Trekking in France into the Vanoise & Haute Maurienne

TREK PROGRAM

DAY 0 - SATURDAY
NIGHT IN HOTEL IN BOURG SAINT MAURICE

Check-in possible from 2:00 pm at the Base Camp Lodge.
Meeting with your Trekking Guide at 5:30 pm for the week briefing and backpack check.

DAY 1 - SUNDAY
TIGNES - COL and LAC DE LA LEISSE – PLAN du LAC

Vertical drop: + 650 m and - 600 m but 20 Km
Walking time: 6 to 7 hours approximately

Bus transport towards Tignes Val Claret at 7:30 am.
We leave Tignes to quickly enter the Vanoise National Park, it is the first National Park in France to save the Ibex, a hundred resisted in Vanoise and in the Gran Paradiso Park in Italy: thousands of Ibex now live here in the largest protected area in Europe.
We pass the Col de la Leisse and follow the Lakes at the feet of the South Face of the Grande Casse, 2000 m high. It’s a magical place, like the place we’ll be sleeping tonight.

DAY 2 - MONDAY
PLAN du LAC - LANSERLIA LAKE - EDELWEISS CHALET

Vertical drop: + 1150 m and - 1100 m
Walking time: 7 to 8 hours approximately

We are going for a day off the beaten track, it is 80% off the track if the conditions are good. Direction Col du Grand Vallon, a magnificent view awaits us at the top. If the conditions are not ensured we will deviate at the Col de Lanserlia following a balcony path that we can take from the Plan du Lac too.

DAY 3 - TUESDAY
CHALET EDELWEISS – TRALENTA – REFUGE DU CARROZ

Vertical drop: + 1000 m and - 900 m
Walking time: About 6 to 7 hours and about an hour by taxi

We descend into the valley after a comfortable evening at the Refuge: the path is quite fast and we quickly reach the valley to take a Taxi and reach Bonneval sur Arc.
We walk across the village and join L’Ecot. We go up the Reculaz Gorges thanks to the cabled paths that run along the gorges, we can take the time to enjoy the Evettes Lake and the Evettes Glacier before going up to the Evettes Refuge.

DAY 4 - WEDNESDAY
REFUGE DU CARROZ - COL DES FOURS - REFUGE DU FOND DES FOURS

Vertical drop: +800 m and - 800 m and 18 Km
Walking time: 7 to 8 hours of walking

We leave early in the morning to walk on a balcony path which allows us to see the highest peaks of Haute Maurienne and their glaciers, we can stroll with marmots on this splendid path before joining the snow bridge. We will then climb up to the Col des Fours (2976 m) to reach the Refuge des Fond des Fours.

DAY 5 - THURSDAY
REFUGE DU FOND DES FOURS - COL DE LA ROCHEURE - POINTE DE LA SANA (3436 MT) - VA D'ISERE - BUS - BOURG SAINT MAURICE 

Vertical drop: + 1000 m and - 1650 m
Walking time: 7 to 8 h

It’s the last day so we’re leaving for the Vanoise highest peak accessible by feet if conditions allow it, otherwise the Col de la Rocheure will already be a nice goal. Since the glacier has become very little, the Pointe de la Sana is now accessible by snowfields and stone quarries. At the top we will overlook the Balme de l'Ours Glaciers and we will see a large part of our tour.
The descent through the valley of Pisset, then Manchet, will take us to Val D’Isère, where we can have a coffee before going back down by bus to Bourg Saint Maurice.

You can organise your transport from Bourg Saint Maurice from 6 p.m.

END OF THE TRIP: see you next time for a new adventure!

Your Budget for a 5 days & 5 nights Trekking

The price includes

• assistance of a certified mountain guide from our Team;
• night of arrival on B&B;
• Half board accommodation as described in the program;
• Picnics, every day;
• Mandatory transports along the program.

Night before the trip and last night after the trek

We have chosen to include in the price the night before the trek beginning and the night after the end of the trek, in order to allow you to better organize your transports and to avoid to rush, as well as making your trip easier without having to worry about additional nights.

You will be given specific information about the hotel and how to reach it at the time of booking.

