Just after leaving the hut, the trail passes the traditional pasture chalets of Bostan before descending again to the Allamands hamlet. It then follows the little Clévieux valley to arrive at Samoëns, a village of traditional architecture. The “Septimontains” (people of Samoëns) owe their name to the seven mountains that were granted to them by the monks of the Abbey of Sixt. The village originally consisted in little hamlets, but today the urbanisation generated by tourism has joined them together. In Samoëns, most of the buildings and other aspects that contribute to the village’s charm are due to the generosity of Marie-Louise Jaÿ, a native of Samoëns, who married shopkeeper Ernest Cognacq and together with him created “La Samaritaine” in Paris before returning to the area. Today, a botanical garden that she donated to the village in the early XXth century still exists: “la Jaÿsinia”, where some 8,000 plants from all over the world can be discovered. There is also a listed lime tree, which has crowned the square by the same name for over five centuries. The Haut-Giffre region is marked by the story of the “kègnes” (masons), “frahans” (stonecutters) and other “bouscolins” (carpenters) who left their valley for 6 months to sell their services all over the country (Vauban fortification sites, large canals under Napoleon, etc.) before returning after making their fortune. The “Eglise des 4 Couronnés de Verchaix” church is, incidentally, dedicated to them. Today, their brotherhood has become the Société des Maçons (Society of Masons), which organises a Symposium on Stone Sculpting every year in early August. On leaving Samoëns, walk alongside the stream. Alternatively, you can cross it to admire the typical limestone houses of the valley in the two hamlets of Vallons, with their stone basements and very beautiful wooden doors and superstructures. They had to be very voluminous in order to allow for the storage of large quantities of hay for the animals in winter. Upon arriving in the Tines gorges, you can picture the processes of torrential erosion, as the trail passes through the old bed of the Giffre, a stream mainly of glacial origin and therefore particularly impetuous. On leaving the gorges, you will come out onto the Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval plain, a village famous for its proximity to the Fer-à-Cheval cirque, a major national site situated further upstream along the Giffre and an exceptional natural monument bearing witness to glacial history. But the Sixt community is also marked by the fact that 75% of its land is included in the Sixt-Passy nature reserve, which makes the setting around the village very pleasant. It should be pointed out that the locals here have always had to struggle against the forest, which explains why the settlements in these valleys are situated closer to the summits. The loft structures in the listed hamlet of Salvagny before Pont-de-Sales with its listed chapel are very interesting.
(Nicolas Aubertin, Gilles Chappaz, Grande Traversée des Alpes)