekend. Plan is to get 2 days end of season skiing with them (fingers crossed).

Good luck. You'll have a blast.

 

[Calidevon]

This was my old van. Come a long way since then

 

[CaliAdventure]

Great post - one of the reasons we bought our Cali is to go down to the Alps for snowboarding holidays...we're considering going to the Tyrol for Xmas as the rest of this season is out for us I'm afraid.

Can't wait!

 

[Bert1969]

great stuff !!

 

[Peter V]

Hello Calidevon
do you own a 4-motion?
Just wondering with all that snow..
cheers
Peter

 

[sidepod]

Awesome. Long time since I've been to Courch.
Good work.

 

[Calidevon]

Hello Calidevon
do you own a 4-motion?
Just wondering with all that snow..
cheers
Peter

Hi,
Not a 4-motion. However, the van handled really well. I only put chains on once for the drive down from Les Arc 2000 because it was deep snow.

 

[Nigel lloyd]

I stayed in this car park Feb 2017. It's a great location for skiing but there are no free washing facilities here that I could find. You could use the showers in the local aqua centre but be prepared to spend a lot of money to gain entry. If you want to use the facilities of local hotels, again it will work out to be a very expensive shower.
We used a bucket and sponge (just make sure the blinds are fully deployed) very basic but effective. There is something really motivating living like that in the Alps in what is a 5* resort. It really depends on just how much you value the skiing bit - the three valleys system has to be the best skiing area in the world with over 600km of runs.
If anyone has found some wash facilities in the area that don't cost a fortune to access- please let me know.

 

[BeachyBird]

Definately an all weather all season vehicle

 

[Calidevon]

Totally agree. As for wash facilities i would suggest you speak to some of the local student ski instructors of which there are plenty. Many of them have small apartments hired out. I'm sure for a few euros they would be happy to let you use the showers on a daily basis. It's a great community spirit down in Le Praz.

 

[Nigel lloyd]

Thanks for the advice. There is something of the frontier spirit doing it the way we did but I'm not sure my wife would do it again. Perhaps we'll take a bigger bucket next time

 

[Trebor]

We had a week in Meribel in Cali 3 weeks ago . Snow wasn't great a bit warm but van performed very well . We had a tiny oil heater ( 400 watt) on all the time but didn't need anything else at night . Did return to Bournemouth in one go 750 miles through tunnel . Van didn't miss a beat .

 

[soulstyledevon]

Great post.
I am off to Chamonix in two weeks. 3 of us camping in the Cali for a cheap ski trip.
How did you find, drying your ski gear...? Any tips, that's perhaps my only concern.
We will be having roof up. Two downstairs and one in the roof.

With regards to 4 motion. I was in Austria two weeks ago and getting a lift in a taxi T5. I asked if it was 4 motion. He said no, 2wd.
Only needed to fit chains once in four years. Said most are 2wd, with 4wd you would need chains for every drive wheel. So its actually better to have only 2wd.
He said, most important thing is good quality winter tyres.

 

[Trebor]

The small campsite we stayed on had restaurant ,full drying facilities with boot store (warm) and ski hut . Think this will be essential for you . We had Kamper cozy which is really warm and very waterproof .
We have 4 motion and Dunlop winter sport tyres . No problems on sheet ice . Only one set of chains can be fitted on front wheels of 4 motion according to handbook .

 

[CannonDale]

The small campsite we stayed on had restaurant ,full drying facilities with boot store (warm) and ski hut . Think this will be essential for you . We had Kamper cozy which is really warm and very waterproof .
We have 4 motion and Dunlop winter sport tyres . No problems on sheet ice . Only one set of chains can be fitted on front wheels of 4 motion according to handbook .

Where was the campsite and what was the name? I have just ordered Kamper Cozi, should be with me Tuesday.

 

[Trebor]

Campsite is at Meribel and was called Le Martagon at Le Raffort. It's right by free bus and Olympe lift about 10 mins from Chaudanne ( centre of Meribel ) . Campsite is behind the Restaurant which is very good but not cheap . Highly recommend . Site is small ( about 20 and we were told it was busy in February so you would definitely need to book .

 

[Tim Hook]

I had a week at the end of Jan. (2017) in Chatel, France.
Had never winter camped before so was a little anxious about the cold as forecasts were -16c at night.
However, it was a fantastic experience. Stayed at l'Oustalet campsite which was within walking distance of ski lift but a bus also stopped right outside front entrance. All the facilities at the site were brilliant and kept in great condition plus a ski boot room, ski store, dry clothes room and laundry too.

I purchased a roll of aluminium bubble foil insulation and used throughout the van as per picture. Gardening sticks helped keep the foil in place in the roof space. We lowered only the roof bed at night, slept downstairs using a normal electric fan heater at night to keep us warm with a standard home duvet. Condensation on the windows froze at night in the living area but that melted and drained away during breakfast. The water in the tank started to freeze and the pump froze but the next night I directed the fan heater through the open panel under the bed and that brought it back into use after replacing the fuse.

Electric slow cooker (prepared in the morning) made for easy dinners in the evening after a day out on the slopes.
There weren't any local food shops within walking distance other than a boulangerie but you could use the bus if you needed something.

My concerns for the cold temperature were unfounded and all in all, we had a great time and would certainly recommend the campsite, the skiing was huge, connecting to the entire Portes du Soleil area.

 

[soulstyledevon]

Tim
Great info. I was originally borrowing a friends roof topper, but decided it was to bulky. So have bought two rolls of silver foil insulation on Saturday. I am thinking of wrapping around the outside of the poptop for a bit of extra insulation. Never thought about using it to insulate the rear windows. I might do that.
Do you not have a diesel heater...?
Plan to use this for an hour at bedtime, then again an hour before waking up.