The price does not include

• Cancellation / interruption of stay / luggage loss and accident insurance;
• Dinner the night of the arrival, you can dine in a nice restaurant in Bourg Saint Maurice;
• Cable car tickets (optional on free time);
• Drinks and personal expenses;
• Additional nights outside the program;
• All that is not indicated in the section "The price includes".

Your expenses on site

• Drinks;
• Out-of-program visits and transfers;
• Tips.

The backpack

If possible take a light backpack with good carrying, the backpack should not exceed 1.5 kg.

Backpack for 5 to 6 days:

• Small people: 40 liters max
• Tall people : 50 liters max

Your backpack must have 10 to 15 liters of space for picnics that you will carry for lunch.

Kilos to carry - It is better to wash than to carry:

• Small size: 6/7 kilos max, without water and food
• Large size: 8/9 kilos max, without water and food

Count 2 liters of water and 1 kg of food for the day.
Count an extra kilo for 10-day treks.

Head-to-toe material for the Trek:

• 1 cap or hat for the sun
• 1 Hat for the cold
• 1 optional buff or choker but very pleasant in bad weather
• 1 Jacket Type Gore Tex or similar windproof and waterproof
• 1 pair of gloves, waterproof if possible
• 1 additional pair of ski warm gloves for altitude treks
• 1 warm fleece or thick down to withstand negative temperatures
• 2 sweater: a light one and a warmer one, if it's cold you can put all the layers on
• 3 Technical T-shirts
• 3 underwear and 3 - 4 warm socks, you can wash them in the torrents near the shelters (1 solid soap to wash)
• 1 Warm pant
• 1 Tight
• 1 Lighter pant, there are pants that you can zip off to make shorts
• 1 Short
• 1  waterproof over-pant  (Gore tex or other) for Trek with altitude passes around 3000m.
• 1 light rain hood or waterproof bag protector
• 1 waterproof bag to keep items dry inside your backpack
• 1 bag for dirty things
• 1 light sheetbag for sleeping at the huts
• 1 pair of light slippers for the refuge, in case you do not want to wear the hut' slippers or a pair of light Trail shoes.
• 1 pair of mountain shoes with Vibram type sole of good quality or similar: if possible try ans wear your shoes before the trek, watch out for old shoes which can deteriorate very quickly in the mountains.

Do not for?get  :

• Sunscreen index 30 to 50
• one pair of sunglasses category 3
• one front lamp
• cash money for huts and documents

Toiletries  :

• 1 Lightweight Quick Dry Toilet Towel
• 1 Body soap
• 1 Toothbrush with small toothpaste or a started one
• 1 small shampoo (small format - specialized stores sell small bottles that you will keep your hiker's life).
• 1 pair of earplugs to better sleep at night in a refuge

Pharmacy & others:

• Your Usual or Personal Treatments
• 1 Light Survival Blanket
• 1 nail clipper
• What to make small dressings
• Some compresses and plaster or better Strappal

Your guide will have a more complete pharmacy in the event of a larger accident.

For realx time: A small book or Card game (less than 150 grams)…

Necessary for meals:

• 1 TuperWare large enough to contain a nice salad for lunch
• 1 light knife: Opinel type
• 1 Fork and 1 Spoon
• 1 nice specialty to share with the rest of the Team, liquid or solid

The hiker's enemy is weight, but a frozen or soaked hiker is a hiker without pleasure, so take the time to properly pack your bag.

Useful Information to organise your Mountain Trip

Insurance

Cancellation and repatriation insurance is advised as well as other insurance guaranteeing search and mountain rescue (10,000 Euros guarantee approximately).

How to reach Bourg Saint Maurice, 73700

• By train, access by TGV to Bourg Saint Maurice station - the hotel is 5 minutes walk from the Train Station;
• By car from Albertville, access by expressway to Moutiers - Bourg Saint Maurice is 2.5 hours from Lyon.

Night before the trip 

We have chosen to include in the price the night before the trek beginning, in order to allow you to better organize your transports and to avoid to rush, as well as making your trip easier without having to worry about additional nights.

Arrival and meeting

On Sunday, the meeting will be directly at the Base Camp Lodge at 5.30 p.m., for a briefing with your Guide and the rest of the group.
The Hotel is a 5-minute walk from Bourg Saint Maurice train station.

Accommodation

First night at Base Camp Lodge * * * * in Dormitory room.
All the following nights: in mountain hut, room or dormitory depending on availability.