Pas de Lona

I’ve stood on the other side of the valley a couple of times recently and wondered about doing this route, it’s pretty short but I’ve not been over the Basset de Lona before, I’ve been over by Lac Lona, the Diablon and Sassiniere etc and skied from those places to the Lac de Moiry Barrage. Like all the lines in that area this starts from the top of the lift system at Grimentz and goes to the Col des Becs de Bosson, from there it drops to the Lac Lona. The descent to the Lac Lona was breakable crust with isolated pockets of transformed snow, so skiable but awkward in places.

Google Earth Track File

Above left, looking over at the Basset de Lona from the Col des Becs de Bosson and above right, looking back at the Col des Becs de Bosson from Lac Lona.

Above left, it’s a pretty easy climb up from the Lac Lona, barely a couple of hundred metres and an easy angle. Above right, looking at the descent between the Diablon and Sex de Marinda. In fact, the snow looks a lot better than I expected and it seems to be a good descent.

And the descent does prove to be quite good, it’s a spring snow most of the way down and quite enjoyable skiing. The avalanche risk is low today and the only real danger is small sluff avalanches, these are unlikely to bury you but the risk is these have enough force to carry you down the mountain a short way, dropping to the barrage involves some terrain with small cliffs and it would be unfortunate to be carried over one.

From the barrage it’s the usual run down the summer road, it’s had a lot of skiers over it, presumably from the trade route from Zinal, so it’s icy and hard but it’s an easy enough route. Once in Grimentz I hop on the telecablne and meet Jamie and Vari who are fellow members of the Eagle Ski Club (a ski touring and ski mountaineering club) living in Italy over the Simplon pass and we have a ski around the Grimentz area.