The Aravis massif is crossed by numerous trails that allow you to explore every corner of it. Among these trails, the paths of Long-distance hiking or GR offer beautiful multi-day hikes or day trips to discover the emblematic passes and peaks.
Discover the Aravis massif via the GR 96
Le GR96, in its entirety, connects Epernay in Savoie to Samoëns in Haute-Savoie. It crosses our territory passing through the Glières plateau and going around the Aravis chain.. Lovers of wild nature, you can borrow portions for the day or cover the part of the GR that passes through the Aravis over 4 days. With Mont Blanc as a backdrop, you will discover the magnificent landscapes of the limestone Pre-Alps.
Day 1: from the Pré Vérel refuge to the Lindion chalet – 9 km and 800 m of elevation gain
You will go up towards the Aulp chalet farm with its imposing herd of Abondance cows to continue towards the Col des Nantets. You will then have a superb panorama on the north face of the Tournette and the rocks of Varo on one side and the Roc de Lancrenaz and its rock barrier on the other. You will continue your path under the Pointe de Talamarche then towards the Lindion chalet, a stopover for the night where you will discover an impressive collection of mountain bells.
Day 2: from the Lindion chalet to the Les Lanfiannes gîte on the Glières plateau – 12 km and 970 m of elevation gain
After a nice descent on the valley of Fier, you can stop to visit the Departmental Museum of the Haute-Savoie Resistance, the Departmental Memorial of the Deportation and The Necropolis of Morette or discover the prehistoric site of Balme de Thuy and the Morette waterfalls before tackling the cool climb along the Nant Debout stream. The path will take you to the Dran plain to the Glières plateau. A stop at the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges chapel will allow you to take in the beauty of the landscapes that await you before continuing to your evening stopover at the Les Lanfiannes gîte.
Day 3: from Lanfiannes to the chalets of Mayse – 14 km and 980 m of elevation gain
You can enjoy the crossing of the Glières plateau to visit the Monument to the Glières Resistance and observe the richness of the flora present. The fauna of this sector is also varied with a pack of wolves installed on the plateau and many deer in the surrounding forests. You will then go back down to the village of Entremont before going back up towards the chalets of Mayse, stage of this day, where many herds of chamois roam the cliffs.
Day 4: from the Mayse chalets to the Col des Annes (bivouac and catering) – 13 km and 1050 m of elevation gain
Leaving in the morning, you will bypass the mysterious Lake Lessy whose waters gradually subside before taking the rocky passage between the Jallouvre and the Aiguille Verte. You will then have a magnificent view of the entire chain of Aravis, overlooking the Chinaillon and the col de la Colombière, you enter the land of ibex and bearded vultures. You will then join the Col des Annes at the foot of the Pierced Point where you can spend one last night in bivouac under the stars after discovering the ancestral production of reblochon in one of the farms of the pass and tasting a good local meal.
Hiking in the Aravis massif by taking the GR de Pays Tournette-Aravis
From the Morette bridge, the GR de Pays Tournette-Aravis takes you on a circuit of approximately 9 days of hiking in the Aravis. The route forms a loop, several other departures are possible: Serraval (La Bottière, La Molloire), Le Bouchet-Mont-Charvin (Le Pezières), Manigod (La Gutary, Col de Merdassier), La Clusaz (via ferrata parking lot, Crêt du Merle parking lot, Les Confins, Arpettaz parking lot), Le Grand-Bornand (Les Troncs, Le Chinaillon, Bouts parking lot, Col des Annes), Entremont (chief town, Malvoisin).
Day 1: from Morette to the Larrieux refuge (1532 m) – 7 km and 1180 m elevation gain
The forest track rises above the Morette Necropolis and the Val de Fier towards the Larrieux refuge, located in a flowery mountain pasture with breathtaking views of the Tournette. Along the way you will pass by the Lindion refuge where it is possible to make a first stage to shorten the next day's stage and give yourself time to visit the Morette sites at the start of the hike.
Day 2: from the Larrieux refuge to the Aulp chalet (1424 m) – 6 km and 600 m of elevation gain
This portion of the GRP will allow you to appreciate the view of the Dent du Cruet and the Pointe de Talamarche but also on Lake Annecy, once you have passed the Col des Nantets. This stage via the Aulp chalet offers you beautiful views of Lake Annecy and avoids the steep paths as well as the Rosairy mountain pasture, the path of which is no longer marked, at the request of the owner. However, you can choose this option and go directly from Larrieux to Praz D'Zeures refuge, thus skipping this step.
Day 3: from the Aulp chalet to the Praz D'Zeures refuge (1750 m) – 7 km and 1100 m of altitude difference
You go up towards the Tournette with its view of the lake and the Annecy basin, the Semnoz and the Bauges. The ibex will surely be on your path before passing through the Bajulaz pass – be careful, tricky passage – and going back down to the Praz D'Zeures refuge.
Day 4: from the Praz D'Zeures refuge to Fontanettes (1485 m) – 16 km and 1033 m of elevation gain
The descent towards Serraval offers you a beautiful view of the Sulens mountain and Mont Charvin. You will cross the small hamlet of La Bottière and will be able to observe the typical architecture of the many mountain chalets until you arrive at the fontanettes, stopover for the night.
Day 5: From Fontanettes to the Vieille Ferme (1470 m) or the Youth Hostel of La Clusaz (1230 m) – 15 km and 1000 m of elevation gain
During this stage, you will pass by the Pointe d'Orsière and you will enjoy a magnificent view of the Sulens, the Charvin, Tulle, Pointe de Mandallaz and Etale. Crossing the hamlets of Manigod, you can stop to visit the alpine farms and taste farmhouse reblochon cheese before heading towards the Merdassier pass and then the Auberge de Jeunesse de la Clusaz. You can also choose to stop at La Vieille Ferme, at the Merdassier pass.
