Fenêtre d'Arpette variant

Description

From Champex, you head up the Val d'Arpette past the Relais d'Arpette, in a wild valley that gradually narrows. The upper section crosses a huge boulder field where you sometimes need to use your hands, before the steep zigzags that lead to the Fenêtre d'Arpette (2,665 m).

At the col, the sight is breathtaking: the Trient Glacier spreads out directly opposite, overlooked by the Aiguille du Tour. The steep, rocky descent runs alongside the glacier to the Chalet du Glacier refreshment hut, then a flat path along the bisse (an old irrigation channel) leads to Trient or the Col de la Forclaz.

It is a long, demanding day, considerably harder than the route via Bovine. You need to be fit and sure-footed, and the weather must be reliable. Snowfields can linger below the col until July.

Tips

• Do not set off if thunderstorms are forecast: there is no shelter between the Relais d'Arpette and the Chalet du Glacier.
• Staying at the Relais d'Arpette the night before shortens the day and lets you start in the cool of the morning.
• Not recommended for people prone to vertigo or for inexperienced children.