Culture
La Grave
In the heart of the Ecrins massif, the village of La Grave (1,450 m), has built its stone and slate houses on a sunny slope facing the imposing 3,983 m-high Meije peak.
Culture
La Grave
Do not expect to see the small wooden cottages huddle in the alleys: here, it is the stone that dominates. The robust 17th century houses are made of shale or tuff blocks bound by a mortar based on earth, roofs, decorated with slate or lauze. The «trabucs», these old-fashioned alleys that weave a narrow network between the houses, will lead you up to the village, towards the lovely church of Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption. In the Roman-Lombard style, it adjoins the chapel of the White Penitents and the cemetery where the shipwrecked ones are buried under humble wooden crosses.
From here, the view of the Ecrins massif, above the Romanesque, is a real treat. La Grave is one of these simple and authentic mountain villages.
You will notice the particular shape of these wooden crosses. Different interpretations have been proposed without any of them being verified with certainty. The most credible and probably simplest hypothesis: the triangle represented the Holy Trinity and the circle the oneness of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
The village of La Grave is nestled at the foot of the mythical summit of the Meije, jewels of the Ecrins National Park and last of the great summits of the French Alps to be ascended, in 1877. La Grave, a place of mountaineering since the golden age of the pioneers, now attracts experienced skiers from all over the world. Its freeride and off-piste area is at the forefront of gliding sports. But the town is a resort village where nature and simplicity are the main principles. No abundance of ski lifts but some ski lifts on the village station of Chazelet and a cable car leading to the glaciers of Meije. The latter offers everyone a gateway to the high mountains by allowing skiers, mountaineers, vttists and pedestrians to approach the peaks and glaciers.
La Grave comprises several hamlets, each with its own soul, its own specific characteristics and traditions. It offers multiple hiking routes to discover the heritage they shelter while marveling at the grandiose landscapes.
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