Vallorcine Mayor passes off-piste ban
In a move which seems somewhat in juxtaposition to the ethos of skiing and mountaineering in the Chamonix Valley, Patrick Ancey, the current Mayor of Vallorcine has passed a law banning off piste skiing within parts of his commune.
The ban, valid from the start of the 2007/2008 season, bans skiiers/boarders from entering the very avalanche-prone off piste zone of the Aiguillette des Posettes which is above the cross country ski area in Vallorcine. Another area has received a ban when the avalanche risk is three or above.
Ancey (himself a mountain guide) claims that these bans are necessary to protect areas in his commune and his obliged to do so as the areas are accessed by the neighbouring commune of Le Tour. (Indeed, the area is accessed easily by taking the draglift direct up to the top of the Aiguillette des Posettes where the official piste descends back down next to the lift).
It is, as yet, unclear whether such bye-laws on a blanket ban are actually legal under French law, but either way it is a move which is bound to cause controversy in the Chamonix Valley at a time when campaigning for the municipal elections in the spring gets underway. Patrick Ancey has put himself forward to re-election as Mayor of Vallorcine.
