Col de l’Arc, starting from La Gorraz

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Enjoy the scenery of the Tarentaise Valley, the Beaufortain, the Vanoise and the Lauzière massif.

Details

n°16130056
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 6.48 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 2,569 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 2,566 ft
  • ▲
    Highest point: 6,175 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 3,629 ft
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Description of the walk

Park at the hamlet of La Gorraz; for directions, see Practical Information.

(S/E) Head due south along the road to reach the hamlet of Les Foyères. Carry on, turning 180° to the right, continue uphill and reach another hairpin bend.

(1) Leave the road here, continue straight ahead along the path and cross the Torrent de la Clef. Stay on this path, ignoring the paths leading to Le Golet and La Tuile. Follow a series of hairpin bends to reach the Montagne d’en Bas mountain pasture (then the Montagne d’en Haut).

(2) Turn right and you’ll soon come to a crossroads of paths. Turn left and continue through the woods until you reach a small clearing.

(3) Cross the clearing, re-enter the woods and pass close to a lovely wetland area at the source of the Ruisseau de l’Avalanche. Complete the climb to reach a wide-open mountain pasture and then the Col de l’Arc. Enjoy the beautiful view here, with Mont Bellachat in the foreground.

(4) Then head back down through alpine pastures and woodland, passing the Chalet de la Fraitière.

(5) You’ll occasionally pass pastures with sheep. See the section ‘During the hike’ for more details.
Continue the descent until you reach the forest road at a place called Les Charmettes.

(6) Cross the road and keep to the path opposite, then cross the road three times. Turn left onto the road to return to the junction you passed on the way out.

(1) Follow the route back in the opposite direction to return to the Gorraz car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 3,629 ft - La Gorraz car park
  2. 1 : mi 0.61 - alt. 3,875 ft - Junction of the circular loop
  3. 2 : mi 2.36 - alt. 5,292 ft - Montagne d’en Haut
  4. 3 : mi 3.11 - alt. 5,955 ft - Clearing
  5. 4 : mi 3.64 - alt. 6,086 ft - Chalet du Col de l’Arc
  6. 5 : mi 4.42 - alt. 5,423 ft - Chalet de la Fraitière
  7. 6 : mi 5.12 - alt. 4,705 ft - Les Charmettes
  8. S/E : mi 6.48 - alt. 3,629 ft - La Gorraz car park

Notes

Access by road:
- from Moutiers, take the N 90 to junction 36. Cross the Isère and continue on the D 66 then the D 213 towards Pussy. Pass through the village and continue towards the hamlet of Necuday. Carry on to La Gorraz.
- From Albertville, take the N 90 to junction 37. Pass the Notre-Dame de Briançon railway station and cross the River Isère, continuing on the D 213 towards Pussy. Pass through the village and continue towards the hamlet of Necuday. Carry on to La Gorraz.

Between (5) and (6) Please note that this route passes close to livestock guard dogs (in season). Remain calm and passive, walk around the enclosure and never cross the herd.

Worth a visit

(4) Col de l’Arc: a well-equipped but unstaffed chalet is located at the pass.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 3 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
Tomapi
Tomapi

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 09, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike that took 4 hours and 20 minutes (not including the picnic stop). In November, we encountered snow at around 1,600 metres, but this wasn't a problem as it was very hard and the path was quite wide.

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gilloua73
gilloua73

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 04, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

thank you for this walk: very nice. I just wanted to say that if you want to park, be careful because there's the goat park at the beginning of June. there's not much room to park elsewhere. thanks again.

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BARET André
BARET André

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : May 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Start higher up; park in the hairpin bend below Les Charmettes (1333 on IGN). Please note: this dirt track is very bumpy (a 4x4 or vehicle with high ground clearance is required). Setting off with our snowshoes strapped to our rucksacks, we continued along this track; then, after the next hairpin bend (1391 on the IGN map), we turned right onto a track heading towards the Grande Thuile (the lower mountain). We then continued towards the upper mountain and its small lake (more of a marsh, really). We put on our snowshoes at around 1,750 m and headed towards the Col de l’Arc. On arrival at the Col de l’Arc chalet, we took a short break and took off our snowshoes. We descended via a superb path passing by the Chalet de Fraitière to reach Les Charmettes. Magnificent views and superb weather for one of the last opportunities to get the snowshoes out.

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