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Vallorcine to Finhaut Loop

7

Overall rating

Good

Trail Length

Length

20.13km

Trail Elevation

Elevation + / -

1381m / 1381m

Trail Type

Trail type

Loop

When to go on this trail

When to go

End May - Mid Oct

Hiking duration for this trail

Hike duration

6.0 - 9.0 Hours

Altitude range for this trail

Altitude Range

936m / 1720m

Technical difficulty level for this trail

Technical level

Moderate (3/5)

Natural beauty rating for this trail

Natural beauty

Nice (3/5)

Run duration for this trail

Run duration

3.0 - 4.5 Hours

Kids age requirement for this trail

Families

15+ Years old

Are dogs allowed on this trail

Dogs

Dogs Allowed

Are there provision sources on this trail

Provision Sources

Only in main towns

Contributors:

This is a long loop exploring the hamlets and points of interest between Vallorcine on the French side and Finhaut in Switzerland. The trail starts of in Vallorcine from where we climb up to the spectacular Les Saix Blancs view point with amazing views of the full lenght of the Vallorcine Valley and the peaks beyond. From there we continue to the Tete the Balme bottom lift station and descend to the Bassin des Esserts. Its a man-made water reservoir but its still spectacular and has good views and surroundings. From there we continue down hill and pass by the hamlets of Cretton and Le Taque before crossing the main road towards the spectacular Grotte et Cascade aux Nymphes. This is arguably the most beautiful waterfall within a one hour radius of Chamonix. The walk to the cave and waterfall is on wooden footbridges mounted on the cliff side. Its all pretty impressive. From there we do a steep ascend to the tourist town of Finhaut. If you want to cut it short then you could simply hop on the train back to Vallorcine. From Finhaut we make our way via the hamlet of Gietroz with two chapels along the way. We then cross the border back into France and visit the little hamlet of Barberine. There is a small museum which is open in July and August. We also visit the Petite Cascade de Barberine and the Grand Cascade de Barberine waterfalls. After that we take the historic Chemin des Diligences back to our starting point in Vallorcine.


It is a long route with a lot of variety. It also has a nice vertical profile where you are never doing too much uphill or downhill in a single stretch. The main points of interests are around Vallorcine and Barberine and then the other highlight is definitely the Grotte and Cascade aux Nymphes. The long stretches in between feature nice terrain and many little hamlets but it's nothing super spectacular. As such we would probably recommend picking a different long trail if you are looking for something that is consistently impressive and really blows your socks off. If you want to just visit the Gorge Mysterieuses and the Grotte aux Nymph then we have a much shorter, family friendly trail for visiting those highlights.



Video of this Trail

We have made a video presentation for this trail. Please visit our channel on  YouTube and like the video and subscribe to our channel. Putting together these videos is quite a bit of work.

Photos of this Trail

We have a large library of pictures from in and around the Chamonix Valley. All pictures are categorized and geo location tagged. These are the pictures we have for this trail. Click on any picture to view it's details and location.

Trail Directions & Safety Considerations

Age requirement for kids on this trail

Children

15+ Years old

Dog rules on this trail

Dogs

We recommend to keep your dog on a leash

Best time to go on this trail

When to Go

End May - Mid Oct

Risk considerations for this trail

Risk Considerations & Difficulty Assessment

The route stays relatively low and reaches a maximum altitude of 1720 meters. You can expect the trails to be snow free at the end of May or the start of June. The trails themselves are not technical. Take care when visiting the Grotte aux Nymphes. The wooden planks get very slippery when they are wet. The hardest part of the trail is the descent towards the border crossing at Le Chatelard from Gietroz. We found that path pretty steep and it doesnt seem a very popular route either. Navigating the trail is not hard and we had no problem finding trail markers at the main junctions. 

Starting point for this trail

Trail Starting Point

We start the trail at the Vallorcine train station. There is a large carpark right in front of the train station. If you don't have a car then taking the train is definitely the best option. The train runs through the entire Chamonix Valley starting at Saint-Gervais.

