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ОглавлениеCHAPTER 2: PENNINE ALPS
Also known as the Valais Alps. All mountains south of the Rhône valley, spreading eastward from the Mont Blanc massif to the Simplon Pass.
The Matterhorn and tranquil Stellisee
PENNINE ALPS: CHAPTER SUMMARY
Location
Although the range of the Pennine Alps is usually described as extending from the Col du Grand St Bernard to the Simplon Pass, for the purposes of this book we take its western limit to be the Petit Col Ferret on the Swiss-Italian border on the very edge of the Mont Blanc massif. The Rhône valley forms its northern limit, the alpine watershed which carries the frontier with Italy marks its southern extent.
Highlights
Walks
Walker’s Haute Route (2:1)
Tour des Combins (2:2)
Tour du Val de Bagnes (2:3)
Sentier des Chamois (2:3)
Tour du Val d’Anniviers (2:8)
Numerous routes from Zinal (2:8)
Grächen-–Saas Fee Höhenweg (2:10)
Europaweg (2:10)
Numerous routes from Zermatt (2:10)
Tour of the Matterhorn (2:10)
Gspon Höhenweg (2:11)
Tour of Monte Rosa (2:11)
Climbs
Assorted routes on the Grand Combin (2:3)
Mont Blanc de Cheilon (2:5)
Pigne d’Arolla (2:6)
Various routes on the Dent Blanche (2:6)
Ober Gabelhorn, Zinalrothorn & Weisshorn above Zinal(2:8)
Weisshorn, East Ridge (2:10)
Numerous climbs above Zermatt (2:10)
Weissmies via the SSE Ridge (2:11)
Summits for all
Grand Tavé (2:3)
Bella Tola (2:8)
Schwarzhorn (2:9)
Mettelhorn (2:10)
Contents
The Walker’s Haute Route (box)
Col du Grand St Bernard: A Place in History (box)
The Classic Haute Route (box)
2:4 Val de Nendaz
2:5 Val d’Hérémence
2:6 Val d’Hérens
Tour du Val d’Hérens (box)
Val d’Arolla
Ferpècle and the Dent Blanche
Dent Blanche: ‘The grandest mountain in the Alps’ (box)
La Sage and Ways East
2:7 Val de Moiry
Walks in Val de Moiry
2:8 Val d’Anniviers
Tour du Val d’Anniviers (box)
Val de Zinal
Walks from Zinal
Climbs from Zinal
Moving On
2:9 Turtmanntal
2:10 Mattertal
Walks and Climbs from Grächen
St Niklaus to Täsch
The Weisshorn: ‘An almost faultless mountain’ (box)
Climbs from the Täsch Hut
Zermatt
The Zermatt Basin
Walks from Zermatt
Tour of the Matterhorn (box)
Climbs from Zermatt
Ulrich Inderbinden: The Old Man of the Matterhorn (box)
Zermatt for Skiers
The Adlerpass
2:11 Saastal
Climbs from Saas Grund
Saas Fee
Johann-Joseph Imseng: Priest, Guide and Hotelier (box)
Walks and Climbs from Saas Fee
Tour of Monte Rosa (box)
The Upper Saastal
2:12 Simplon Pass
Access, Bases, Maps and Guides
PENNINE ALPS: INTRODUCTION
Today the Pennines are the mecca of the classic-style mountaineer … Such routes have lost none of their aura and belong to any list of the Alps’ top climbs.
John Cleare, Collins Guide to Mountains & Mountaineering
This tremendous range of snow- and ice-clad mountains holds the largest concentration of 4000m peaks west of the Caucasus, among them Matterhorn, Weisshorn, Zinalrothorn, Monte Rosa, Ober Gabelhorn, Dent Blanche, Grand Combin and Dom – the highest mountain entirely in Switzerland. With some of the best-placed centres for mountaineering in all the Alps, there’s also unlimited potential for walking holidays of all standards, immense scope for top-quality ski tours, and scenery to rival that of anywhere in Europe. Yet despite the popularity of the district, and the iconic status of so many of its peaks, it is still possible to walk and climb there in surprising isolation, even in the height of summer.
Col de Riedmatten, link between the Dix Hut and Arolla (Chapter 2.5)
A succession of valleys and their tributaries drain northward into the Rhône. The headwall of many of these valleys is crowned with snowfields and glaciers, but in some cases the high mountains thrust forward away from the watershed crest along projecting ridge systems that effectively extend the snow cover further north. Beyond the snow and ice, these ridges are crossed by numerous cols of varying degrees of difficulty that attract the walker and trekker. And while mountaineering attention is naturally focused on the higher summits, more modest ascents are possible on numerous ‘lesser’ peaks which, standing as they often do apart from the more dramatic mountains, reward with some of the finest views of all.
Though it will no doubt be the mountains, either individually or as a group, that are the main attraction, many of their valleys are no less appealing. The majority are entered from the Rhône through a gorge that opens to bands of forest and sloping pasture or hay meadow. Alp hamlets, with their ancient barns, chalets and granaries (mazots) with stone slab roofs and almost black timbers perched on staddle stones, stand among the meadows, advertising an architectural heritage unique to Canton Valais. Closely grouped villages huddle above a river or spread in a line facing the sun, with the ubiquitous white-painted chapel standing to one side. Then come the resorts; not only Zermatt, Saas Fee and Verbier with their international reputations to protect and promote, but others that are much smaller and less overtly commercial, such as Arolla, Les Haudères and Zinal, to take just three examples.
Access to virtually every valley is straightforward and reliable, and there’s plentiful accommodation of all standards in the resorts, while remote mountain inns and huts are numerous, making the Pennine Alps one of Switzerland’s busiest and most dramatically attractive regions.
2:1 Val Ferret
With the untamed tributary of Val d’Arpette above Champex, Val Ferret is the most westerly of all Pennine valleys. Distinctly pastoral, it boasts a string of unremarkable hamlets, and very little in the way of tourist infrastructure outside of Champex and La Fouly. Walled to the west by outliers of the Mont Blanc range, the east flank is snow- and ice-free in summer and at no point reaches 3000m, while the headwall is breached by the two Cols Ferret (Petit and Grand) and by the Fenêtre de Ferret. Walkers tackling the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) usually enter the valley from Italy via the Grand Col Ferret, while the narrow Fenêtre de Ferret a little west of the Col du Grand St Bernard is much less frequented, although it has been known for many centuries and is said to have been favoured by smugglers.
Road and rail access is from Martigny in the Rhône valley. At first heading roughly southwest out of town, the road (and railway) then curves to the east along the valley of the Drance to Les Valettes, where a minor alternative route breaks away to the south to climb through the wooded Gorges du Durnand on the way to Champex. The main road, however, continues alongside the Drance, and above the point where it crosses to the north side of the river, the 100m rock wall of Les Trappistes offers a choice of well-equipped sport climbs up to grade VI+. Meanwhile the road continues to Sembrancher (717m), a medieval village with a Baroque church standing opposite the entrance to the Val de Bagnes (see 2:3) about 12km from Martigny. It is here that the Ferret road turns south up the Val d’Entremont (2:2), then forks just before reaching Orsières, terminus of the branch line railway from Martigny. The right-hand option passes through the village and continues to the hamlet of Som-La-Proz, about 2.5km beyond Orsières, where the road forks once more. The main Val Ferret route goes ahead, but the right branch (served by bus from Orsières) heads northwest with a sweeping multi-hairpinned climb to reach Champex, or Champex-Lac as it’s also known.
Cupped by mountains and built along two sides of a small lake at 1466m, this is an attractive little resort with year-round appeal and views of the Combin massif. Apart from its admittedly rather limited walking opportunities, in summer there’s boating and fishing in the lake, while cross-country and downhill skiing are practised in winter and a few routes are worth tackling on snowshoes. Champex was once known as a base for making the ascent of several peaks on the edge of the Mont Blanc massif, most notably the Aiguilles du Tour, Chardonnet and Argentière – all unseen from the village – but it is the proximity of such huts as the Cabanes d’Orny and Trient that puts Champex-based climbers in touch with these mountains today.
