Circuit around the Col de la Cochette and the Altar of the Priest in Arith

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This circular route allows you to explore the north-eastern tip of the Revard Plateau. The gentle, undulating terrain offers views of the Bauges massif and Lake Bourget, and, at the highest point, a wider vista of the Alpine arc and Mont Blanc.
A short detour to the Autel du Curé will take you in the footsteps of the Reign of Terror in Savoie.

Details

n°114051
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.54 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 2,415 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 2,405 ft
  • ▲
    Highest point: 4,715 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 2,894 ft
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐
    Areas: Alps, Bauges
  • ⚐ City: Arith (73340)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 45.71416° / E 6.066007°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 3332OT, 3432OT, 3432OTR
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Photos

Path leading to the Curé’s Altar
Curé’s Cave
From the highest point
View of Montagny from the final track

Description of the walk

In Arith, head to the hamlet of Montagny and then to the end of the road (car park).

(S/E) At the top end of the car park, take the path on the left (towards La Platte - Prépoulain). Pass close to a clearing with a barn in the centre, then head due south until the path begins to descend at a ‘no entry’ sign (elevation 1140 m).

(1) Leave the track and take the path on the right. You will soon reach a sunken track leading to La Platte.

(2) At this point, join the GR® du Tour des Bauges. Follow the wide stony track to the right (heading west), and you will soon reach a fence.

(3) Here you have two options:
Option 1 (the one described on the route map; option 2: see the ‘Practical Information’ section).
If you wish to go to the Curé’s altar after crossing the fence, leave the GR® and take a track on the right heading towards the Chalets Regueras. Behind these chalets, climb up a path diagonally across a slope, then head into the forest until you come to a fence; follow it to the left. From there, it will take a bit of patience and searching to find the altar and the Croix de la Benoîte (the altar is located about 200 m from the Chalets Regueras).

(4) From behind the altar, marked by a red arrow on a tree to the right of the altar, a path leads to the Croix de la Benoîte. To reach the GR®, head north-east across the meadows. The Chambre du Curé cave is located 200 m below Chalet Pernet on the other side of the fence to the right, at the entrance to the small wood. Pass Chalet Pernet and climb to the highest point at 1,438 m; the GR® is just below (thanks to plgrando for the details I’ve added to the description). The route on the map passes by the Autel du Curé.

(6) At the Col de la Cochette, follow the GR® as it climbs towards the viewpoint.

(7) Continue along the GR and leave the Refuge du Creux de Lachat below on your left.

(8) Follow the suggested route carefully as the map does not currently match the actual terrain. Keep following the GR and the signs for Mariet-Dessus / Montagny.

(9) At Mariet-Dessus, the GR branches off to the right towards Montagny. At the wide track, continue to the left, leaving the GR, and you will reach the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 2,894 ft - Car park at the end of the road
  2. 1 : mi 1.26 - alt. 3,724 ft - Leave the track
  3. 2 : mi 2.01 - alt. 4,265 ft - La Plate
  4. 3 : mi 2.28 - alt. 4,403 ft - Gate in the fence
  5. 4 : mi 2.85 - alt. 4,537 ft - Le Curé Altar
  6. 5 : mi 3.68 - alt. 4,711 ft - Highest point
  7. 6 : mi 4.15 - alt. 4,318 ft - Col de la Cochette (1310m)
  8. 7 : mi 4.28 - alt. 4,514 ft - Viewpoint
  9. 8 : mi 4.76 - alt. 4,462 ft - Option to join (300m away) the - Refuge du Creux de Lachat (1361m)
  10. 9 : mi 6.14 - alt. 3,465 ft - Gravel track
  11. S/E : mi 7.54 - alt. 2,897 ft - Car park at the end of the road

Notes

(3) Option 2: if you are not going to the Curé’s altar, follow the GR® and, before taking the descent towards the Col de la Cochette, take the short climb to the 1,438 m point on the right (5). Return to the GR® and follow it towards the Col de la Cochette.

Worth a visit

About the Curé’s Altar of Abbé Quoex
On his return to his parish of Arith, following a brief exile in Piedmont to escape the Reign of Terror in Savoy,
Abbé Quoex (1733–1813) was forced to go into hiding. From then on, he lived constantly on the run, always on his guard, sleeping in barns and woods, living on charity, either from his friends or from the few good people, as he wrote on 15 August 1796 to his colleague from Le Noyer, Father Francoz, who had taken refuge in Aosta.
He therefore settled in a cave (the Curé’s Chamber) and built an open-air altar not far from the Reguéras chalets.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

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Reviews and comments

4.3 / 5
Based on 36 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.1 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
Sylvie be
Sylvie be

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 03, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, easy hike. Pleasant and beautiful views.