Step by step trail directions

Trail Directions

From the Vallorcine train station cross the tracks and turn left towards the Le Comptoir restaurant. Right across from it you, will go uphill through the grassy field and follow the trail markers for the Col des Posettes. Keep going uphill till you reach a trail marker for Les Saix Blancs. We will visit this view point. Afterwards we proceed uphill and follow the Col des Posettes markers. You will come out of the forest and reach the big open field and 4x4 track which in winter is a blue ski run. Turn left and proceed northwards towards the bottom station of the Tete de Balme chair. You will see the Esserts trail marker which will show you the direction for Switzerland (CH). Cross the bridge and you will now be in Switzerland. Follow the signs for Esserts and take the left road at the junction. This 4x4 track will take you to the Bassin des Esserts water reservoir. Pass the reservoir on the right side 4x4 track and continue on to the hamlet of Cretton. From there you will be following the paved road all the way down to the 203 Route Cantonale main road going to Trient. There are some trail short cuts on the section where the paved roads does a number of switch backs but you might as well just stay on the paved road. Cross the 203 main road and you will see information signs for the Grotte aux Nymphes. Follow the sign for Finhaut and the GorgesTete Noir. This will take you down a steep path with some staircase all the way down to the Grotte aux Nympes. After visiting the cave and waterfall, double back and then follow the signs for Finhaut. You will cross a couple of bridges and then start the steep ascend to the town. Take a left at the train station and visit the Notre Dame de l'Assomption church. From there use the Route du Village to climb up inside the town till you hit the Route du Paradis and the trail towards Gietroz. You will pass by the hamlet of Le Clou and the Chapelle Notre Dame des Cles. After that the trail will meet the paved road that runs between Finhaut and Gietroz. After passing Gietroz the road will turn into a trail. Follow the signs for Le Chatelard and you will soon start a steep descend all the way down to the valley floor. Follow the signs for Barberine. You will pass by the Petite Cascade de Barberine before reaching the hamlet of Barberine. You have an option here to travel less than 100 meters down the road towards the Maisson de Barberine museum. There are trail markers you can follow. After visiting the museum, you can opt out of the Grande Cascade de Barberine and just follow the valley trail back to Vallorcine. If you are still up for it, then turn back uphill from the Maisson de Barberine and follow the signs for the Cascade de Barberine. The trail follows the shape of the gorge till you reach the waterfall. From the waterfall take the westward trail that will take you back to down the mountain via de Chemin de la Cascade. Follow the signs for Vallorcine and La Villaz till you reach the big Eglise Notre Dame church. From there keep going westward on the historic Chemin des Diligences. Its up to you how far you want to continue down on the Chemin des Diligences and you can head back down and go to your starting point from Siseray or Le Crot or if you still have tons of energy left you can complete the Chemin des Diligences before heading back to the Vallorcine train station.

Points of Interest for this Trail

We have a large database of all of the points of interests in and around Chamonix. These are the points of interest you will find along this trail:

Barberine

8

Our Rating

Very Good

Hamlet

Tiny Hamet with a charming little Museum near the border with Switzerland

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1163m

View on Map
Cascade aux Nymphes

10

Our Rating

The Best

Waterfall

Fantasy movie style multi-level Waterfall with a cave you can visit at the bottom

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1063m

View on Map
Chapelle de Gietroz

6

Our Rating

Above Average

Chapel

Small Chapel located in the hamlet of Gietroz in Switzerland

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Finhaut

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1357m

View on Map
Eglise Notre-Dame

7

Our Rating

Good

Church

Main Church of Vallorcine dating back to the 13th Century

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1262m

View on Map
Grande Cascade de Barberine

7

Our Rating

Good

Waterfall

Waterfall with a nice viewing deck above the hamlet of Barberine

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1324m

View on Map
Les Saix Blancs

10

Our Rating

The Best

Cross

Wooden cross mounted at an amazing view point over Vallorcine

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1660m

View on Map
Petite Cascade de Barberine

6

Our Rating

Above Average

Waterfall

Smaller waterfall near the hamlet of Barberine

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1165m

View on Map
Bassin des Esserts

6

Our Rating

Above Average

Lake

Water Reservoir part of the Vallorcine hydro power plant

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1519m

View on Map
Chapelle Notre Dame des Cles

7

Our Rating

Good

Chapel

Very small chapel in the hamlet of Le Clou a little west from Finhaut

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Finhaut

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1398m

View on Map
Cross at Le Siseray

7

Our Rating

Good

Cross

Wooden Cross along the Chemin des Diligences at Le Siseray

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1265m

View on Map
Finhaut

7

Our Rating

Good

Town

Picturesque little village perched on the mountain side near Lac Emosson in Switzerland

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Finhaut

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1245m

View on Map
Grotte aux Nymphes

9

Our Rating

Exceptional

Rock Cave

Cave at the bottom of a fantastic multi-level waterfall near Finhaut

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1055m

View on Map
Notre Dame de Assomption

8

Our Rating

Very Good

Church

The main church of Finhaut in Switzerland dating back to 1638

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Finhaut

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1241m

View on Map
Vallorcine

7

Our Rating

Good

Town

Quieter and more rural town at the nort-eastern end of the Chamonix Valley

Nearest town for this point of interest

Nearest Town

Vallorcine

Altitude of this point of interest

Altitude

1263m

View on Map

3D Map & GPS

Trail Route Map & GPS

You can download the GPX file and load this route into your own GPS enabled device or application. If you are on Strava, then you can open this route in Strava and save it to your account.

Open this trail in Strava

3D Map of this Trail

FATMAP in an incredible website and mobile application that you can use to view the trail in full 3D, do a fly over of the route and get a detailed vertical profile. You can view the FATMAP of this trail below and use the 'View larger map' link to visit the trail on the FATMAP website.

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