Mountaineering in the Ecrins Massif

Frederic Chevaillot, a mountaineer for more than 30 years, is also an accomplished photographer. These two passions have taken him all around the world, from Sinai to Poland, from Vietnam to Afghanistan, but he has lost none of his love for the wide-open spaces and marvellous light of the Ecrins. He decided to live in Saint-Christophe-en-Oisans, where he is one of the village's few year-round inhabitants, so he can continue to explore the area throughout the seasons. He regularly contributes to outdoor magazines and has illustrated several books, including 'La Meije, reine de l'Oisans' (with Pierre Chapoutot, Hoebeke, 2000), and 'Les plus beaux raids a skis' (with Mario Colonel and Jean-Rene Minelli, Arthaud, 2004). Paul Grobel is a mountain guide who loves sharing his expertise and experience with clients throughout the year, specialising in mountaineering, ski tours and expeditions to distant lands. Two ski traverses of the Alps, from Austria to the Mediterranean, have broadened his knowledge of the area's summits and the culture of the people who live in these high places. Expeditions to the Arctic and the desert confirmed the joy he feels from being in wild and remote places. In recent years he has specialised in leading expeditions to Nepal, but the Ecrins, close to his home in La Grave, remains his favourite massif. Jean-Rene Minelli is a mountain guide in La Berarde. He has climbed throughout the Alps and the Pyrenees, as well as in many other mountain areas across the globe, generally with clients. However, it is at Ornon, in the heart of the Oisans, that he has set up his base camp. Twenty-five years of mountaineering have not dampened his enthusiasm for the magic of the high mountains, where he prefers novelty to performance. His passion for sharing and his hyperactivity have led him to contribute regularly to the outdoor press and to write a number of books. With Frederic Chevaillot he wrote 'Sommets des Ecrins, les plus belles courses faciles' and 'Ecrins, ascensions choisies', both published by Glenat, as well as 'Les plus beaux raids a skis', written with Mario Colonel, illustrated by Frederic Chevaillot and published by Arthaud.