Champex has an Office du Tourisme (www.verbier-st-bernard.ch) which is located along the main street on the northeast side of the lake. The village has only a few shops, but there’s a post office, a handful of restaurants, a renowned alpine garden with an impressive collection of plants (open daily May to September), a chairlift to La Breya at 2194m, and a terraced campsite open throughout the year situated at the upper end of the village. A small selection of hotels range from 1 to 3-star, and dormitory accommodation is available at the Pension En Plein Air (www.pensionenpleinair.ch), and at the Au Club Alpin (www.auclubalpin.ch). Less than an hour’s walk west of the village, just inside Val d’Arpette, the Relais d’Arpette has standard hotel bedrooms, 80 dormitory places, and space for camping at the rear of the hotel (www.arpette.ch). Being on the route of both the TMB and the Chamonix to Zermatt Walker’s Haute Route, Champex is busy with rucksack-laden trekkers throughout the summer months, and in the spring ski-touring season Haute Route skiers arrive here from Cabane du Trient to await transport to Bourg-St-Pierre or Verbier for the next stage of their journey to Zermatt.
Champex, one-time mountaineering centre
Above and to the west of the village, Val d’Arpette is very different from the immediate surroundings of Champex. This is a wild valley, wooded but with open meadows in its lower reaches, rougher in its middle section and rugged and untamed towards its head where it’s confused by boulder tips and patches of grit and old snow. Though only one of the walling mountains reaches 3200m, the valley seems dwarfed by abrupt slopes. The south flank is swept by a vast ramp of scree, while the headwall is topped by a bristling ridge containing the spiked summits of Pointe d’Orny and Pointe des Ecandies; this latter summit pushes forward a spur that effectively divides the western end of the valley in two. Used by both the TMB and Walker’s Haute Route (see box) the 2665m Fenêtre d’Arpette cuts through the ridge just north of Pointe des Ecandies, but the more challenging Col des Ecandies (2796m) below the Petite Pointe d’Orny is adopted by skiers on the classic Haute Route when departing the Trient refuge.
WALKER’S HAUTE ROUTE
Making a two-week journey from Chamonix to Zermatt across the grain of the Pennine Alps, the Walker’s Haute Route counts among the finest treks in Europe. The 180km route crosses 11 passes and gains in excess of 12,000m in height, so it’s a reasonably tough undertaking.
Accommodation includes valley hotels, dortoirs and mountain huts – for full details see Chamonix to Zermatt, the Walker’s Haute Route published by Cicerone.
Day 1: Assuming arrival in Chamonix on Day 1, this short first stage (2–2½hrs) remains in the valley and usually ends at Argentière.
Day 2: Three options exist here: the normal route crosses Col de Balme (2204m) and descends to Trient, the first village in Switzerland (see 1:5) for a 5–5½hr day, but an alternative from Col de Balme takes the trekker round to the unmanned Refuge les Grands (4½hrs), or continues from there to Col de la Forclaz where there’s hotel and dormitory accommodation (6½–7hrs).
Day 3: Another stage with an alternative route, the choice is of either crossing the Fenêtre d’Arpette, or taking the less demanding trail past Alp Bovine. Much will depend on weather conditions; if good, the Fenêtre is the favoured option. Both routes lead to Champex.
Day 4: From Champex to Le Châble in Val de Bagnes is an easy trek of 3½–4hrs through a gentle landscape punctuated with small villages.
Day 5: By direct contrast with Day 4, this is a demanding trek with more than 1600m of height to gain in order to reach Cabane du Mont Fort after 6–6½hrs. But memorable views from the hut make the effort worthwhile.
Day 6: Once again two options are offered for the trek to Cabane de Prafleuri. From the Mont Fort Hut the main route goes along the balcony trail of the Sentier des Chamois with stunning views of the Combin massif, before turning to Col de Louvie; while the alternative takes a more direct route to Col de Louvie by way of the rocky Col de la Chaux. From Col de Louvie the way descends below the Grand Désert glacier, before making a long approach to Col de Prafleuri, followed by descent into a bleak basin in which stands Cabane de Prafleuri (6–6½hrs by the main route, 5½hrs via Col de la Chaux).
Day 7: A delightful 6½hr walk leads to Arolla via Col des Roux and either Col de Riedmatten or Pas de Chèvres, with an option of visiting Cabane des Dix below the North Face of Mont Blanc de Cheilon. This is one of the finest stages of the Haute Route, with a choice of accommodation to be had in Arolla.
Day 8: A gentle valley stroll takes the Walker’s Haute Route down to Les Haudères, followed by a short uphill stretch leading to La Sage – a relaxing 4hr stage.
Day 9: Above La Sage either Col de Torrent or the rougher Col du Tsaté lead to the Val de Moiry (see 2:7). For accommodation Cabane de Moiry is highly recommended (5–5½hrs), otherwise you could stay in a dortoir above the Barrage de Moiry (5hrs), or descend to a choice of hotels in Grimentz in 6½–7hrs.
Day 10: The main Walker’s Haute Route descends from Cabane de Moiry, then contours across a hillside above Lac de Moiry before climbing to Col de Sorebois and plunging steeply down to Zinal near the head of the wonderful Val d’Anniviers (5–5½hrs). If starting from the Barrage de Moiry, Zinal is reached in 4–4½hrs.
Day 11: Turning away from the big mountains, this stage either makes a 3½–4hr trek to Hotel Weisshorn (or continues for a further hour to Cabane Bella Tola) in readiness for crossing the Meidpass into the Turtmanntal next day, or it avoids the hotel and hut completely by crossing the lovely Forcletta on a direct route into the Turtmanntal (5½–6hrs), to overnight in the tiny village of Gruben.
Day 12: The final crossing of the Haute Route is the 2894m Augstbordpass which gives access to the Mattertal. Once over this the trail descends (with beautiful views throughout) for more than 1700m to St Niklaus (7½hrs) by way of the charming little hamlet of Jungen (5½hrs), which has a limited amount of dormitory accommodation (but check first).
Day 13: It’s possible to have a 5½hr valley walk of 18km to reach Zermatt, but the preferred option ascends the east flank of the valley to Gasenried (4hrs) where a night is spent before tackling the Europaweg.
Day 14: Created in 1996, the 31km Europaweg from Grächen to Zermatt is unstable in many places and there may be significant diversions, but it makes an exhilarating two-day trek high above the Mattertal with great views for much of the way. This first stage ends at the comfortable Europa Hut about 5½–6hrs from Gasenried.
Day 15: The final stage of the Walker’s Haute Route completes the Europaweg by continuing beyond Täschalp and the hamlet of Tufteren to visit Findeln, with its spectacular Matterhorn view, before descending to Zermatt at the end of a 6½–7hr day.
Walks and climbs from Champex
Apart from a gentle stroll of an hour around the lake, most routes worth tackling from Champex are fairly long or strenuous, or both. The one exception is the approach to Cabane d’Orny using the La Breya chairlift to gain an initial 700m of height.
North of Champex, in effect backing the resort, a long mountain spine culminates in the summit crown of Le Catogne (2598m). The ascent, which begins at the lower end of the village, is not difficult, but has 1100m of height to gain. A major reward for making the ascent is the extent of the summit view, which is especially fine towards the Dents du Midi.
A day’s walk (4½–5hrs) leading to Col de la Forclaz via the Bovine alp is known to thousands of trekkers, as it forms a stage of the TMB. First visiting the chalets of Champex d’en Haut and Champex d’en Bas, it makes a lengthy slanting traverse of forest and pasture, with occasional views of the Dents du Midi, as well as the Alpes Vaudoises across the Rhône valley, and a backward view to the Grand Combin. Although not as strenuous as the alternative TMB stage via the Fenêtre d’Arpette (see below), this Bovine route is demanding enough. At the end of the day accommodation is available at Hotel du Col de la Forclaz (see 1:5 for details). To vary the return to Champex, consider making a round-trip by reversing the Fenêtre d’Arpette route (about 6½hrs from Forclaz to Champex).
The crossing of the 2665m Fenêtre d’Arpette in the Val d’Arpette headwall should only be attempted under settled conditions and after any troublesome snow has cleared from the upper slopes. In a ‘normal’ summer, this is likely to be around early July, although snow patches often remain throughout the summer. Gained in about 3½–4hrs from Champex, the fenêtre is very much a window onto a different world, for the west side of the pass is dominated by the Trient glacier spilling from the Plateau du Trient, while a distant view includes the dammed lake of Emosson, with the Tour Sallière and Mont Ruan beyond it (see 1:5). TMB walkers crossing the pass descend to either Trient or Col de la Forclaz (see above) in another 2–2½hrs by a steep but straightforward route.
The ascent of Pointe des Ecandies (2873m) south of the Fenêtre d’Arpette may be made without major difficulties in about 1hr from the pass.