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Thomas73
Thomas73

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 22, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant forest trail that leads to meadows populated by horses.
We went directly from point 4 to point 6. The passage through the Col de la Cochette is pleasant and offers beautiful views of the lake and the entire north-western slope. We stopped at the Creux de Lachat refuge for a welcome snack. Pleasant despite the intense heat

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brageole
brageole

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hike completed on a beautiful spring day.
I gave it an average rating because it is difficult to find the priest's altar, even with a GPS.
After the theft of the heifer, before tackling the descent, I strongly recommend making a return trip to the Pendants viewpoint, which offers magnificent views.
Thanks to the designer.

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Delapente
Delapente

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Very busy route : No

There are few signposts indicating this walk.

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baugeBros
baugeBros

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 28, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Nothing to report on the hike itself. It's a classic, beautiful walk with varied landscapes and superb views.

However, be careful with the directions for the Autel du Curé/Grotte du Curé section. The altar is fairly easy to find. However, from the altar, do not follow the red arrow (half faded) on the tree. The supposed path disappears completely into the forest after a few dozen metres. It's easy to get lost in this area of thick forest, dotted with deep ravines and with no visibility. From the altar, it's better to take the correct path on the other side of the clearing, which leads above the Reguéras chalets

Once out of the forest and near the Pernet chalet, the small wood is fairly easy to spot, but the cave remains elusive (I went back twice and still couldn't find it!)

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Le Dex
Le Dex

Yes, but the priest's altar is a historic site that is worth stopping at.

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obus74
obus74
• Edited:

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 09, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

This route could be good if you don't add the detour to the priest's altar. It's hard to find, goes through an area where trees are being cut down and has no views, so we didn't think it was worth doing this part of the route.
The Benoite cross is surrounded by trees, and barbed wire makes it difficult to access on the way there and back.
It's better to continue on the GR.

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annasteeljo
annasteeljo

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 20, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Beautiful route. Sea of clouds, so Lake Bourget was not visible, but Mont Blanc upstream and Mont Jura in the distance.

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Le Dex
Le Dex

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 11, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We really enjoy this hike, whatever the season.
However, we couldn't find the cave. At the entrance to the small wood, we found a rectangle marked out by stones ("ruins") at the following coordinates: 45.710971 6.033978.
Do you know the coordinates of the cave?
thank you

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PROLLOT
PROLLOT

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 05, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Thank you for a wonderful outing. The landscape was varied with beautiful views of Semnoz, La Tournette and Mont Blanc. We were lucky to have beautiful sunshine.

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Firenze74
Firenze74

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 05, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful and interesting circuit with lots of variety. The picnic at the highest point gave us time to enjoy the panoramic view of the different mountain ranges. Superb view of Mont Blanc, the Aiguilles de Warens, Mont Charvin, the Revard plateau and Lake Bourget, which can be seen particularly well from the orientation table. We didn't make the detour to the priest's altar. Very pleasant descent on the path to the hamlet of Montagny, avoiding the tarmac road as we had walked up from Arith. A feast of blackberries at the end of the walk!
Thanks to Visorando!

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geai47
geai47

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 20, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

From point 3: no difficulty finding the Autel du Curé, but piles of branches left on the ground made it impossible to pass, forcing us to "navigate by sight." The red arrow behind the altar, indicated in the description, had disappeared.
The route is very interesting, and the view of Lake Bourget and the Dent du Chat from the orientation table above the Col de la Cochette is magnificent.

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Théâtra
Théâtra

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Great hike. It was fun searching for the altar and cave of the priest of Arith, following the GPS and reading the explanations very carefully, we got there. We couldn't find the cross because of major forestry work (fallen trees, uneven ground). But it was a great day. The last few kilometres were less interesting, but we had to get back to the car park. Thank you for the route

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eboulot
eboulot

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, mostly in the forest, alternating between wide paths and wilder sections. Beautiful landscapes at the peaks. We couldn't find the Autel du Curé (Priest's Altar) due to recent logging that made the area difficult to navigate. My GPS (essential for this hike) took us to within 10 metres, but it was impossible to go any further. six hours including breaks, with a detour to the refuge to enjoy the local beer. Very peaceful on paths with very few people. Thanks to the author of the route.

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Poppy74
Poppy74

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 17, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Most of the walk is in the forest, which is very pleasant in hot weather. The climb is easy on a good path and the views from the top of Mont Blanc, Lac du Bourget and the Bauges mountains are superb. It is not easy to find the priest's altar; a GPS is useful. The return to the GR is a bit long but it is still a beautiful walk.

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