Le Pic Blanc : Panorama 3 stars in the Michelin guide
Culminating at an altitude of 3 m in the heart of the Grandes Rousses massif, the Pic Blanc offers a panorama as far as the eye can see over an ocean of peaks!
“Worth the trip” according to the famous guide:
…the Pic Blanc offers a wide, breathtaking panorama from the main terrace: the Pic Bayle, the Grande Casse de Pralognan, the Grande Motte de Tignes, the Grand Paradis in Italy, the glaciers of the Vanoise, the Dent Parrachée, the peaks of the Maurienne as well as the Meije, the Écrins bar and the Mont-de-Lans glacier.
Le Pic Blanc dominates Alpe d'Huez
Straddling the communes of Oz-en-Oisans and Freney d'Oisans, the Pic Blanc is the 3th summit of the Grandes Rousses massif after Pic Bayle (3 m) and Pic de l'Etendard (465 m).
Highest point of Alpe d'Huez Grand Domaine Ski, it has been a major asset since the construction of the cable car in 1963.
“The island in the sun”
With an average of 300 days of sunshine per year (according to Météo France), Alpe d'Huez is nicknamed “the island in the sun” and the view from the Pic Blanc is very often clear. It is therefore not surprising that thousands of people climb there in summer and winter.
Summer, a host of colors seem to have come from a painter's palette: the sky blue, snow white eternal, the green of the alpine pastures,ochre rocks, emerald green of the most beautiful lakes… Contemplative types might be able to observe the flight of a griffon vulture or a chough. Seasoned athletes will hurtle down the Pic Blanc as do the participants of the Megavalanche, a famous mountain bike race.
The Sarenne and Tunnel ski slope
When Winter whitened the peaks, the Pic Blanc is the departure point for 2 legendary trails: Sarenne, one of the longest tracks in the world and The tunnel whose impressive slope begins at the exit of a tunnel reserved for skiers.
A little history…
It took a while before the Pic Blanc become one of the major sites in Oisans.
In 1870 years Joseph Bayle, priest of the village of Oz, participates in the conquest of the Oisans summits. The highest point of the Grandes Rousses massif bears his name. It is this accomplished sportsman who will give the name of ““Peak of White Lake” at the summit that is more commonly called today “Pic Blanc".
The beginnings of skiing in Alpe d'Huez
In 1936, Jean Pomagalski installs his first ski lift on Alpe d'Huez. A cable car takes skiers up to 1954m from 2700. Finally in 1963, the construction of the Pic cable car (from the lake) White is completed. In the process, the drilling of a tunnel under the summit allows skiers to reach Alpe d'Huez. In 1976, the descent of Sarenne which until then was only an off-piste becomes a marked trail.
The cable car
Le cable car that goes to the top of the Pic Blanc contributed to his fame. It was built in 1963 by Neyret-Beylier, then renovated in 1980 by Creissels. The departure platform has since been floating and entry to the cable car is via an automatic barrier similar to those at old level crossings: the atmosphere “in its own juice” reminds you that the cabin climb high into the mountains, on the glaciers, and we love it!
The line is of a single scope without a pylon, and quite steep towards the end. The height is impressive also above the Tunnel track.
Guided tour of Pic Blanc
Everything is now in place to make the Pic Blanc an unmissable place in Oisans. guided tours of the Pic Blanc, every week in summer and winter, they are always full!
Location
Whether you are leaving from Alpe d'Huez or Oz, you will need to take the cable car from Pic Blanc.