In winter Col des Ecandies makes a worthwhile ascent on snowshoes – but only when conditions are stable, as the walling slopes of Val d’Arpette are prone to avalanche after snowfall (see Snowshoeing: Mont Blanc & the Western Alps).
The traverse of the Ecandies ridge, from Col des Ecandies to Pointe des Ecandies, or on to the Fenêtre d’Arpette (D, with two moves of V), is a classic route recommended by Rébuffet in his well-known Mont Blanc Massif – 100 Finest Routes.
By using the La Breya chairlift from just above Champex, the approach to Cabane d’Orny (2826m) can be achieved in 2–2½hrs by an obvious path along the rocky upper slopes of the Combe d’Orny. Owned by the Diablerets section of the SAC, the hut has places for 86, with a resident guardian from early June to mid-September (www.cabanedorny.ch). From there Cabane du Trient is reached in 1hr, and Pointe d’Orny (3269m) can be climbed by the NE Couloir (PD+) in about 3hrs.
Cabane du Trient
Cabane du Trient is a large and popular hut tucked below Pointe d’Orny on the edge of the Plateau du Trient at 3170m. With places for 130 and owned, like Cabane d’Orny, by the Diablerets section of the SAC, it is manned during the spring ski-touring season (mid-March to mid-May) and from mid-June to mid-September (www.sac-diablerets.ch). Of the climbs and tours to be made from a base here, the ascent of the Aiguille du Tour is among the most obvious since it’s the highest hereabouts, is located just across the glacial plateau, and is eminently suitable for first-season alpinists. The Aiguille has two distinct summits separated by a deep cleft, the 3544m north summit being higher than its southern counterpart by just 2m. The SE Flank of the north summit offers a pleasant F+ scramble, while similar-graded routes on the south summit are by way of the East Flank and the South Ridge. Both summits command tremendous views of the Mont Blanc range, as well as the Pennine and distant Bernese Alps, while across the Plateau du Trient, and blocking its southern end, the Aiguilles Dorées, seen in profile, form a 1300m long wall of granite with around 14 tops, on some of which fairly short climbs at a modest standard are available. At a different level, however, the classic east–west traverse of the chain (AD+) was first achieved in the 1890s. As for the Plateau du Trient itself, though not unique, it’s a very special site immortalised by Emile Javelle in his Souvenirs d’un Alpiniste with the following description: ‘It is a perfect, ideal and quiet basin, scarcely tilted, and unfolding in vast and imperceptible undulations its immense surface … It is as if this dazzling plateau … was the high point of the Alps.’
Orsières to La Fouly
The lower Val Ferret is forested along the foot of its east and west slopes, but with open pasture and a succession of hamlets either strung along the road, or located a short distance from it. The TMB passes through, linking some of these hamlets and enjoying pleasant if unremarkable landscapes, for despite the proximity of big mountains, the trail adopted by the TMB sees little of them, and it’s only when crossing the mouth of the Saleina glen, or on arrival at La Fouly, that more than a hint is received of the true nature of its neighbourhood peaks.
Praz de Fort, one of the largest of the Val Ferret villages
The Saleina valley, or Vallon d’Arpette de Saleina to give its full name, opens a little south of Praz de Fort (1151m), one of the largest of Ferret villages, which boasts a grocery as well as a post office. Two huts of interest to climbers intent on one or more summits at this outpost of the Mont Blanc range can be reached from the village; these are the Cabane de Saleina and Cabane d’Orny. A metalled service road projects a short way towards the huts, with a car park at around 1250m. The road actually continues beyond this, but anyone planning to be away for a day or two should make use of the parking spaces available. From the end of the road a path remains on the true left bank of the Reuse de Saleina, then forks. The route to Cabane d’Orny (details above) works up the steep mountainside with a series of zigzags under the crest of the Pointes des Chevrettes, before joining the path from La Breya near a small tarn about 130m below the hut (4½–5hrs from Praz de Fort).
Cabane de Saleina
Cabane de Saleina, or Saleinaz as it’s also known, is located above the right bank of the Saleina glacier at 2691m, with the glacial cirque rimmed by – among others – the Aiguilles d’Argentière and du Chardonnet, the Grande Fourche and Aiguilles Dorées. North of the hut the Petit Clocher du Portalet is an impressive shaft of smooth granite.
The hut approach begins at the same car park used by the Orny Hut route, although an alternative start could be made along a track on the south side of the Saleina stream. Where the Orny path forks to make the zigzag climb under the Pointes des Chevrettes, the Saleina route (waymarked blue and white for an ‘alpine route’) continues upvalley a short way before crossing the stream to join the south bank route, then climbs the terminal moraine of the Saleina glacier with the aid of fixed cables. It then follows the moraine crest to pass below the Clochers des Planereuses, and crosses a wide couloir to gain the hut.
Belonging to the Neuchâteloise section of the SAC, the modern Saleina cabane has dormitory places for 48 and is manned for a short period between late March and mid-April, and from late June to mid-September (www.cas-neuchatel.ch). Above it short, modest routes suitable for first-season alpinists, can be found on the easily accessible Grande Pointe des Planereuses and the Grande Clocher des Planereuses, although the little 2699m tower of the Petite Clocher des Planereuses holds more difficult climbs, especially via the SW Pillar. Near the head of the glacier, the 3619m Grande Fourche can be climbed by a PD route via its South Ridge in about 3½hrs from the hut. Of a very different proposition, the Aiguille d’Argentière (3902m) on the frontier ridge to the southwest has numerous quality routes of varying degrees of difficulty, mostly begun from the Argentière refuge on the French side of the mountains. However, the East Face which overlooks the Saleina glacier, attracts climbers based at Cabane de Saleina, the East Face Direct (AD) being one fairly popular route.
Further north along the frontier ridge, between the Aiguille d’Argentière and Grande Fourche, the beautiful Aiguille du Chardonnet (3824m) heads the Saleina cirque almost due west of the Saleina Hut. A very popular mountain with climbers based at the Albert Premier refuge, the narrow and exposed Forbes Arête, or East Ridge, is one of the classics of the region, often tackled from the Saleina Hut from which it is gained by first climbing a snow couloir at the head of the glacier to reach the Fenêtre Supérieure du Tour.
La Fouly
Continuing deeper into Val Ferret beyond Praz de Fort, more meadows, groups of chalets and haybarns underline the pastoral nature of the valley. Shortly before reaching La Fouly, the hamlet of L’Amône has significance for climbers; not for the proximity of any great peak, but for the 400m white limestone crag known as the Amône Slab that gives delicate climbing of TD+ with individual moves up to VI-. Note however, that a storm can transform the slab in moments, so stay clear if the weather is threatening.
Standing astride the road at 1592m La Fouly is the undisputed mountaineering centre of the valley. Hardly a resort, this small village has a large campsite at the entrance to the l’A Neuve cirque crowned by the Tour Noir. La Fouly has a Bureau des Guides et Accompagnateurs, a ski school, some 15km of marked pistes for cross-country skiing, 160km of waymarked paths, several shops and restaurants, and an Office du Tourisme (www.verbier-st-bernard.ch) in the main street. For accommodation there are three hotels that also have dormitories: the Grand-Hotel du Val Ferret (www.ghvf.ch), Hotel Edelweiss, and Hotel des Glaciers, while Camping des Glaciers sprawls just below the village.
Mont Dolent, on whose summit the borders of Switzerland, France and Italy unite
Built on the north side of l’A Neuve cirque, in a spectacular position under the crest of the Pointes des Essettes at 2735m, and with a direct view of Mont Dolent’s steep North Face, Cabane de l’A Neuve is another SAC hut owned by the Diablerets section. With just 28 places it has a guardian from mid-March to mid-May, and from the middle of June to the end of September (www.aneuve.ch). The approach route, which takes about 3½hrs from La Fouly and is signed from near the campsite, is a challenging one, aided in places by fixed chains or cables and with a glacial torrent for company part of the way.
Above the hut the rock peaks of the Grand and Petit Darray (3514m; 3508m) offer interesting, albeit modestly graded routes, while a traverse from one to the other entails about 400m of scrambling. Nearby the Grande Lui is another of those easy snow peaks that makes an excellent first-season introduction to alpinism. At the southern end of the glacial cirque, the glorious North Face of Mont Dolent is a very different proposition. With an air of remoteness, the 550m of this ice-plastered wall gives a fine TD outing, but with real danger from falling ice. Its voie normale, on the other hand is an uncomplicated PD ascent by way of the SE Ridge, as discovered by Whymper’s party in 1864. For climbs on the East Ridge (AD), a small orange-coloured bivouac hut, Bivouac du Dolent (sometimes referred to as Cabane de la Maye), has been placed on the left bank moraine of the Dolent glacier at 2667m, and is gained by an approach of about 3hrs from La Fouly. Prospective users should take their own food and stove.