Day 6: From the Youth Hostel to the Bombardellaz refuge (1601 m) – 14 km and 1100 m of altitude difference
With a view of the Merdassier point, the Beauregard plateau, the Danay, La Clusaz, the Aravis pass and the start of the valleys of the Aravis range, you will walk towards Lake Confins where you can stop at one of the restaurants for lunch. Enjoy the beauty of the flowering mountain pastures, the chamois and the marmots that you can observe along the way before reaching the Bombardellaz refuge.
Day 7: from the Bombardellaz refuge to the Lessy chalet (1787 m) – 16 km and 1160 m of elevation gain
You continue to walk under the Aravis valleys to arrive under the Pointe Percée, highest peak of the massif at 2752 m. You will be able to take a break in theone of the farm inns of the Col des Annes where reblochon, chevrotin and country ham will be on the menu. Going back up above Chinaillon towards the Lake Lessy, you may be able to observe the bearded vulture and you will enjoy the view of the Roc des Tours, the Jallouvre, the Pointe Blanche and the Bargy.
Day 8: from the Lessy chalet to the Mangeurs de Lune refuge on the Auges plateau (1790 m) – 18 km and 1260 m of elevation gain
During this stage, your view will be over the Bornes massif with the Rochers de Leschaux, the Mount Lachat of Thônes, the Suet and the Roc de Charmieux. You will pass through the village of Entremont and can visit its abbey, then go back up towards the Auges plateau where you will benefit from a magnificent view of the entire Aravis range.
Day 9: from the Mangeurs de Lune refuge to the Pont de Morette (580 m) – 13 km, 430 m of positive elevation gain and 1606 m of negative elevation gain
For this last day, you will enjoy the view of the Glières plateau and pass under the Pointes de Puvat, Balme, Québlette and Dran, then taking the beautiful descent along the Nant Debout torrent and its waterfalls, which will bring you back to your starting point at the Morette bridge.
Tour the Val Sulens by hiking trails
Le Tour of Val Sulens is done in 5 days of hiking and offers magnificent views of the Aravis massif, taking various paths. As with the GR de Pays, the loop of this route can start from several places such as Les Clefs (Belchamp le Haut car park), Serraval (La Molloire, La Bottière), Bouchet-Mont-Charvin (chief town, Greubaz car park, Sardoches car park), Manigod (Gutary bridge, Comburce, Vieille Ferme, Croix Fry pass).
Day 1: from Thônes to the Praz D'Zeures refuge (1750 m) – 11 km and 1435 m of elevation gain
You leave from city center of Thones and follow the course of the Fier. At the level of Keys, you can observe the village on its promontory and discover its so-called Roman bridge spanning the Fier. In the fall, you will surely hear the bellowing of the deer in the Montisbrand forest before reaching the Col des Vorets via the Rosairy mountain pasture and reaching the Praz D'Zeures refuge and its flocks of sheep. Please note that the crossing of the Rosairy mountain pasture is not marked, at the request of the owner.
Day 2: from the Praz D'Zeures refuge to Bouchet-Mont-Charvin (935 m) – 9,5 km and 360 m of elevation gain (but 1150 m of negative elevation gain)
You begin a beautiful descent towards Serraval. The many crosses visible along the way recall the Christianity of the inhabitants of the villages with a very beautiful baroque chapel to see in La Bottière. You are in the land of goatherds and sheepherders that you cannot miss in the many surrounding mountain pastures. You will then arrive at Mont Charvin Hotel where hearty, family-style cuisine will revive you after this long descent. You will of course enjoy the view of the Charvin pyramid and the foothills of Sulens.
Day 3: from Bouchet-Mont-Charvin to Fontanettes (1485 m) or Aulp de Marlens (1657 m) – 11 km and 1110 m elevation gain
You will leave Bouchet-Mont-Charvin in the direction of Col de l'Epine and cross the pretty hamlet of Rosset before reaching the Col du Fer at the foot of the Aiguilles du Mont. You will enjoy a beautiful view of the Val de Chaise and perhaps you will see paragliders taking off from the Col de l' Epine. Towards the Sardoches, marmots are starting to show their noses, keep your eyes open! Especially since the mountain flora on the foothills of the Charvin is particularly rich and beautiful. You then join the Aulp de Marlens chalet and the herds of cows and goats of the GAEC of the Wind of the Cimes where you can taste the delicious farmhouse reblochons and chevrotins before spending the night at the foot of the imposing Charvin.
Day 4: from Aulp de Marlens to Vieille Ferme (1470 m) – 13 km and 1045 m of elevation gain
You pass through the Porthets pass between Charvin and Tulle. If you feel like it, you can make a little detour via Mont Charvin Lake and its green waters, source of the Fier. This route will allow you to observe the local fauna and flora: the rare edelweiss and the chamois, eagles and griffon vultures in summer. You will reach the Aulp de Fier mountain farms where they produce farmhouse reblochons and chevrotins before heading towards Comburce and its beautiful typical Savoyard chalets passing under the Aiguille de Manigod. Just a little more effort and you will have arrived at the Vieille Ferme where Bertrand will delight you with his local recipes.
Day 5: from Vieille Ferme to Thônes (620 m) – 15 km and 690 m of elevation gain (and 1530 m of negative elevation gain)
This last step takes you back to the Col de la Croix Fry and the Beauregard plateau that you will cross by the path on the Frêtes with a very beautiful view of the Aravis chain. At the Croix de Colomban, the view plunges over Thônes and its valley that you will reach by the Petit Novard forest then the Mont forest populated by many roe deer, does and stags. Don't forget to stop by to greet the King of the Mont before returning to the city center of Thônes.
