The fire at the Lognan Cable Car mid-station has caused a lot of sadness and uncertainty for the upcoming winter season 2018/19, but the situation is not as grim as it seems!
Despite being deprived of its two cable-cars, the Grands Montets ski area will be open for the winter season with access by the recent Plan Joran lift.
In 2014 the Plan Joran gondola was upgraded from two-person chairlift to ten person gondola lift. The hour capacity has increased from a paltry 400 per hour to 3200 people per hour. The cable car that made the connection between Argentiere and Lognan could transport only 700 pax/hour.
A loss of 18% of passenger capacity!
Another big advantage of the new Plan Joran lift is that it does not stop at Plan Joran, but continues to an altitude of 2138 meters, which is over 100m above the Lognan mid-station and the Plan Joran restaurant. The big positive aspect: you can access the lifts La Herse and Le Bochard without walking.
The Lognan plateau of the Grandes Montets is open for business with the Bochard gondola, capacity 3000 people per hour & the Herse with a capacity of 2600 people per hour.
The only real compromise is the temporary loss of the cable car between Lognan and the summit of the Grandes Montets. But this creates an excellent opportunity for off-piste skiing and for powder enthusiasts!!!
How to get to the top of Grands Montets in Ski Touring
2018/2019 may be the season to learn the basics of ski touring. From the Bochard summit (2767m) there is a 450m vertical drop to access the Top des Grands Montets (3220m). You have two options: a) Go straight up the Face, or b) Cross to the Rachasses pass and then climb the upper section of the Pilons to the cable car station.
Virgin powder all day long.
In the Chamonix Valley, the word is already circulating: "2018/19 will be the best season of the Grandes Montets in recent years!"