MONT DOLENT
Acting as the southeast cornerstone of the Mont Blanc range, the 3820m summit of Mont Dolent is significant for being the point where the borders of Switzerland, France and Italy meet. An attractive mountain with four irregular faces, it was first approached from the Italian side on 9 July 1864 by Edward Whymper and Adams-Reilly with their guides Michel Croz and Michel Payot, and Henri Charlet as porter. It was a straightforward climb from the Petit Col Ferret using the SE Ridge as the most obvious route; ‘a miniature ascent’ according to Whymper. As for the summit, ‘it was the loveliest little cone of snow that was ever piled up on a mountain-top … But there was nothing little about the view from the Mont Dolent’ – as many have commented since. ‘A superb view,’ said Rébuffet, ‘very extensive, over a whole series of different landscapes, from the wild to the pastoral.’ Adams-Reilly was emphatic: ‘Situated at a junction of three mountain ridges, it rises in a positive steeple far above anything in its immediate neighbourhood; and certain gaps in the surrounding ridges … extend the view in almost every direction… The view is as extensive, and far more lovely than that from Mont Blanc itself.’
The Upper Val Ferret
Outside La Fouly the road curves southeastward, drawing away from the main wall of peaks and in so doing gains a better prospect of them. The path used by the TMB (albeit more often walked in the opposite direction) crosses the river and gives an option of climbing to the Petit Col Ferret, while the more popular Grand Col Ferret route keeps company with the Drance de Ferret as far as Ferret. Before reaching this final village (in reality little more than a hamlet), a short diversion leads to the Gîte de la Léchère which is open from June to the end of September, has 35 dorm places, self-catering facilities and meals provision (tel 027 783 30 64).
The tiny chapel at Ferret
Ferret (1705m) clusters at what was formerly the roadhead, and now marks the terminus of the postbus route from Orsières. Standing near the tiny chapel with fine mountain views, Hotel Col de Fenêtre is open from June until the end of September, and provides the only accommodation, with 17 beds and 18 dormitory places (www.hotelcoldefenetre.theyellowpages.ch).
High above Val Ferret the Lacs de Fenêtre lie in a charming plateau with views to the Grandes Jorasses, Mont Dolent and Tour Noir
Upstream beyond Ferret the road passes through light woodland, then emerges to open pastures loud with the clatter of cowbells. Ahead the valley seems to be enclosed by rolling green hills, while a backward glance shows a dramatic cluster of peaks and glaciers. The official roadhead lies below the dairy farm of Les Ars dessous, where the original TMB route (now relegated to variant status) descends to the river, crosses a bridge and follows a farm track as the initial stage of the climb to the Grand Col Ferret (2½hrs) and the Italian side of Mont Blanc.
Meanwhile, on the other (east) side of the valley, a track winds up the hillside above the farm, and later becomes a footpath which leads onto an utterly charming plateau graced by the Lacs de Fenêtre at a little under 2500m. Reached in 2–2½hrs from Ferret, the first of these lakes presents a matchless foreground to a view of the Grandes Jorasses, Mont Dolent and the Tour Noir. To the south the frontier ridge is enticing for a different reason. In that ridge the 2698m Fenêtre de Ferret not only gives a sighting of Mont Blanc’s Italian flank, but of the Gran Paradiso range to the south; it also suggests a way over the mountains into Italy where the Grand St Bernard road can be seen descending to the plains.
Northeast of the Lacs de Fenêtre, the 2757m Col du Bastillon takes walkers over a ridge descending from the Monts Telliers, where it’s then possible to traverse the upper slopes of the Combe de Drône to Col de Chevaux and the Col du Grand St Bernard. Yet another option for walkers is to strike north from the lakes, passing below the Monts Telliers and rising to a saddle, over which a way descends through the long funnel of the Combe de l’A to gain the village of Liddes in Val d’Entremont.
2:2 Val d’Entremont
With the Col du Grand St Bernard at its head, Val d’Entremont has seen a steady procession of travellers since the earliest times. It was known to the Celts and the Romans; emperors and armies marched through the valley, as did countless pilgrims on their way to Rome. In the 11th century a hospice was founded on the pass, and on gaining it in the winter of 1178, the English monk John de Bremble uttered the heartfelt prayer: ‘Lord restore me to my brethren that I may tell them that they shall not come to this place of torment.’
Scenically Val d’Entremont is unremarkable, for it lacks the grandeur of the majority of Pennine valleys. True, it has the Combin massif and Mont Vélan to wall its upper reaches, but these are not as prominently displayed as one might expect, other than in brief select places, and there’s little to capture the imagination except perhaps by escaping the valley bed in order to gain a more elevated vantage point. The best of these will be found on the west flank, on the modest 2476m Tour de Bavon or the Bec Rond (2563m) above Vichères in the mouth of the Combe de l’A, for example.
A major highway cuts through the valley, bypassing its few villages and, since 1964, tunnelling beneath the actual pass to emerge on the Italian side of the mountains, leaving the old road to snake its way up to the Col du Grand St Bernard with its historic hospice, photogenic dogs and somewhat tacky souvenir stands.
It is at Orsières (901m), or rather just north of it, that the St Bernard road breaks away from the approach to Val Ferret. This little town, where the train from Martigny terminates, has most of the necessities for stocking up with supplies for the hills, with supermarkets, a pharmacy, several banks and an ATM or two, a post office, restaurants and three hotels: Hotel des Alpes, Hotel Terminus, and Hotel Union which also has 100 dorm places. For tourist information go to www.verbier-st-bernard.ch.
Green hillsides lead to Orsières
TOUR DES COMBINS
Although the Grand Combin does not impress itself upon Val d’Entremont as it does on Val de Bagnes, it’s a major massif with several high summits, big snowfields and glaciers. As its name suggests, the six-day Tour des Combins makes a circuit of the massif to give the experienced mountain walker some truly spectacular views and reasonably tough days. The trek leads through tracts of wild country and crosses several passes, but it also visits attractive small villages on the Italian flank. (For further information see: www.tourdescombins.ch)
Day 1: Leaving Bourg-St-Pierre the route heads north to the chapel of Notre Dame de Lorette where a path rises through forest on the east flank of the valley, leading to the alp of Creux du Mâ. It then sweeps up to the lower Boveire alp at 2230m and continues on a long contour with Mont Blanc’s outlying peaks on show to the west. In a little over 4hrs from Bourg you reach the grassy Col de Mille and the timber-built Cabane du Col de Mille at 2472m. Views include the Grand and Petit Combin, Mont Vélan, Grandes Jorasses and Mont Dolent.
Day 2: Crossing Col de Mille above the hut, this 5–5½hrs stage descends into a grassy combe, then works a way round the hillside above Val de Bagnes to gain the privately owned Cabane Brunet, from where two options take the continuing route to the Panossière Hut. The most direct climbs steeply to cross Col des Avouillons (2647m) onto the Corbassière glacier, while the alternative descends into a tight little valley, then mounts a vegetated spur and eventually reaches the east bank lateral moraine of the glacier on which the Cabane de Panossière (Cabane François-Xavier Bagnoud) is set at 2645m. The alpenglow on the Grand Combin is truly spectacular from here.
Day 3: This begins by climbing to Col des Otanes, at 2846m the highest point on the tour, followed by a steep descent towards Mauvoisin. After crossing the Pazagnou stream, veer away from the valley-bound route and cross the spur of Pierre d’Vire, then make an undulating traverse of the upper west flank of Val de Bagnes, near the head of which stands the 2462m Cabane de Chanrion. Ending with a seemingly relentless uphill drag, this is gained about 7hrs from the Panossière Hut.
Day 4: Taking the tour round the southern side of the Combin massif, all but the first 2½hrs of this stage are spent in Italy, where waymarks are painted yellow with the initials ‘TDC’. The easy 2797m Fenêtre de Durand on the frontier reveals a complex and varied panorama, and from it the way slants down to the vast pastureland cirque of Conca di By. A bisse is followed for some way beyond the cirque, curving south through verdant pastures. From the Néan alpage a trail then begins to climb northwestward to reach the next overnight shelter at 2380m. Cabane Champillon was inaugurated in June 2005, and is gained at the end of a 7–7½hr stage from the Chanrion Hut.
