Who is Noé? Noé, AlpinStore buyer
Activity? Self-guided touring hikes
Where? Vercors Massif
How long? 4 days, Sunday February 4 to Wednesday February 7
Aims? Cross the Vercors via the GR91 with a few deviations and discover more about winter bivouacs!
Background: I took my leave in mid-December for the beginning of February, hoping to have snowy conditions in the Vercors. The idea was to cut myself off from the outside world for a short while.
I slept in a bivy for the 3 nights (for those who don't know what a bivy is, it's simply a waterproof sleeping bag that allows you to sleep under the stars even in uncertain conditions without risking losing your down jacket), it didn't go below -5/-6°C at night and I carried 6 days' worth of food in order to test an organization that would allow me to be completely self-sufficient whatever the weather conditions. My pack weighed in at around 22kgs, with everything I needed to adapt optimally to my environment.
Setting off with absolutely summery weather, plenty of sunshine, no clouds and almost no humidity, I crossed the Vercors massif and in particular its Hauts-Plateaux from Saint-Nizier-du-Moucherotte to Die in the Drôme. That's around 83km for 3700m D+ and 4583m D-, Die being much lower than Saint-Nizier! I also climbed the highest point, the Grand Veymont at 2341m, which was really satisfying to do, a (very) small taste of what mountaineering is all about!
Anecdotes?
I had a hard time getting into it for the first 4 kilometers, which was with the aim of climbing to the top of Moucherotte, so I might as well tell you that the effort and the warm-up were at the same time, as a result I didn't tighten my shoes enough all day, and I made a mistake! Because a blister formed! (Link to the blog limiting HANWAG blisters) I dragged it all the way to the end, but it only hurt once I got home, so I'm not complaining.
On the last morning, I found myself with frozen shoes - I'd forgotten to put them under my mattress! Luckily I'd loosened them the day before, so I was able to get into them.
And in terms of autonomy, I ended up with the equivalent of a small Zip Lock bag for 4 days of waste, so the organization worked well!
Equipment used and favorite brands?
- A 55L bag + a 3L Osprey Archeon front pocket (very practical)
- TSL Highlander snowshoes (which I didn't touch once during this crossing)
- Vaude Taurus 2UL tent (which I didn't touch either)
- The MILLET Trilogy bivy,
- Thermarest Parsec -18°C sleeping bag
- A foam mattress and a sturdy survival blanket for sleeping
- Sea to Summit Reactor Compact meat bag (as the sleeping bag was more than sufficient for this crossing, I didn't touch it either)
- JetBoil stove (a sure bet!)
- Esbit thermos flask
- SIGG bottle (very useful!)
- CAMP shovel
- Leatherman (which I take everywhere)
- Black Diamond carabiner
- Micropur tablets
- Vaude Escape lightweight waterproof jacket
- Haglöfs ROC Down Hood
- Black Diamond Punisher gloves
- Icebreaker t-shirt, balaclava and socks
- 125 ¾ Ortovox tights
- Falke TK5 socks
- Mtn Trainer Mid GTX from Salewa
- Chains and gaiters were pretty essential too, as well as small waterproof bags to store my fragile stuff!
What do I love most about this type of outing?
Discovering the place I've decided to go. I'd only been to the Vercors once before by bike, and I really enjoyed the scenery, but the Hauts-Plateaux! Even better, even wilder! I rested and gained experience while walking in front of a magnificent landscape.