Tour du Mont Fallère Trek

A day in the forest with a solid climb in it. From Étroubles you walk into the side valley on tracks and paths through red fir and larch, with raspberries and wild strawberries along the way in summer. Over the day you gain a little over 800 metres, with the steepest sections in the woods before you reach the open pastures.

From the car park in Étroubles, just around the corner from the Le Tunnel campsite, a paved road soon turns into an unpaved track on trail 5. After a stream, turn left towards Chaligne and follow the flat trail past an avalanche barrier. Path 5A then climbs steeply through the forest, with views back to Becca di Viou and Dent d'Hérens, before dropping gently to the Eteley pasture at 1,689 metres. A bridge takes you across the Ars torrent, with Mont Vélan in front of you. Follow the river downhill for a while, then turn right onto a wide path that climbs steadily through the forest.

Out of the trees, facing the Ars pasture, a wide track leads via Alpe Collet to Rifugio Chaligne at 1,936 metres. Time to try the local cheese. About 11 kilometres, count on 4 hours.

The most varied day of the trek: forest, an open grassy ridge and a string of alpine lakes. You climb about 860 metres and descend about 440. Up on the ridge you follow yellow arrows painted on the rocks, and the route takes in a bonus summit: Pointe de Metz, at around 2,550 metres the high point of the day.

From the hut, follow the signs for Côte Tardive through the forest, gently at first and then more steeply. At a clearing with a cross and benches, rhododendrons and junipers take over. Past a farm the trail climbs steeply onto the Côte Tardive ridge. Keep an eye out for edelweiss and marmot burrows, while cowbells ring from both sides of the valley. After the top of Pointe de Metz, descend to Col de Metz at 2,486 metres, where a memorial stone points the way towards Alpe Chezere.

Via the La Neuve pasture and trail 8a you reach Lac Fallère at 2,416 metres. Walk uphill to the west to Lac des Grenouilles, where Rifugio Mont Fallère comes into view at 2,385 metres. About 11.5 kilometres, count on a good 5 hours.

The highest pass of the trek and a long way down. You first climb about 390 metres to Col Fenêtre at 2,729 metres, then it is downhill nearly all the way: more than 1,400 metres of descent to Étroubles. Below Col de Vertosan there is a short rocky section that is slightly exposed, so take your time there.

From the hut, walk to the Crottes pasture at 2,352 metres and take the path up the valley towards Col Fenêtre. The trail is often grassy and fades in places, so watch the waymarks. At the end of the valley it zigzags up to the pass. Turn left towards Vertosan over easy rocks, then right at Col de Vertosan. The first part of the descent crosses easy but slightly exposed rocky ground at around 2,500 metres.

After that it gets easier over grassland to the Tza di Flassin pasture at 2,258 metres. From there the path leads straight down to the Pineta di Flassin campsite, and the Percorso Vita trail takes you back to the start in Étroubles. About 11.5 kilometres, count on a solid 5 hours.