Mountain Adventures in the Maurienne

This guide offers a selection of day walks, mountaineering routes, via ferratas, rock climbs, mountain biking, road cycling and treks for a multi-activity holiday in the Haute Maurienne, in the French Alps. Easily accessible, with the Vanoise National Park to the north, and the Écrins to the south. Ideal for multi activity holidays.

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Overview

Multi-activity guidebook to the Haute Maurienne region of south east France. The book describes a wide range of the finest day walks, scrambles, rock climbs, via ferratas, treks and mountain biking and road cycling routes, offering all the inspiration needed for a multi-activity or family holiday.

The Maurienne valley is served by good transport links, Modane serves as the gateway to the upper valley with links from Paris and Turin served by the TGV. Lanslebourg is the largest village after Modane and offers plenty of choice of accommodation, and Termignon is a reasonably central base for exploring the Haute Maurienne. Routes vary from pretty Alpine lake rambles to mammoth mountain bike routes and include the normal route to the summit of Dent Parrachee, the Matterhorn of the valley that can be reached without crossing a glacier, and arranged by difficulty. Information about facilities and grades for each activity are carefully explained and routes are illustrated with sketch maps, topos and profiles and inspiring photographs.

The Vanoise massif is a beautiful range of mountains bounded by the valleys of the Maurienne and the Tarentaise. Sitting on the French-Italian border, the Upper Maurienne (Haute Maurienne) has a southern boundary bordering the Italian region of Piedmont. Its northern border is less pronounced, as the massif of the Vanoise blurs the boundary with the Tarentaise valley.

Table of Contents

Contents
INTRODUCTION
Geography
The Vanoise National Park
Geology
Wildlife
Plants and flowers
History
Art and culture
Travel
When to go
Accommodation
Mountain refuges
Language
Insurance and rescue
Maps and navigation
Weather
Clothing
Wet weather alternatives
Using this guide
1 DAY WALKS
Introduction
Route 1 Lac de l'Arcelle
Route 2 La Pierre aux Pieds
Route 3 Lac Blanc and Plan des Eaux
Route 4 Vallon de la Rocheure
Route 5 Pointe de Lanserlia
Route 6 Hannibal's Crossing (Col Clapier)
Route 7 Mont Froid
Route 8 Pointe de Bellecombe
Route 9 High Valley Walk
Route 10 Pointe de l'Observatoire
2 MOUNTAINEERING ROUTES
Introduction
Route 11 Pointe Droset
Route 12 Crête de la Turra and Pointe du Grand Vallon
Route 13 Pointe des Fours
Route 14 3000ers Circuit
Route 15 Lessières Traverse
Route 16 Le Petit Vallon
Route 17 Roche d'Etache
Route 18 Traverse of Pointe de Cugne
Route 19 North Ridge of Cime du Laro
Route 20 Signal du Petit Mont Cenis
Route 21 Arête de Léché
Route 22 La Dent Parrachée
3 VIA FERRATAS
Introduction
Route 23 Le Pichet, Lanslevillard
Route 24 The Pinnacles, Aussois
Route 25 Guy Favre, Balme Noir
The Victor Emmanuel Fort Complex
Introduction
Route 26 Traversée des Anges
Route 27 Montée au Ciel
Route 28 Les Rois Mages
Route 29 Descente aux Enfers
Route 30 Remontée du Purgatoire
Via Ferrata/Rock Climbing
Route 31 Via Cordatta, Col de la Madeleine
4 ROCK CLIMBING
Introduction
Route 32 Rocher des Amoureux
Route 33 Sollières
Route 34 Rocher de Termignon
Route 35 Blocs de la Madeleine
Route 36 Dalles du Mollard
Route 37 Drailles Blanches
5 MOUNTAIN BIKING
Introduction
Bike hire and bike shops
The routes
Route 38 Termignon and Sollières Circuit
Route 39 La Girarde
Route 40 Champions' Loop
Route 41 Chemin du Petit Bonheur
Route 42 The Sardières Monolith
Route 43 Mont Cenis Circuit
6 ROAD RIDES
Introduction
Route 44 Col du Mont Cenis
Route 45 Aussois Loop
Route 46 Col de l'Iseran
Route 47 Col du Galibier
7 WALKING TOURS
Introduction
Route 48 Tour of the Vanoise Glaciers
Route 49 Tour of Méan Martin
Route 50 Tour of Pointe de l'Echelle

Appendix A Route summary tables
Appendix B Useful contacts
Appendix C Useful phrases

Maps

Maps and navigation

The French IGN ‘Top 25’ 1:25,000 maps are excellent. They identify the main paths in easy-to-see red, and more difficult sections are marked as red dots. They are sold at supermarkets and many other shops and cost around €9 each. Alternatively, they can be purchased online before you visit and there is now the option of a laminated version. (This isn’t available in France, just in the Aqua3 online map shop.) Termignon is one of those places that is on the join of three maps, so three maps are needed to cover the whole area. An alternative is the 1:50,000 map (the Carte de Randonnées A3: Alps Vanoise) which clearly identifies waymarked walking routes, climbing sites, via ferrata venues and mountain bike areas.

1:25,000 maps

• 3534OT Les Trois Vallées Modane
• 3633ET Tignes, Val d’Isère, Haute Maurienne
• 3634OT Val Cenis Charbonnel

The most recent editions of these maps show the extent of glacial retreat in a different colour.

If you are bringing a GPS, ensure it is programmed to datum WGS 84 and the grid system to UTM/UPS otherwise all grid references will be inaccurate. Don’t forget to reprogramme it to UK settings on your return or the same problems will occur back in the UK.

Unlike the UK, paths are waymarked and signed to a high degree. The signage usually gives information in times rather than distance, and these seem to be calculated with a similar formula to Naismith’s Rule of 5km per hour. The red-and-white flashes on rocks, walls and buildings will become familiar friends, and the small cycling symbols will also be a welcome aid to route finding.

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