Day 5: An hour’s trek leads to Col de Champillon (2708m), which gives views of Mont Blanc in one direction, the Combin massif in the other. On the way down into the Vallée de Menouve the Grand St Bernard road intrudes into the landscape, yet the trail retains interest all the way, with one or two tiny hamlets and villages to pass through. St-Rhémy offers limited but comfortable hotel accommodation for the night at 1619m (6hrs from Cabane Champillon).
Day 6: Above the village the old road, now little more than a track, is followed all the way to the Col du Grand St Bernard at 2469m. Arrival can bring a shock to the system as the pass is invariably crowded with traffic and tourists, but it takes only a few moments to escape along a path that initially descends into Val d’Entremont along the right-hand side of the road, then crosses to the left through alp pastures and alongside the dammed Lac des Toules, before entering Bourg-St-Pierre about 5½hrs after leaving St-Rhémy.
From a ridge north of Mont Brulé, high above Val d’Entremont, walkers enjoy views to outliers of the Mont Blanc range
The main road loops up the hillside above Orsières, then strikes southeastward to ease into the valley proper, and after about 8km runs along the outskirts of Liddes (1346m). After Orsières this is the first village of any size on the way to the Grand St Bernard, with two small groceries, and a tourist office beside the road. The valley is broad and pastoral here; the eastern side being terraced, the lower hillsides wooded. Above the village to the north rises Mont Brulé (2572m), a walker’s summit with commanding views of the Mont Blanc range, as well as the Bernese Alps and the Dents du Midi. A path ascends the east flank of the valley out of Liddes, making for Col de Mille and the small, timber-built Cabane du Col de Mille (2472m) in about 3½hrs. From there Mont Brulé is but a short and easy walk away. Being used by trekkers on the Tour des Combins and the Tour des Val de Bagnes, as well as walkers enjoying a few local routes, the hut can be very busy – especially at weekends. It has just 36 dorm places, is owned by the Liddes commune by whom it was built in 1996, and is staffed from mid-June to the end of September (tel 079 221 15 16).
Six kilometres beyond, and almost 300m higher than Liddes, Bourg-St-Pierre (1632m) is the largest village in the valley proper; an old place crowded just below the main road. This is about as close as you get to a mountaineering centre in Val d’Entremont, although it’s little more than a place from which to set out for one or other of the huts that serve the Combin and Vélan massifs, or to retreat to in order to dry out when the weather turns foul. It’s also used as one of the main starting points for the multi-day Tour des Combins. There’s a long-established alpine garden here, a small supermarket, a few hotels, including the Auberge les Charmettes which has dorm accommodation, and a campsite, Camping du Grand St Bernard. For tourist information go to www.verbier-st-bernard.ch.
Above Bourg to the southeast the Valsorey tributary drains the west flank of the Combin massif and the north side of Mont Vélan, and is the way through which to approach the Cabanes du Vélan and de Valsorey. Leaving Bourg-St-Pierre an underpass sneaks beneath the main road and leads onto a minor road which cuts for a short way into this small tributary valley. After about 45mins you reach the Cordonna chalets at 1834m, and continue above the stream for another hour or so to a fork. The right branch is the one to take for Cabane du Vélan (see below), but by keeping ahead you shortly reach the Chalet d’Amont (2197m) about 2hrs from Bourg-St-Pierre. The view of Mont Vélan is impressive from here. Now the path goes up to the Six Rodzes rock barrier, ascends a gully aided by fixed chains and sections of ladder, then swings round to the east, heading for pastures and a long spur to reach the Cabane de Valsorey at 3030m, about 4–4½hrs after setting out. Owned by the Chaux-de-Fonds section of the SAC, this stone-built hut, with its direct view of Mont Vélan, is used by Haute Route skiers as well as by climbers. It has 60 places and is staffed in the ski-touring season (mid-March to May) and from July until mid-September (www.valsorey.ch).
The ascent of Combin de Valsorey, the 4184m West summit of the Combin massif, is an obvious attraction. This is climbed either by the West Ridge (AD) via Col du Meitin, or by the SW Face (PD+) via the tremendous viewpoint of the Plateau du Couloir – the latter traversed by ski-mountaineers on the ‘classic’ Haute Route (there are alternative stages), of which it forms a key passage on the way to the Chanrion Hut via Col du Sonadon. The highest of the Combin summits, the 4314m Combin de Grafeneire (Grand Combin), is also climbed from the Valsorey Hut via Col du Meitin and the NW Face, or by first taking in Combin de Valsorey, then descending to a saddle at 4132m from where the NW Face route (see 2:3) is joined for the final ascent to the summit.
Southwest of the Valsorey hut Cabane du Vélan (2642m) serves climbers tackling the 3731m Mont Vélan, one of the earliest snow mountains to be climbed. The initial route of approach to the hut is identical with that to Cabane de Valsorey, but when the path forks just below the Chalet d’Amont, you branch right, cross a footbridge over the Valsorey torrent and climb south in a series of zigzags to gain the hut, which is situated below the Tseudet glacier with magnificent views of the Grand Combin in one direction, and the Mont Blanc massif in the other (3hrs from Bourg-St-Pierre). Property of the Genevoise section of the SAC, this modern-looking hut has 60 places and a resident warden usually from mid-March to the end of September, although the hut may not be permanently staffed in June (www.velan.ch).
To the southwest rises the 3202m Petit Vélan, but at the head of the glacier to the south the main block of Mont Vélan carries the frontier with a dome of snow and a complex of ridges at the culminating point of a great spur thrust out from the Grand Combin. As with so many Swiss mountains its glaciers are shrinking fast, as its moraine troughs testify, and it’s very different from the Mont Vélan known to the pioneers. But in late winter and springtime, when the snow cover is consolidated, it attracts ski-mountaineers, for whom it affords a fine ascent by way of the Col de la Gouille and Valsorey glacier. Perhaps the finest summer route from the Vélan Hut is the NNW Ridge (the Tseudet Arête AD/AD+), first climbed in 1897 by a large party that included Tom Longstaff, one of the greatest of the early Himalayan explorers. From the Aiguille du Vélan the route goes along the linking snow crest to the Dôme du Vélan and the main summit (7–7½hrs) overlooking the vast cirque of the Conca di By on the Italian flank, while the Grand Combin nearby, Mont Blanc to the west, and the Paradiso massif to the southwest are highlights in a memorable panorama. Hubert Walker called it ‘a panorama of equal magnificence with any in the Alps’ (Walking in the Alps).
COL DU GRAND ST BERNARD: A PLACE IN HISTORY
Reckoned to have been in use since the Bronze Age, the Col du Grand St Bernard is the oldest and best-known of the alpine pass routes. Tradition has it that Hannibal crossed with his elephants in 217BC, and in 57BC Julius Caesar marched with his army across the windblown gap in the mountains to attack Martigny. The emperor Augustus built a road across the pass, and there set up a temple to Jupiter, which was sacked with the fall of Rome.
Its earliest name was Mon Jovis, after the Roman temple, and between the 8th and 15th centuries it was regularly crossed by Rome-bound pilgrims, clerics and medieval emperors. But the pass was (and still is) prone to sudden storms and many travellers perished whilst attempting to cross, so in 1070 Bernard of Menthon, the archdeacon of Aosta, masterminded the construction of a hospice on the summit overlooking a small lake. This became a welcome haven for travellers, with the canons and lay brothers quartered there providing free shelter and food to all who requested it. These same custodians of the pass also rescued countless snowbound travellers, although the first mention of the famous St Bernard dogs was not made until 1708. (Today helicopters and sophisticated search equipment have more or less made the dogs redundant for rescue purposes, although a number have been retained by the hospice.)
During the late 18th century whole armies crossed the pass, the most famous being that of Napoleon who, between 14 and 20 May 1800 led 40,000 troops into Italy to defeat the Austrians at Marengo. Accounts of that crossing describe the future emperor’s descent as a form of glissade: ‘suffering himself, according to the custom of the country, to glide down upon the snow.’ But as a result of the difficulties encountered in manhandling heavy pieces of artillery up to and across the pass, within three months of his victory at Marengo, Napoleon ordered the road across the Simplon from Brig to Domodossola to be made passable for artillery, and this was completed five years later.
As for Bernard of Menthon, he was beatified shortly after his death around 1080, and in 1923 Pope Pius XI confirmed him as the patron saint of the Alps. His statue now gazes out over a wild landscape near the Italian customs post.
