All year
The Aiguilles d'Arves, the trio you see from the balcony
3,514 metres, a first ascent in 1878, a pushchair-friendly promenade and a demanding climb to the Basse du Gerbier: everything about the emblem of the Maurienne valley.
Three rock spires at 3,514 metres, dominating the Arvan valley and visible from the apartment's balcony: the Aiguilles d'Arves are the emblem of the Maurienne. The English alpinist Coolidge, who made the first official ascent in 1878, called them "the finest trio in the Alps".
What exactly you are looking at
The Aiguilles d'Arves are three aligned summits topping out at 3,514 m. They dominate the Arvan valley and are visible from most of the sector: the balcony, the Mollard lake, the Col du Mollard, and most of the waymarked trails in the commune.
They are as much a navigational aid as a backdrop: when you have them face-on, you know where you are.
The gentle way: the Savoyard Discovery Walk
The PSD des Aiguilles d'Arves is the most accessible way to get closer. It is graded easy, takes 1½ to 2 hours, and is accessible to pushchairs and to people with reduced mobility — which is rare at this altitude.
The route is punctuated by interactive markers telling the story of the high pastures and the people who work them. It is a discovery walk, not a performance.
The serious way: the Basse du Gerbier
To reach the foot of the Aiguilles, the summer route starts from the relay-TV car park at the Chalmieu hamlet (1,900 m), in Albiez-Montrond. Allow +700 m of height gain to reach the Basse du Gerbier, at 2,578 m.
This is no longer a stroll: mountain boots, water, a windproof layer, and an early enough start to avoid late-afternoon storms.
Savoyard Discovery Walk: easy, 1 h 30 to 2 h, pushchair- and wheelchair-accessible.
Basse du Gerbier: from the relay-TV car park, Chalmieu hamlet (1,900 m), +700 m to 2,578 m.
Seeing them without walking
Three viewpoints require no particular effort:
- The apartment's balcony, facing south-west, straight at the Aiguilles.
- The Col du Mollard (1,638 m), with a panorama over the Arvan-Villards massif and Les Sybelles: Albiez, the high pastures, Albiez-le-Jeune, the Mont Emy, the Aiguilles d'Arves, the Étendard glacier, the Genin combe and the resorts of Le Corbier and La Toussuire.
- The lake loop, 30 minutes' walk from the apartment, with the Aiguilles and the Étendard glacier as a backdrop.
Sleeping at their foot
The Chalet d'la Croë, a private refuge at 2,076 m, sits below the Aiguilles. Meals during the day, dome accommodation for the night.
The view from the apartment is described on the summer page and the winter page.
Read next
- Six waymarked walks starting from Albiez-MontrondFrom 40 minutes to 3½ hours, six waymarked routes leaving from the village or the Mollard — junction by junction.
- Food shopping in Albiez-Montrond: village shops and the stop in Saint-JeanThe sensible routine: the big shop in Saint-Jean on the way up, top-ups and Savoyard produce in the village.
- Le Moulin Valentin, the bakery of Albiez-MontrondA bakery whose story starts in 1694 — and a bacon-and-cheese 'pain yéti' that settles the picnic question.