Hiking (mountain trail, in places narrow and exposed)
Alpine route (equipped or very exposed section, snow field, blocks)
R124
Termignon-la-Vanoise » Modane
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5h05 |
20.5 km
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475 m
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665 m
This stage along the valley floor on the left-hand bank of the River Arc starts off from Termignon on the prettily named “Chemin du Petit Bonheur” (Path of the Little Happiness), passes Bramans, then continues opposite the imposing Esseillon barrier (former military forts) below Aussois, before reaching Modane, the stage destination.
At Termignon, take the road extending RN6 eastwards. Cross the bridge on the Arc and take the GR® 5E “Chemin du Petit Bonheur” (Little Happiness Path) farm road on your right; it runs under the station’s ski plant’s cables and skirts the river Arc. Further along, cross the Merderel brook, walk by the stretch of water and reach Sollières-l’Envers (Archaeological museum). Walk up towards the village crossing the Envers torrent and take the main road up to Saint-Claude chapel. Just after it, turn right and take the path that skirts the aerodrome, get over the Repelen brook and continue till the resort of Les Portes. Avoid the road and take the path on your left till the crossroads for the hamlet of Châtel. Keep walking on your right, without going far from the Arc, till you get to a reservoir. GR® 5E takes a turn right to cross the Hauts-du-Verney hamlet and keeps going straight towards Verney (restored ordinary oven, church). From Verney, climb up along the old road, pass by the cemetery and reach Bramans. At the Planay way crossroads, continue direction South-West and go through the village, up to the Mollard-de-Chez-Nous cross. Turn right, go forward into Nant woods and follow such path along the contour line, to reach Nant Bridge (nearby, Fort Marie Thérèse – Mary Theresa Fortress – and Pont du Diable – The Devil’s Bridge). Cross the bridge, along RN6, then immediately turn left and take the path leading to Norma tourist resort, through the woods. Near the high-tension line turn left and then left again, soon after, to cross Tufs plateau (Tuffs) and go down till the crossing of Saint-Antoine’s brook (Saint-Anthony). Use the quarry road to reach Modane. Warning! In case of violent storms the Saint-Antoine crossing can flood and the rocks on the brook’s banks can often subside. (Information at the Tourist Office’s). If it happens, use the bus between Villarodin and Modane.
(Jean-Luc Galland, CDRP 73)
Natural and cultural heritage
Follow the course of the Arc river, which gave its name to the valley (from “mala ria”, bad river, corrupted into “Maurienne”). Via Alpina leaves Termignon to head along the valley floor. The riverain vegetation of the stream deserves a mention for its numerous bird species. Sollières-l’Endroit boasts an archaeological museum explaining the life of our ancestors at the end of the Prehistoric Era. Next, the trail goes to Châtel and Le Verney, hamlets with traditional architecture on the valley floor. It then crosses Bramans, a village marking the start of a drier area. In this charming village, you can for instance admire the example of monumental retable in the baroque church, which is typical of the Savoie valleys. Higher up, the Roman Church of St Pierre-d’Extravache is also situated here, and is one of the oldest Savoie churches. Take the “Chemin du Petit Bonheur” trail on the side of the slope and the trail will join the imposing Esseillon Barrier buttressing Aussois. This series of 5 forts (including the massive Victor-Emmanuel) was built in the early XIXth century by the Sardinians as protection against the whims of the French, but it was never used. The forts were arranged on a naturally favourable rocky escarpment. This escarpment, perpendicular to the valley, cuts the stream, which forms the deep Arc gorges here, a shelter for nesting birds of prey (e.g. Grand Duke owl, pilgrim falcon), and is straddled by the Pont-du-Diable bridge. The bridge owes its name to a local legend according to which it was built by the Devil in one night following a pact with a carpenter from Bessans. But at Aussois, another originality can be discovered along the “Sentier du Marabout” trail (forming part of the 3 “Sentiers de l’Esseillon” trails): the presence of steppe-like grassland and characteristic thermophile species. The hamlet of Esseillon is also the venue once every three years for a gathering of traditional costumes, bringing together close to 400 participants from all of the villages in the Maurienne area. The Dent Parrachée (3,639 m), an emblematic summit, is always visible from this remarkable place. Via Alpina continues its journey, passing above Villarodin, a village of interest for its architecture, before arriving at Modane, where the old alpine rice mill is located. At Modane, a visit to the fountain is a must, as it is a listed historical monument and doubtlessly the oldest thing in the town. Above the town, the Echelle mountains are home for the original ibex populations that were the reason behind the creation of the National Park. Today, monitoring projects are being run on female ibexes and the observation of fertility rates in order to track population evolution. In the vicinity of Modane, more recent fortifications dating back to the Second World War belong to the Maginot Line of the Alps, as does the veritable “land submarine” of St Gobain, which allowed 150 men to survive in autarky for over 3 months. (Nicolas Aubertin, Gilles Chappaz, Grande Traversée des Alpes)
Favourites, criticisms ? Make your personal comments on this stage. For more general notes please use the comments section of the page Over to the Via Alpinists.
