Sleep like a climber - halfway up an Alpine cliff face
Long used by mountaineers, a canvas and metal portaledge attached to a mountain above Annecy in France overs unforgettable views of the sunrise. It's not for the faint-hearted, or fidgeters
WHAT IS IT? The ultimate “room” with a view. A “portaledge” is a device used by mountaineers to get a night’s sleep when climbing in the Himalayas, Greenland and the like. It’s a lightweight canvas and aluminium platform suspended from bolts driven into the rock face. Hop aboard, sit back and enjoy the view.
WHERE IS IT? Located on a 500-metre-high rock face above the eastern shore of Lake Annecy, in southeast France. Reaching it involves a pleasant 30-minute hike through thick forest from the Col des Contrebandiers (“smugglers’ pass”) to the top of a cliff rising up from the lake shore; here you don climbing harness and helmet to rappel some 15 metres down to a wide, shrubby ledge. Off to the side is the portaledge, hanging serenely above a drop of several hundred metres. The views are sensational.
WHAT DO YOU SEE? Directly below is the village of Veyrier-sur-Lac, beyond which the blue-green waters of Lake Annecy glitter in the evening sunlight. On the lake’s far shore sits Annecy, one of the loveliest towns in the French Alps, and beyond that, range after range of mountains fade into the distance.
WHO IS IT AIMED AT? Those who don’t suffer from vertigo, obviously. If you do you’ll probably struggle to even get to your portaledge, and you certainly won’t enjoy the fondue and wine (in limited amounts, given the location) that your guide prepares on the ledge as the sun sinks below the horizon.