The Upper Val d’Entremont
Skirting the Lac de Toules reservoir above Bourg-St-Pierre the main road is protected by a long section of avalanche galleries and a tunnel. At the southern end the old road emerges to a moorland-like upper valley, while the main road enters the 6km long Tunnel du Grand St Bernard (open all-year, toll charged). The upper valley is clothed with rough slopes of grass, alpenrose, heather and scrub, but there’s skiing on the north-facing slopes of the east flank at the so-called Super-St-Bernard resort, served by the Menouve télécabine whose valley station stands beside the road on emerging from the avalanche protection galleries at Bourg-St-Bernard. A 20min walk from here leads to the Refuge du Plan du Jeu, which has 26 dormitory places (tel 027 787 12 35).
Impassable to traffic in winter, the final approach to the pass goes along the fearsome-sounding, avalanche-prone Combe des Morts before arriving at the Col du Grand St Bernard and the frontier with Italy. For users of this guide its place in history is possibly more interesting than its present (see box), for although the views can be enticing, and there are various walks and climbs to be tackled from the pass, including the ascent of the 2949m Pointe du Drone with its sections of via ferrata, there are many more rewarding and atmospheric locations in the Pennine Alps to use as a base. However, for those who fancy a night here, accommodation can be had at the hospice itself in standard beds or dormitories (www.gsbernard.ch), and the museum is worth a visit.
2:3 Val de Bagnes
From its headwall backing pastures and old moraines south of the Mauvoisin reservoir, to the confluence of the Drance de Bagnes with that of the Entremont at Sembrancher, Val de Bagnes carves a deep swathe through the mountains east of Val d’Entremont. For the most part it’s a narrow valley, steep-walled on its east flank, less so (except near its head) on the west where a few hamlets are set among meadows and fringes of woodland. A string of small villages and hamlets line the valley bed, and with an area of 295 square kilometres the Bagnes commune claims to be the most extensive in all Switzerland.
Mountaineering interest is concentrated on the great Combin massif, but lesser summits grouped near the valley head have value too, and the Brenay and Otemma glaciers provide routes of access to peaks further east. Skiers working their way towards Zermatt on the Haute Route cross the Combin massif to use Cabane de Chanrion as an overnight stop before heading for the Vignettes Hut, while crowds of downhill skiers flock each winter to the slopes of Verbier. As for mountain walkers, there’s enough to keep enthusiasts happy for many a long day, although some of the routes can be brutally steep.
The branch line served by the St Bernard Express runs from Martigny to Le Châble via Sembrancher. An unpretentious stone-walled village, Sembrancher (717m) has limited pension accommodation, a campsite, foodstores and a restaurant. A little over 5km to the east, and surrounded on three sides by meadows, Le Châble (821m) is the main village of the valley. This too, is very modest in size, with some old buildings forming a square on the left bank of the Drance, while neighbouring Villette across the river has more modern development. Taken together there are just three hotels, several apartments, a post office, a handful of shops and restaurants and an Office du Tourisme located at the valley station of the cableway to Verbier (www.verbier.ch). The railway terminates here, but the postbus serves the rest of the valley as far as Mauvoisin, and also carries passengers up the northern hairpins to Verbier. A side road breaks away from Le Châble and winds through meadows to Bruson, above which small groups of commuter homes and holiday chalets enjoy a sunny aspect. Higher still, a few ski tows exploit the slopes of Six Blanc, from which the Dents du Midi can be clearly seen to the northwest.
The Walker’s Haute Route comes through Le Châble, as does the Tour du Val de Bagnes, a fairly demanding six–seven day trek which adopts some dramatic trails that seek out a number of incomparable vantage points.
TOUR DU VAL de BAGNES
With the option of a start by cableway, and with six huts and a hotel from which to choose accommodation, the TVB enables walkers to select their own itinerary. The first stage, for example, could be spent mounting the steep 1600m of hillside above Le Châble to reach Cabane du Mont Fort. But an alternative would be to ride the gondola to Verbier, thus avoiding the main climb, then take another to Les Ruinettes, and walk past the Mont Fort Hut to spend the first night at Cabane de Louvie. At a later stage of the Tour, there’s the option of having a short day’s walk from the Panossière Hut to Cabane Brunet, or of continuing to Cabane du Col de Mille. Much will depend on weather conditions, time available, and the fitness of the individual walker.
Day 1: From Le Châble cross the river to nearby Villette and take a series of linking footpaths up the steep slope to Les Verneys, and on to the suntrap of Clambin, where there’s a restaurant. Above this the way continues to climb over open slopes, until a bisse is joined which leads round the hillside, and from which a final uphill drag brings you to Cabane du Mont Fort (2457m), about 6–6½hrs from Le Châble.
Day 2: A short but scenically spectacular day’s walk takes the TVB along the exposed path of the Sentier des Chamois, with the Grand Combin fully displayed across the valley. Col Termin then directs the route northeastward above the Louvie combe, with a path descending to Lac de Louvie and (3hrs from Mont Fort) the cosy Cabane de Louvie (2250m) built in 1997 by the Bagnes commune.
Day 3: This is a demanding stage; not long (4½–5hrs) but reasonably tough and with exposed sections of trail that demand caution. It begins by climbing steeply to cross a ridge spur at about 2490m, the east side of which is exposed and precipitous. Descending into a hanging valley, the way then climbs again to cross the Tête du Sarclau, followed by a long descending traverse path that eventually reaches the valley bed at Mauvoisin, where a small hotel sits in the shadow of the massive concrete barrage wall.
Day 4: From Mauvoisin to Cabane de Chanrion near the head of the valley is a 3½hr delight. A road tunnel leads onto the dam wall, and on the eastern side of Lac de Mauvoisin a track gives 30mins or so of easy walking before you break away on a zigzag path rising into pastureland where ibex, marmot and chamois may all be seen. Passing between the Lacs de Tsofeiret the TVB mounts a grassy spur to Col de Tsofeiret; grass on one side, a steep rocky descent with fixed chains and timber steps on the other. (Some stonefall danger.) The trail continues across a wilderness of moraine to reach the SAC’s Cabane de Chanrion at 2462m.
Day 5: Reversing Day 3 of the Tour des Combins (2:2), this 7½–8hr stage returns along the west flank of the valley on an undulating trail passing small tarns, pools and shepherds’ huts, via rocky sections and long open pastures with views through the Val de Bagnes. A steep 700m climb to Col des Otanes (2880m) is rewarded by a sudden spectacular panorama that includes most of the Combin massif and its glaciers. A 200m descent then leads to the well-appointed Cabane de Panossière on the right bank moraine of the Corbassière glacier.
Day 6: After descending below the glacier, the TVB then wanders across a hillside carpeted with alpenroses, cuts into a cleft-like valley and climbs steeply to reach the privately owned Cabane Brunet (2103m) after about 2½hrs. Another 3hrs will be needed to complete this stage, which is mostly pastoral and with views of the Dents du Midi in the distance. Gaining Col de Mille in the valley’s west wall, a few paces on the other side reveals the little Cabane du Col de Mille at 2472m.
Day 7: Less than 30mins after leaving the hut you stand on the modest summit of Mont Brulé from which the Mont Blanc massif is displayed in all its grandeur. That view remains as you wander along the ridge towards Six Blanc. Turning through a grassy col the Dents du Midi then take the place of Mont Blanc, before you descend through woodland and meadow to the Moay chalets where there’s a restaurant, and continue downhill to Le Châble to complete the Tour du Val de Bagnes, 4½–5hrs from Col de Mille.
Almost 700m above Le Châble, with which it is connected by 9km of steeply winding road, Verbier (1526m) is one of the country’s major ski resorts which grew from a tiny village in the 1950s to a sprawling complex of apartment blocks, hotels, shops and modern housing. The ski boom of the 1960s made Verbier fashionable as a place in which to spend the winter careering downhill, and today it attracts something like a million visitors a year. Short on charm, and with the slopes above it strung about with cableways, chairlifts and tows detracting from its aesthetic heritage, the lure of white gold has been used, no doubt, to justify the eyesores. It is said that rooms in apartments and private chalets outnumber hotel beds by a factor of ten to one. The tourist office on Place Centrale is worth a visit if you arrive on spec, but for more information go to www.verbier.ch.
