Featured Picture: Courtesy of Black Crows
Freeskiing is exponentially evolving, however this course of inevitably leaves bits and items of the game scattered previously. A few of these are cultural, others institutional, and nonetheless some are a mix of each. The Ghost Resorts collection from Black Crows explores the areas and infrastructure left behind by the altering tide.
Whereas these spots could also be deserted, their tales proceed to evolve, as is the case in Chapter 4, as a number of Crows head to Tremendous Saint-Bernard on the borders of France, Italy and Switzerland.
As soon as a bustling resort nestled excessive within the alpine close to Mont Blanc, Tremendous Saint-Bernard performed host to skiers and border smugglers alike for years, with many in search of to accumulate superb turns by day and transport cigarettes by night time. Chocolate, espresso and different items had been hand-carried over the mountain tops for years after the close by Grand St. Bernard Tunnel was constructed, connecting Italy and Switzerland.
This was only one piece of the bigger internet that comprised the Tremendous Saint-Bernard group. Began with a sensible objective of connecting the highway from Bourg Saint-Bernard, at 1,932 meters, to the Col de Menouve, at 2,775 meters, it rapidly turned one thing greater than only a station within the hills. This mountain oasis noticed the rise of freeride snowboarding earlier than it was popularized across the globe. Avalanche mitigation and different expertise of mountain journey had been utilized and pioneered right here. This drew in a passionate crowd that saved the resort buzzing for over 45 years.
However as is all the time the case, instances change and stability is something however a assure. Dealing with monetary troubles and discovering it arduous to attract shoppers to the distant reaches of the alps, the resort launched a freeride competitors with help from the native ski group, resulting in among the public’s first introductions to an up-and-coming ski model referred to as Black Crows. Although the resort was pressured to shut in 2010, it’s authenticity by no means dwindled from its first days to its final.
Right now, the realm is a backcountry hub, with the car parking zone welcoming dozens of riders every day all through the winter. There’s a mixture of nostalgia and liberation right here, as the realm, as soon as crowded with enthusiastic vacationers, now supplies an escape for these prepared to earn their turns. Although the lodge stays empty and the carry towers frozen in time, the story is rarely over, as our associates at Black Crows totally display.
From YouTube:
The fourth within the Ghost Resort collection, the story of Tremendous Saint-Bernard is intimately linked to blackcrows. The model’s founders usually crossed the border to take pleasure in its plain charms, because of its wonderful off-piste prospects and snow cowl firstly and finish of winter. But it surely was additionally the positioning of the primary blackcrows ski assessments, notably by the Alp & Journey occasion. So it was with nice emotion that this new episode was produced.
5 blackcrows’ skiers, together with co-founder Camille Jaccoux, set off to discover the recollections of this small resort on the border between Switzerland and Italy. A spot steeped in historical past, this documentary traces the resort from its beginnings in 1963 to its definitive closure in 2010. Carefree joys and poignant melancholy come collectively in interviews and archive footage, however there’s no hint of remorse on this place, now untouched by human exercise. The blackcrows skiers present us with dazzling proof of this with lovely powder pictures shot on this legendary free-skiing spot.
A relic of a world that was not but super-connected or super-tracked, the Tremendous Saint-Bernard station was born of a easy imaginative and prescient: to hyperlink the highway from Bourg Saint-Bernard, at 1932 meters, to the Col de Menouve, at 2,775 meters. Inaugurated in 1963, a 12 months earlier than the opening of the Grand Saint-Bernard tunnel, the station benefited from this new crossing level between France and Italy.
As such, it represented the primary Swiss infrastructure for motorists arriving from Italy. For 47 years, the small resort of Tremendous Saint-Bernard turned Le Tremendous, delighting households on each side of the border. Its small north-facing ski space was a gateway to quite a few off-piste itineraries, making it a powder Eldorado for a number of generations of freeskiers. Sadly, regardless of its altitude and wonderful snow circumstances, the resort was too remoted and too small to modernize its amenities, and was pressured to shut in 2010. So lengthy Le Tremendous, you stay a Tremendous memento.
To rejoice the discharge of the movie, Black Crows has introduced the brand new Ghost Resorts capsule. This features a particular version Navis Freebird, their 102 mm agile and secure touring ski, in addition to the Duos Freebird Poles, Dorsa 27 Backpack, and a particular version of the ATK Raider 13 Evo touring bindings.
Each bit is wearing a limited-edition print that salutes the Swiss heritage of the Tremendous Saint-Bernard space and the model’s preliminary freeride roots. The gathering drop February 4, 2025 on the Black Crows website in addition to unique European retailers and Black Crows retailers.
If you end up studying this from throughout the pond, you’ll want to word that Black Crows will probably be internet hosting a particular occasion again at Tremendous Saint-Bernard. “On February sixth and seventh, Black Crows is internet hosting a Ski Sauvage occasion at Tremendous Saint-Bernard, within the Swiss Valais,” the model introduced.
“There will probably be a screening of Ghost Resorts movie, meals and beverage and an in a single day keep on the Bivouac Napoléon. The next day, there would be the alternative to tour and ski the valleys of Tremendous Saint-Bernard. Registration for this occasion contains half-board lodging from February sixth to seventh, a blackcrows ski take a look at and a ski touring expertise with Camille Jaccoux and Liv Sansoz for February seventh. “
