Traverse of the Swiss Jura Cross Country Ski

A sunny day on the TJS

Cross-Country Ski Traverse of the Swiss Jura

TJS Sign

Cross-Country Ski Traverse of the Swiss Jura

La Vue des Alpes

Cross-Country Ski Traverse of the Swiss Jura

A sunny day on the TJS

Cross-Country Ski Traverse of the Swiss Jura

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Traverse of the Swiss Jura

Discover stunning and remote mountain landscapes
6-day point-to-point ski tour
154 kilometres of prepared trails

Why Choose Cloud 9 Adventure

Fully qualified and expert guide
Carefully selected local hotels
Full luggage support

Traverse of the Swiss Jura: Dates and Prices

AT A GLANCE

7 nights

6 days' skiing

Luggage delivery

Group size 4-8

Join: Les Rousses, France

End: La Vue-des-Alpes, Switzerland

Nearest airports: Geneva & Zurich

ACCOMMODATION

7 nights in hotels

DIFFICULTY GRADING

8

Challenging

Traverse of the Swiss Jura Cross Country Ski: Overview

The Traverse of the Swiss Jura is a challenging traverse of the beautiful Jura mountains. It is a route that was first completed in 1976, on classic cross country skis, and crosses the 'Haut-Jura' Regional Natural Park. We cover roughly 154 kilometres on mostly prepared and pressed trails, taking in the rolling landscapes that set this apart from the more jagged mountains of the Alps. The Swiss route is quieter, and feels quite remote in places - it is possible to ski all day without seeing another group, creating a real sense of tranquility, and a glimpse of traditional mountain life.

What to expect

On this trip we will stay in small hotels and guest houses on all 7 nights, and will enjoy traditional local food, wine and hospitality. There is full luggage support, so we can travel light with just daypacks - our main bags will be waiting for us on arrival at our accommodation.

Each day we will aim to cover around 25-30 kilometres of trails, with a fair amount of ascents and descents, so participants need to be able to ski for around 6 hours per day, at a good pace. This trip is suitable for those with previous cross-country or Nordic skiing experience, and a good knowledge of cross-country skiing techniques, particularly the snowplough for steeper descents. If you have any questions at all about whether this trip is right for you, just ask.

Which traverse of the Jura is right for me?

Both of our Trans Jura trips are for experienced cross-country or Nordic skiers, looking to cross the Upper Jura mountains on a point-to-point ski tour.

The Trans Jura French trip is perfect for a first cross-country ski trip in the Jura mountains. It covers roughly 146km of pistes, and 2600m of ascent/descent. We stay in charming small hotels and auberges along the way, with a night in Switzerland. Due to the nature of the acommodation there are limited single room options.

The Traverse of the Swiss Jura trip spends the first night in France, before crossing the border to traverse the quieter Swiss route. It is more challenging than the traverse on the French side, with 154km of trails, and 3600m of ascent/descent. This route has higher elevations, sometimes above the treeline, and therefore has a more remote feel about it. We stay in hotels throughout, with more options for single rooms.

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TRIP NOTES

Traverse of the Swiss Jura Cross Country Ski: Itinerary

Day 1 - Arrival in Les Rousses

We meet at the group hotel in the French ski resort of Les Rousses. We will meet the guide in the afternoon giving us time to organise ski hire, and any last-minute kit.

Accommodation: Hotel, dinner included

Luggage access

Day 2 - Les Rousses to the Col du Marchairuz

We start our trip with a short transfer to La Givrine, just over the border, where we can buy our ski passes for the week. After donning our skis we start with a short climb to join a network of well-maintained tracks through the woodland and meadows. We keep to a ridge at a height of 1300m until we reach the pastures of Les Pralets, where we will stop for our picnic lunch. We then continue along the ridge, with a final climb up to the Col du Marchairuz at 1447 metres, where we check into our hotel for the night.

Accommodation: Hotel, dinner included

Luggage access

Skiing: approx 6 hours

Distance: 21km

Altitude gain / loss: +460m / -230m

Day 3 - The Col du Marchairuz to the Col Mollendruz

Today we will ski across open countryside beneath Mont Tendre (1678m), on the trails that link these high pastures in the summer. We can stop at the Refuge Bon Accueil for lunch - it's an old railway carriage that has been converted into a charming mountain refuge at a height of 1500m. After lunch we have a descent down to the Col Mollendruz (1200m). We then take a taxi to our hotel in the village of Pont (1100m), next to Lac de Joux.

Accommodation: Hotel, dinner included

Luggage access

Skiing: approx 6 hours

Distance: 17km

Altitude gain / loss: +340m / -700m

Day 4 - Pont to Métabief

Today is one of our longest days so we will start promptly after breakfast. Leaving Pont, we continue along the TJS route, through the village of Les Charbonnières, and up through the Forêt du Risoux, to Le Porteau on the French border. Here we will find a 5km untracked section where we will need to make our own trail. We meet the tracks again and finish our day with a fabulous 300m ski descent below Mont d'Or, then on to the small ski town of Métabief.

Accommodation: Hotel, dinner included

Luggage access

Skiing: approx 8 hours

Distance: 29km

Altitude gain / loss: +740m / -755m

Day 5 - Métabief to Les Cernets

Today is another long but satisfying day spent along the French/Swiss border. We rejoin the trail at Métabief, and follow it through the forests and into open farmland, before stopping for lunch at Les Fourgs. After lunch we take up the well-maintained tracks again, until we reach a small section where we need to remove our skis and descend on foot across the border at Verrières-des-Joux. We then have a final climb of around 200m to make on foot, to reach our hotel in the hamlet of Les Cernets.

Accommodation: Hotel, dinner included

Luggage access

Skiing: approx 6-7 hours

Distance: 33km

Altitude gain / loss: +800m / -730m

Day 6 - Les Cernets to La Brévine

Today is a slightly shorter day, so we can start a little later. The trails around Les Cernets are first-class, and regularly used for national and international cross-country ski races. We pass through hamlets and farms as we enter the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel, on our way to La Brévine. This is our base for the night, and is famous for having recorded Switzerland's lowest ever temperature of -40 degrees. They celebrate with an annual Fête du Froid (Cold Festival), but luckily for us it was just a one-off, and certainly not the norm!

Accommodation: Hotel, dinner included

Luggage access

Skiing: approx 5-6 hours

Distance: 19km

Altitude gain / loss: +470m / -570m

Day 7 - La Brévine to La Vue des Alpes

This is the last day of our ski tour, but also the longest, as we cross two valleys. We leave La Brévine on flat open trails to La Chaux-du-Milieu, then ascend up and over La Grande Joux, where we enjoy views of Val de Morteau in France to the north. We will aim for a lunch stop at Som Martel, before a brilliant descent through the woods to La Sagne, and down to our second valley crossing. A final 300m climb brings us to the Tête de Ran col, with its views of Chaux-de-Fonds. We have an easy ski down to La Vue des Alpes and hopefully, if it's a clear day, views of the Jura and the Alps. We will stay the night in La Vue des Alpes, and enjoy a well-earned meal to celebrate the end of our epic adventure.

Accommodation: Hotel, dinner included

Luggage access

Skiing: approx 8-9 hours

Distance: 33km

Altitude gain / loss: +790m / -540m