Frioland Circular Loop

Ascent time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Descent time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total walking time: 3 hours 15 minutes

Start at the Plateau d’Assy. About 50 metres from the entrance to the Plateau d’Assy, turn left onto a small road (Chemin de Curalla) signposted ‘Via Ferrata’. Continue along the track until you reach the small car park.

(S/E) Turn left as you leave the car park, walk past the chalet where via ferrata equipment is hired, and you’ll reach a junction.

(1) Go straight on and stay on the wide track until you reach a junction with a signpost.

(2) Turn left at the signpost to climb the path through the forest, rejoin the track and follow it to the left for a few dozen metres.

(3) At signpost no. 26, stay on the track by turning left and continue uphill to the hamlet of Curalla. Carry on to the junction with the^GRP® Tour du Pays du Mont-Blanc.

(4) Turn right to follow it.

(5) At the junction with the signpost, turn left to climb up to Frioland, the paragliders’ launch site: a flag is planted at the edge of the take-off run.

(6) Enjoy the view and head back down to the junction.

(5) Turn left towards Charbonnière.

(7) At the signpost, turn right and head down into the forest. Depending on the season, the path is hard to see at first due to the pile of leaves, but easy to follow by keeping an eye on the yellow and red markings. Return to the track.

(3) Turn left, then ignore the path on the right that you took on the way up and stay on the track, which is circular and rejoins the start of this path.

(2) Stay on the track and continue straight down to the car park (S/E).

If the car park at the (S/E) is full, continue along the tarmac road, pass the via ferrata equipment hire chalet (on the right) and continue for 100 m along the dirt track: there is a small car park on the right. Otherwise, drive back down, park along the main road at the bottom and walk back up to the via ferrata car park.

For the more adventurous, you can tackle the via ferrata, which will take you to within a ten-minute walk of the hamlet of Curalla. Allow 1½ hours for the via ferrata.