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TREK 4

Tour of the Vanoise by Kev Reynolds

Start/Finish	Modane, in the Maurienne
Distance	154km
Grade	Moderate
Time	10–12 days
Terrain	The Vanoise National Park, northeast of Grenoble, France
Max Altitude	2796m
Guidebooks	Tour of the Vanoise by Kev Reynolds (Cicerone Press, 2nd edition, 2009)
Accommodation	Mountain refuges, gîtes d’étape and hotels

La Grande Casse, Grande Motte, Dent Parrachée, Pointe de l’Echelle – all these and countless other peaks form a backdrop to this figure-of-eight tour in the heart of the Vanoise National Park. Glaciers and snowfields too, play their part in the landscape, as do the lakes and pools that turn mountains on their heads, and the chamois, ibex and marmots that inhabit the inner valleys and add daily excitement to the trek. The first five days remain above any habitation except for mountain refuges and isolated farms, but then a descent is made to handsome Bonneval-sur-Arc before crossing Col de l’Iseran on the way to Val d’Isère. Returning to the sanctity of the national park takes the route across Col de la Leisse and Col de la Vanoise, and after visiting Pralognan a valley walk leads to the lofty Col de Chavière, from which a long descent revisits Modane, where the trek began.

Tour of the Vanoise

Plan du Lac is a tranquil site from which to study La Grande Casse (left) and La Grande Motte

It was mid-afternoon on a July day when, descending below the final col on the Tour of the Vanoise, I became conscious of movement among the grass hummocks ahead. My two friends and I paused, held our breath and stayed silent as a female ibex (bouquetin to the French) wandered nonchalently across the trail. Almost immediately she was followed by another, then another. Then a pair of youngsters pranced and frolicked into view; a mother snuffled and snorted, then took to grazing as yet more adults and kids appeared, blissfully unconcerned by our presence. So we slumped among the rocks and for the next 10 minutes or more, were entertained by these graceful, perfectly-at-ease wild mountain goats that inspected the hillocks and hollows around us. We could smell the musky scent of their short-haired beige coats, hear their teeth tearing at the grass, the sound of their hooves tinkling on rock. One would sneeze; another twist her head and scratch her neck with a hind foot. None took any notice of us, and time stood still as we soaked in the beauty of each moment until they finally drifted away. Magic. Pure magic.

The Parc National de la Vanoise was established in 1963 largely to protect the dwindling ibex population. That protection has proved successful, for there are now around 2000 individuals roaming the district, and each time I’ve trekked the Tour of the Vanoise I’ve seen ibex on several stages of the route. Not only ibex, but chamois and marmots, a rich variety of birds and butterflies, stoats and lizards, and the most extravagant flower meadows of any region in the Alps. With its sparkling lakes and backdrop of glacier-hung mountains, it’s also a region of great scenic beauty.

Lac des Vaches is crossed on a causeway of stone slabs

Trekkers pause to appreciate the scene in the Aussois combe

Located between the upper valleys of the Isère (Tarentaise) and Arc (Maurienne) in the département of Savoie, the Vanoise shares a common boundary with Italy’s Gran Paradiso National Park, and when the two were twinned in 1972, they created the largest nature reserve in Western Europe.

Not surprisingly, the Vanoise contains some very fine walking opportunities. The epic GR5 makes its way through the region, and several short circular tours are publicised locally. The most popular of these among French walkers, is the five-day Tour des Glaciers de la Vanoise, and the trek described here shares some of its trails. But our route is twice as long as that, and it makes almost a figure-of-eight tour of the very best the district has to offer. It’s not a difficult route, nor particularly strenuous, but it is without question a richly rewarding one.

Modane to Plan du Lac

With bus and rail access from the airports of Lyon and Grenoble, and the fast and convenient Paris to Turin TGV service stopping there, the unpretentious little town of Modane, snug in the Maurienne on the southeastern edge of the national park, makes an obvious starting point for our trek. Should you arrive there too late in the day to begin trekking straightaway, there’s a choice of modest hotels in which to spend a night before setting out on the steep uphill climb that leads to the first hut of the tour.

It is a steep uphill climb, too, but among trees for much of the way, so at least shade is guaranteed on a hot day. Modane is soon left behind, and across the rushing waters of the Arc, waymarks direct you through the ‘suburb’ of Loutraz to a signed footpath angling up the forested slope with no concessions made to muscles not yet ready for the demands of a trek in the Alps. The moral is clear: get fit before you go.

Several refuges in the area have been converted from one-time dairy farms. But not the comfortable Refuge de l’Orgère, which stands almost 900m and half a day’s hike above Modane on a sloping meadow, backed by the sharply pointed 3041m rock peak of the Aiguille Doran. Owned by the national park authority (PNV), the refuge has excellent facilities and each time I’ve stayed there delicious meals have been served in generous portions, and films about the park and its wildlife were screened in the common room during the evening.

Snow still lingers well into July as trekkers make their way from Arpont to Plan du Lac

The next four days are spent high above the river, well away from towns and villages, as the route weaves along the Maurienne flank of the mountains, then pushes deep into the heart of the region before returning to the Maurienne slope once more. Trails are mostly good, waymarks adequate, and overnight accommodation is simple but welcoming, providing all that one needs after a day’s exercise amid fine scenery.

Leaving l’Orgère the GR5 trail is adopted as it takes an undulating course along the hillside 1000m above the river, gradually rising past a pair of old stone huts to gain the broad grass saddle of Col du Barbier at 2287m. After this, the way curves into a deep combe with two lakes below and the big block of the Dent Parrachée (3697m) standing proud on the far side. The path pushes towards the head of this combe, crossing grass slopes littered with rocks and boulders and running with streams, before losing height among alpenroses on the way to the Pont de la Sétéria which spans the torrent of the Rau de Saint-Benoit. Now on the eastern side of the combe, the trail takes you just below Refuge de la Fournache and continues high above the lakes to bring you to Refuge de Plan Sec. This attractive, privately owned refuge was once a summer farm. Of the three buildings, one contains the dormitories, another the dining room (one-time stables), while the third houses the showers and toilets. There’s also a small camping area nearby.

Day three is a little more demanding, for within a few minutes of leaving Plan Sec the trail zigzags up a steep gully, edges against overhanging cliffs, then comes to a spectacular section where it has been cut into a precipitous slope. After this you twist up a spur to gain the 2363m saddle of La Turra, then climb another 100m before contouring across a steep-walled combe giving access to the valley sliced by the Doron gorge which almost divides the Vanoise region in two.

The ruins of one or two old farms are being reclaimed by the land from which they were built. There are small meadows and the remains of a rockfall to cross. Slips of old winter snow hug north-facing gullies, and as you progress towards the heart of the region, long slender cascades come pouring down the left-hand slopes, draining the unseen Glaciers de la Vanoise. And there’s a glimpse of the snow-draped 3855m La Grande Casse, the highest of the Vanoise summits, at the head of the valley as you approach the PNV-owned Refuge de l’Arpont.