Being the premier resort of the so-called Four Valleys ski area (www.4vallees.ch), Verbier is linked with Savoleyres above Isérables, and Nendaz in the next valley over the mountains (2:4), with cableways swinging up to Mont Gelé (3023m) and the glaciers of Mont Fort (3328m); and with the huge ‘Le Jumbo’ cable car transporting up to 150 people at a time via Col des Gentianes. But while skiing takes pride of place in and around Verbier, the resort also caters for other adventure sports. The mountain guides office is situated at the Maison du Sport, with climbing, high-level mountain walking and canyoning included in their prospectus (www.maisondusport.com), while the Ecole d’Alpinisme La Fantastique also runs mountaineering courses (www.lafantastique.com).
Before leaving Verbier it is worth mentioning the 2473m rock tower of Pierre Avoi which stands northwest of the resort overlooking the Rhône valley. Usually approached by taking the Savoleyres cableway followed by an easy walk, this limestone turret is not only accessible to tourists via steps, chains and ladders, but along with the neighbouring Clochetons de la Pierre Avoi, forms a rock climber’s playground. The many equipped routes are marked on topos available from the Verbier guides’ office.
Cabane du Mont Fort
To the east of the resort Cabane du Mont Fort is perched on a bluff at 2457m under the Monts de Sion. Property of the Jaman section of the SAC, the hut was refurbished in 2002, and its 66 places are now divided between conventional dormitories and 2, 4 and 6-bedded rooms (www.cabanemontfort.ch). Staffed in winter (December to mid-May) and from late June to mid-September, it’s reached by a 3hr walk from Verbier, or 1¼hrs from the Ruinettes gondola. Although there are cableways nearby, the outlook from the hut is magical, with the Mont Blanc range concentrating one’s attention.
The Mont Fort Hut is well-used by walkers in summer, for there are several rewarding routes to follow, including the ascent of Mont Gelé (3023m), for example. Having been assaulted by the ski industry, the mountain has lost any sense of isolation, but the cableway which rises to within a few metres of the summit does not operate in summer, and the uncomplicated 2hr walk and scramble from the hut via Col du Mont Gelé is made worthwhile for the extent and variety of the views. These include the Mont Blanc range, the Combin massif, and the western end of the Bernese Alps.
The 3336m snowpeak of Rosablanche rising some way southeast of the hut, but unseen from there, is another temptation for first-season alpinists, for whom the 4hr ascent via Col de Momin and the Grand Désert glacier is only graded F. Rosablanche is also climbed from the St Laurent (2:4) and Prafleuri (2:5) huts, the latter giving a much shorter climb of just 2½hrs.
For the general mountain walker the number one route to take from Cabane du Mont Fort is without question the sensational Sentier des Chamois, which follows a belvedere course southeastward along the mountainside some 1600m above the valley bed. Narrow, exposed and safeguarded in places by fixed cable or chains, this is not a path to take in adverse conditions. But in summer when snow and ice have cleared and the weather’s fine, the Sentier gives a memorable excursion. A sighting of ibex and chamois is almost guaranteed, and the direct prospect of the Grand Combin is unbeatable. Col Termin at the southern end of the Sentier gives a choice of continuing routes. One descends to Lac de Louvie, while another swings northeast towards Col de Louvie – this latter option being taken by trekkers on the Walker’s Haute Route. Before reaching Col de Louvie, however, another trail cuts up to the left on a scrambly ascent to Col de la Chaux (2940m), over which a descent (confused among rocks and boulders) could be made back to the Mont Fort Hut.
A descent path from Col Termin enters a little hanging valley at whose southern end lies Lac de Louvie. As you approach the tarn, careful to avoid boggy patches advertised with cushions of cotton grass, the Combin massif once again draws your attention. At the far end of the lake, and standing a few metres above it on a 2207m bluff, Cabane de Louvie was built by the Bourgeoisie de Bagnes. This light, modern hut has 54 dorm places and is manned only in the high summer season from July to mid-September (tel 027 778 17 40) – there’s no winter access. Two onward routes are worth mention: the first is a direct 2hr descent to Fionnay; an extremely steep zigzag path with occasional fixed chains for safety. The other takes the path of the Tour du Val de Bagnes (see box) on a demanding and exposed up and down route, before slanting down to Mauvoisin (4½–5hrs).
View from the terrace at Cabane du Mont Fort
Le Châble to Fionnay
‘The lower part of the Val de Bagnes,’ said R L G Irving in The Alps, ‘is full of smiling villages. All the way up to Lourtier the valley bed is wide enough to allow plenty of room for road and stream and cultivation.’
Beyond Le Châble the main road bypasses Montagnier on the opposite bank of the river, but goes through Versegères and Champsec where it then crosses to the north side of the Drance de Bagnes and enters Lourtier (1072m). Having a supermarket, this is a useful place for stocking with supplies for the mountains. Overnight accommodation is possible here at La Vallée, which has 33 beds and 88 dormitory places (www.vallee.ch).
On the edge of the village a secondary road breaks away, recrossing the river to make a long winding ascent of the southern hillside, on the way topping a promontory known as La Ly to reach Cabane Brunet (Cabane Marcel Brunet: 2103m), which has a small pool lying before it. Owned, like the Cabane de Louvie, by the Bourgeoisie de Bagnes, this is understandably popular with day visitors for whom lunch with a view of the distant Dents du Midi makes the drive worthwhile. But it is also well used by ski-mountaineers in springtime, and by walkers tackling both the Tour des Combins and Tour du Val de Bagnes. Permanently staffed from July to September, and partially open from mid-December to the end of May, it has 65 dormitory places (tel 027 778 18 10) and a homely restaurant-dining room.
A little over 12km from Le Châble the main road enters the hamlet of Fionnay (1490m) trapped below soaring mountain walls. (For tourist information tel 027 776 16 82). This one-time mountaineering centre has a small shop, a post office and the 2-star Hotel du Grand Combin which has 48 dorm places as well as standard rooms (www.fionnay.ch). From Fionnay paths climb steeply on the northern side of the valley to Cabane de Louvie and the ruins of Le Dâ (above which Col de Severeu suggests a way over the mountains to Val des Dix); another makes the ascent eastwards to the Louvie–Mauvoisin high trail which it meets at Ecurie du Crêt; and yet another strikes south up the mountainside on the way to the Panossière Hut. Only a walk along the valley bed can be made without too much effort.
The valley’s north (right) flank having been dealt with from Cabane du Mont Fort, we will look at the south side, and in particular the route to Cabane de Panossière, for this is the way chosen by climbers bound for the Grand Combin. This 4hr walk begins by crossing the Drance de Bagnes at Fionnay on a footbridge, then climbs steeply above a small lake to pass some ruins after about 1½hrs. The well-trodden path then swings to the south into the valley scooped out by the retreating Corbassière glacier, and comes to Plan Goli, a beautiful area of grass, flowers and streams in an ablation trough backed by old moraines. Now the way twists up to a tiny pool and continues along the moraine crest to reach Cabane de Panossière (Cabane F-X Bagnoud: 2645m). A splendid hut, built in 1996 to replace a former refuge destroyed by avalanche, its setting is magnificent with a direct view along the icy highway of the Corbassière glacier to the North Face of the Grand Combin, while directly opposite rise the Petit Combin and Combin de Corbassière. Although the former hut was owned by the SAC, the present building belongs to the Association François-Xavier Bagnoud of Sion. Of modern design, it has dormitory places for 103 and a resident guardian in April and May, and from July to September (www.cabane-fxb-panossiere.ch).
Cabane de Panossière, base for climbs in the Combin massif
Climbers and ski-mountaineers will naturally focus their attention on assorted routes on the Combin massif (see below), but walkers have several options to consider when it comes to leaving the hut. The easiest of these simply reverses the approach route from Fionnay described above. Another, adopted by the Tour du Val de Bagnes (see box) descends into Plan Goli, then crosses the glacial torrent to a continuing path that works its way round the mountainside to Cabane Brunet in 2½hrs. A third option also makes its way to Cabane Brunet, but instead of descending to Plan Goli, it crosses the lower reaches of the Corbassière glacier, then tackles Col des Avouillons for a more direct approach. And a fourth option entails crossing the 2846m Col des Otanes east of the Panossière Hut, followed by a steep descent into Val de Bagnes at Mauvoisin. Reached in just 40mins or so from the hut, the col makes a wonderful vantage point from which to study the Combin massif – a view of big mountains, sweeping glaciers and ice-bound cirques. Given sufficient time, it would be feasible to make an ascent of the 3158m Grand Tavé from Col des Otanes in about 45mins. This walker’s peak rises south of the col, where a rock scramble (F) takes you onto the easy scree-cluttered North Ridge which rises to the summit for even more extensive views, especially of the great ice cliffs that make up the northern face of the Grand Combin.