Berta - 2018-08-02
Das Refuge, von dem Daniel schreibt, scheint es nicht mehr zu geben. Der campground ist wirklich basic und man muß ein Zelt haben, die Rezeption war nicht besetzt, wir haben angerufen, weil wir im Refuge schlafen oder eine Hütte wollten. Uns wurde gesagt sowas gibt es nicht. Wir stellten das Zelt auf, niemand kam wegen der Bezahlung.
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The Refuge, of which Daniel writes, no longer seems to exist. The campground is really basic and you have to have a tent, the reception was not busy, we called because we slept in the refuge or wanted a cabin. We were told something like that does not exist. We set up the tent, nobody came for the payment.
Modane has a capmground called "Simon Jean Marc". Very basic, but a great choice to stay the night. The trail is not very difficult and easy to follow. It goes through many streets and small towns along the way. Bramans has a campground close by, east of the village. The day was very hot, but there are plenty of places to refill on water. Termingnon has a campground called “Camping Les Melezes- La Fennaz” the cheapest camping platz on the whole via alpina!. There is a grocery store to re-stock, as well as a touring information office.
Refuge de la Sapiniere is one of the cutest I have visited so far. It is located on the site of the municipal camping in Modane, isolated on a little mountainous hill. It is actually a garden-shed, rebuilt to feel like a mini-refuge. There are 8 double-beds, electricity, and even heating. For water and free shower you have to go down to the camping. Sitting on the balcony you have a beautiful view on the surrounding mountains and the Maginot fortress. Price is only E 18, for food you have to go to the station area, which can be reached through a narrow horror-tunnel.
Alpinisten - 2015-08-16
Erholsamer Talweg ab Termignon bis Modane. Dort lohnt der Besuch des "Museobar", man erfährt viel über die Geschichte des Tales.
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Relaxing Talweg from Termignon to Modane. We will visit the "Museobar", you learn a lot about the history of the valley.
Tof - 2015-03-21
Trieste-Monaco le 26/9/15
Chouette itinéraire pas difficile, plutôt culturel. Au village de Verney, il y a un jardin pédagogique montagnard. A visiter si le temps le permet.
Le chatel, Verney et Bramans sont des villages ayant conservés leur architecture traditionnelle.
/!\ Changement d'itinéraire compte tenu que le camping de Modane est fermé (sur le site Via alpina la date de fermeture est indiquée octobre, à modifier je pense).
Ce camping n'ayant aucun client a fermé avant la date. Pas très fiable à mon avis.
Au pont de Nant (le fort V.Emmanuel) remonter en forêt puis laisser l'itinéraire pour la Norma pour descendre direction Avrieux. De là suivre le cours d'eau jusqu'à Le Bourget. Il y a quelques endroits sympa pour poser une tente à environ 1 km de l'entrée de Modane.
A Modane, toutes commodités pour le ravitaillement.
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Trieste-Monaco on 09/26/15 Owl route not difficult, rather cultural. In the village of Verney, there is a mountain educational garden. A visit if time permits. Chattel, Verney and Bramans are villages that have preserved their traditional architecture. /! \ Change of itinerary given that the camp is closed Modane (on site Via Alpina closing date is indicated in October, to change I think). This campground with no client closed before the date. Not very reliable in my opinion. Bridge Nant (Fort V.Emmanuel) back in the forest and let the route for Norma to descend towards Avrieux. From there follow the river up to Le Bourget. There are some nice places to put a tent about 1 km from the entrance to Modane. A Modane, all facilities for refueling.
Possible variante from Modane straight up in the Vanoise national park radther than going around what i suspected to be a boring walk to termignon
GR55 by Col de Chaviere
GR5 variante by refuge de l’orgere/Col du barbier
1h45 to reach Refuge de l’orgere where it can decide to go by Col de Chaviere, Col du Barbier or the more challenging col d'aussois
from refuge de l'orgere to refuge peclet poslet by Col de chaviere with quite some snow in June 2013 took 3h30
From Col de Chaviere down to Pralognan la Vanoise is really a must to hike,awesome panorama, the trail is wide and not steep. Expect crowds during season.
Vanoise national park is very strict with bivouac is NOT allowed..even by the refuges
plenty of food and accomodation on the variante way.
Tippel - 2011-07-30
Hotel "Le Commerce" in Modane is nice (2 bed room 72 EUR) and comfortable (Tel. +39 04 79 05 20 98). It's a few steps from the train station.
Neko - 2011-01-23
In Modane gibt es in der Hauptstrasse einen Bioladen, in dem auch kleine Mengen Getreide, Nüsse etc. zu erwerben sind (Sommer 2010)
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Modane there is a health food store in the main street, in which even small amounts of grains, nuts are easy to buy, etc. (Summer 2010)
|
5h05 |
20.5 km
|
475 m
|
665 m
Favourites, criticisms ? Make your personal comments on this stage. For more general notes please use the comments section of the page Over to the Via Alpinists.