Clément Guillot, the president of the Chamonix branch of the Club Alpine Francais (CAF) and Christophe Lelièvre, the Guardian of the Couvercle refuge have joined forces and published a guidebook (Topo) with 100 ski touring routes that all start within an hour's drive from Chamonix.
The Topo was published in mid-December2023 by Vamos editions. Clément Guillot holds the CAF qualification 'Federal initiator in ski touring with snow and avalanche' which allows him to lead CAF members. Christophe Lelièvre is passionate about his main job, the Guardian of the recently renovated Couvercle refuge.
The Scope
The 80 routes range from easy to difficult and might pass through any of the three countries united by the Mont Blanc Massif, France, Italy and Switzerland.
Routes outside of the Mont-Blanc massif are included. The five other massifs are the Aiguilles Rouges, Fiz, Chablais, Aravis, and Beaufortain. Each of the proposed routes is explained with an introduction, a very detailed technical sheet, a sketch, a map, a profile and a photo.
A new kind of Topo that unites paper and digital
The Topo is not just a book, there is a digital version as well. Each person who buys the physical book is provided with free access to the digital version.
Each of the 100 routes has a QR code. When scanned with a smartphone or watch, the route is downloaded so that it will work out on the route where there in no 4/5G connection.
Your progress on the route is saved as a GPX file (GPS Exchange Format) which cab be exported and imported to any other route mapping application you might already use.
In the app, the user can observe slope gradients, read the current avalanche risk assessment bulletin for the route of interest, review the local the weather forecast for the coming days, and the weather data for the previous days, in order to get an idea of the current conditions.
Also, there us a review section where users can publish a review of their experiences on a route and read reviews left by other users.
Buy the book on the Au Vieux Campeur
