The Mémises "without effort"

Start from the upper station of the Mémises cable car. Access the resort of Thollon-les-Mémises via the D24 from Evian-les-Bains, Maxilly or Lugrin. Drive past the village centre of Thollon; at the resort, there is a large car park on the left-hand side of the road. The lower station can be reached on foot via a small road that branches off to the right and leads uphill after you have passed the car park.

(S/E) In the cable car arrival area (on the eastern side of the station), take the track heading due east, which climbs steeply (ignore the track heading down to the left and the one heading slightly to the right on level ground). Pass a paragliding launch site.

(1) At the fork, situated at the foot of a relay mast, take the path on the left which climbs towards the Chalets des Mémises along the ridges (ignore the track straight ahead which runs on level ground). After a steep climb, you’ll reach a second paragliding launch site (^GR®® signpost, red and white). Continue along the gently ascending ridge, soon skirting a barbed-wire fence on your right. Reach the eastern summit of Les Mémises, marked by a metal cross.

(2) Continue eastwards along a descending ridge through the woodland. Upon emerging from the woodland, follow a fence on your right-hand side once more and head towards the top station of the Frasse chairlift, which is visible on the right. Go round the electricity pylons on the right and, shortly afterwards, at a signpost, let the^GR®® continue straight ahead and turn right to cross the fence using a wooden plank as a stepping stone. Follow a clear path through the grass (not shown on the 1:25,000 map) to reach a reservoir.

(3) Ignore the signpost indicating a right turn, but go round the small lake to the left, keeping the Frasse chairlift terminus on your left. Pass a second artificial lake, keeping to the right, then turn right onto a path not shown on the 1:25,000 map (but visible when zoomed in), leaving the Chalets des Mémises higher up on your left, and reach the start of the Borée ski lift (do not go past the chalets as suggested by the purple line on the IGN map).

(4) Leave the hut on your right and take the start of a stony track that climbs steeply. After a few dozen metres, let the track branch off to the left and turn onto a grassy track that slopes gently downwards. Head west through a landscape where, alas, the ski lifts of the Thollon resort are hard to miss… After passing a ski-lift departure hut on your left and the arrival point of the Choucas ski-lift on your right, continue north-west with the cable car’s arrival station directly ahead of you and head straight down to the departure point of the Grand Mottay ski-lift (signpost). At the junction following the bend to the right at this start point, do not take the steep track leading to the cable car’s top station (not visible on the 1:25,000 map but visible when zoomed in) but turn left onto a west-south-west path that passes to the left of a chairlift start point.

(5) After the Tétras ski lift station (this is the last one in this direction), continue straight ahead towards a copse until you reach a fence. There is neither a step nor a gate (as of July 2015), so you must climb over the fence at a point where it is very low, a few metres to the right. At the fork immediately after, take the path on the right, heading uphill. Do the same at the next fork and continue climbing gently through the mountain pastures, heading due west. The path takes a hairpin bend to the right and turns north-east: climb gently, as the mountain pastures give way to a spruce forest. Cross a fence (there is a gate on the left – don’t forget to close it) and reach the top station of the cable car on its western side.

(6) Turn left at the hairpin bend and take the path furthest to the right, heading towards the Pic des Mémises. Pass a covered ski lift, then two small chalets, and climb gently along the ridge. Just before the summit, the slope becomes steeper and the path turns stony. Reach the summit of the Pic des Mémises (antenna, monumental cross).

(7) Retrace your steps to the cable car’s top station on the western side.

(6) Cross the terrace of a restaurant to return to the cable car’s top station on its eastern side (S/E).

Opening days and times for the Mémises cable car:
- July and August: every day, from 9.30 am to 5.30 pm.
- May: every weekend and on all public holidays.
- June and September: every weekend and every Wednesday.
For updates or further details, please visit the Les Mémises cable car website.

The route is situated at an altitude of between 1,500 and 1,700 metres. The weather can be changeable: bring sun protection, a warm jacket and a waterproof. Walking boots or sturdy trainers are required.

A supply of water is essential. There are plenty of places to stop for a rest or a picnic. Refreshments and food are available at the cable car’s top station.

A detailed map is required (at the very least, the one accompanying this description).

Recommendation:
The ridge paths are exposed and require careful attention, particularly when accompanied by young children.

Walk down to the lower cable car station:
If the weather is fine and walkers are fit, it is possible to walk down to the lower cable car station. To do this, in the arrival area (S/E), on the east side of the upper station, take the stony track leading down to the north, to the left of the one you took on the way up. The track descends in steep hairpin bends and roughly follows the cable car line, passing underneath it several times. In the first few hairpin bends, this track is lined with safety nets which are only there for skiers in winter. Make your way to the cable car’s lower station, which you will go round to the left of.
N.B. This alternative route is not recommended for the ascent: the track is stony and steep; it is already quite strenuous on the descent, and on the ascent, the phrase ‘effortless’ in the title would lose all meaning. To climb the Mémises entirely on foot, i.e. without taking the cable car, opt for the‘Ascent and circuit of the Mémises via the ladder’ route, which starts from Bernex.

This hike has been completed five times by the author, with various variations, the first on 25 July 2012 and the last on 31 July 2023.

- The ridge walks between (S) and between (6) and (7) are very pleasant and offer stunning views of Lake Geneva.
- From the eastern summit of the Mémises (2), views to the north over Lake Geneva, to the east over the Vaud Alps (Tours d’Aï and Tours de Mayen) and to the south over the Pic de Borée and the Dent d’Oche.
- From the Pic des Mémises (western summit) (7), there is a sweeping panorama of Lake Geneva to the north and west.
- The route between points (5) and (6), following a cross-country ski trail through alpine pastures and spruce forests, is very pleasant. Only the section between points (5) and (6), in the heart of the ski resort, feels a little out of place...