Combin Massif
Seen at its best from either Cabane de Panossière (for a close view), or the Sentier des Chamois (for a wider perspective), the Grand Combin is a major massif; high, majestic and complex, with an extensive glacier system, huge walls of rock on the south side, and on the north giant serac barriers, ice terraces and three distinct 4000m summits, namely: Combin de Grafeneire (4314m), Combin de Valsorey (4184m), and Combin de la Tsessette (4141m). Another 4000m top, the 4243m Aiguille du Croissant, was once considered the massif’s highest point, but is in fact a secondary point on Combin de Grafeneire’s snow dome, while other neighbouring mountains such as Combin de Corbassière and the Petit Combin, though not reaching the magical 4000m spot height, also make worthwhile goals.
It was three Val de Bagnes men, Benjamin and Maurice Felley, with Jouvence Bruchez, who in July 1857 discovered the route taken until recent years by most parties heading for the Grand Combin (Combin de Grafeneire), although they stopped short of the actual summit by assuming the Aiguille du Croissant to be the top. The real summit was gained two years later by Charles St-Clair Deville, Daniel, Emmanuel and Gaspard Balleys, and Basile Dorsaz. Approached from the north, the pioneers’ route ascended glacier terraces to a long icy ramp, since named the Corridor which led to the Combin de Tsesseret, but this ramp is threatened by collapsing seracs and over the years a number of parties came to grief while tackling the Corridor section. Nowadays the recommended route (AD-) avoids this by taking the rock crest that separates the NW Face from that of the Northeast, to reach a small bank of seracs which must be worked through in order to gain the summit dome. It’s a long route from the Panossière Hut (8hrs+), with almost 1670m of height to gain, so climbers need to be fit and keep alert to any change in the weather.
The regal Combin massif and the long Corbassière glacier
Combin de Valsorey is the West summit, and the massif’s second highest. A broad snow ridge links it with Combin de Grafeneire, and it is usually tackled from the nearer Cabane de Valsorey (2:2), but since the NW Face route is gained from the Corbassière glacier, approach from Cabane de Panossière is equally valid.
Combin de la Tsessette stands northeast of the main summit of the Grand Combin. From it a ridge pushes north then northeast to contain on its west side the glacial Corbassière valley, while the east flank of this ridge holds the little Tsessette glacier, which hangs above the southern end of the Mauvoisin lake. Rising from the Tsessette glacier, the impressive SE Face is climbed by three or four routes, each of which, being hampered by poor rock, requires good cold conditions to give some stability. These routes would best be tackled from a bivouac high above Lac de Mauvoisin, but the Panossière Hut is a practical base for climbers approaching via a course that diverts from the standard Grand Combin climb on a ridge-walk from Col du Croissant.
At 3715m Combin de Corbassière makes an obvious goal across the glacier southwest of the Panossière Hut, from which several routes are feasible. The South Ridge is the shortest and most frequented (3½–4hrs; PD-); the NW Face gives an AD climb of about 5hrs; while the NE Face, clearly seen from the hut, has three couloirs prone to stonefall danger (PD).
Petit Combin (3672m) lies just to the northwest of Combin de Corbassière and is often combined with a traverse of the latter peak. However, when conditions are favourable, an ascent by way of the Follets glacier and SE Face offers the most direct route (4hrs) from the Cabane de Panossière, while routes on the NW Face and NW Ridge are usually tackled from a base at Cabane Brunet.
The Upper Val de Bagnes
Leaving Fionnay on the final stretch to the Mauvoisin barrage roadhead, the valley opens a little on the approach to Bonatchiesse (1565m), a small hamlet with a café and a large campsite, Camping Forêt des Mélèzes. Beyond this lie small patches of open meadowland, then where the road swings right to cross the river before the final hairpin ascent to Mauvoisin, a 50m limestone crag known as the Madzeria Slab provides a series of one-pitch climbs up to VI-.
Le Pleureur and Lac de Mauvoisin in the upper Val de Bagnes
Cabane de Chanrion
At the 1840m roadhead there’s a small chapel and a hotel. Open June to September, Hotel de Mauvoisin has 20 beds and 30 dorm places (www.mauvoisin.ch). Behind it towers the massive 250m high dam wall holding back the Mauvoisin reservoir which forms part of the elaborate Grande Dixence hydro-electricity scheme. In 1818, almost a century and a half before the dam was built, a mass of ice broke away from one of the nearby glaciers and blocked the Mauvoisin gorge, causing a natural lake to form behind it. When the ice-and rock-barrier broke, a wall of water swept downvalley, killing 34 people and wreaking havoc as far as Sembrancher and Martigny, where the remains of trees and houses finally settled.
The road actually continues a short distance beyond the hotel to the barrage, and through tunnels emerges in the upper reaches of the valley on the west side of Lac de Mauvoisin, where a track (banned to private vehicles) continues almost as far as Cabane de Chanrion. On the east side of the barrage another track goes through more tunnels before heading south high above the water level. This is the preferred route by which to approach the Chanrion Hut, for about 30mins beyond the barrage a waymarked path strikes up the hillside, and crossing pastures eventually leads to the Lacs de Tsofeiret. Across the valley the abrupt wall of Combin de la Tsessette’s East Face makes an impressive show. About 70m above the largest of the three lakes, Col de Tsofeiret is very much a col of two sides; on the north it’s a grass slope, but the south side is precipitous rock down which steep zigzags lead to a chain-assisted stretch, then wood-braced steps before tucking against crags and descending to a moraine wilderness deposited by the Glacier du Brenay. About 40mins from the col you arrive at the Cabane de Chanrion (2462m), set in a basin of grass bluffs, pool-filled hollows, and mountains hung about with small glaciers, 3½hrs from the Mauvoisin roadhead (www.chanrion.ch).
When Whymper passed the night of 5 July 1865 at what he referred to as the chalets of Chanrion he was not impressed: ‘a foul spot, which should be avoided’ was his opinion. Cabane de Chanrion is very different. Owned by the Genevoise section of the SAC, it has 85 dormitory places and is permanently staffed from mid-March to the middle of May, and from mid-June to mid-September.
Using this as a base, a number of possibilities arise. For walkers a visit to the 2797m Fenêtre de Durand on the frontier ridge southwest of the hut is an obvious attraction. There’s nothing difficult about it, for a decent path mounts the flower-carpeted left bank lateral moraine of a small glacier in just 2½hrs, and views in all directions are very fine – the Gran Paradiso range especially catching your attention on the Italian side. The pass makes a natural crossing point between Val de Bagnes and Val d’Ollomont, and is used by trekkers tackling the Tour des Combins (see 2:2). Above the pass to the west rises a ‘wonderful slag heap of shale’ (Lindsay Griffin in the AC guide Valais Alps West). This description of Mont Avril (3347m) may be apt, but the easy 1½hr ascent via an unmissable trail is worth the efforts of walkers, for the summit view on a good day is truly uplifting.
One of the most attractive peaks on show from the Chanrion Hut is the Bec d’Epicoune, an elegant 3528m Ober Gabelhorn lookalike which stands on the frontier ridge southeast of the hut. Not surprisingly it’s a popular goal for climbers, for whom the North Ridge is generally reckoned to offer the best route to the summit (PD; 5hrs). Looming over the hut to the east, the 3403m rock pyramid of the Pointe d’Otemma is another popular target for climbers based here for a few days. It has three prominent ridges; the NE, South and West, each of which may be climbed by PD+ routes.
Then there’s the 3875m La Ruinette, another pyramid-shaped peak, this one located north of Pointe d’Otemma from which it is separated by the Brenay glacier. First climbed by Whymper with Christian Almer and Franz Biner on 6 July 1865, it is a tremendous vantage point, as Whymper was at pains to point out. ‘As a standpoint it has not many superiors. You see mountains, and nothing but mountains. It is a solemn … view, but it is very grand. The great Combin, with its noble background of the whole range of Mont Blanc, never looks so big as it does from here. In the contrary direction, the Matterhorn overpowers all besides’ (Scrambles Amongst the Alps). Whymper also stated (and there’s no reason to contradict him) that ‘There is not, I suppose, another mountain in the Alps of the same height that can be ascended so easily. You have only to go ahead: upon its southern side one can walk about almost anywhere.’ Although his route of ascent is rarely followed these days, the voie normale by the Col de Lire Rose and the SW Ridge gives an enjoyable 5½hr PD- climb.
