Fresh air and excitement: a summer in the mountains | M6 | Zone Interdite

The mountain will grab you… This marketing slogan certainly paid off. Today more than 15% of French people who take a summer holiday spend it in the mountains. Why are more and more French people choosing this sort of vacation? Admittedly, the budget is not so high as going to bask in the sun on a beach, but that is not the only reason that draws nearly 25,000 hikers to Mont Blanc. They are ready to put up with the whims of the weather and the risks of accident to treat themselves to a breath of fresh air and the privilege of admiring unique and grandiose scenery. When Didier and his little family went off for a week’s walking around Mont Blanc last summer, they never imagined just how unpredictable the mountain could be. Doreen doesn’t want the least restraint during her stay in the mountains. She and her multi-millionaire husband bought a new sort of apartment in Switzerland, in Crans Montana, one of the smartest resorts in the world. When she arrives by helicopter a chauffeur is waiting to drive her to her home. A Dutch woman, she comes increasingly often to enjoy the numerous attractions of this temple of luxury. In summer, mountain resorts tend to attract the young. They vie with each other to provide them with the opportunity to practise extreme sports. Jerome is looking for excitement. Along with a few friends he practises base jumping: an American sport that consists of throwing yourself into the void from the top of a cliff and opening a parachute at the last moment. For Bouzid and his pals, it’s the summer of first experiences… camping, the mountain, hip-hop. These teenagers from Villeurbanne near Lyons leave their housing estate to discover the joys and discomforts of life in the open air.