Hirmentaz mountain circular from La Glappaz

The Hirmentaz mountain consists of a long ridge running south to north. This hike is a circular route that covers the entire ridge. The climb is steep, but the path along the ridge is very pleasant.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.17 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 402 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 408 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,592 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,174 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Departure and access:
On the D22 road, between the village of Habère-Poche and the Col de Terramon, take the road that leads to the Frastaz chairlift (sign): on the left when descending from the pass, on the right when ascending. Leave the chairlift departure station on your left and follow the Route de Durandet, which leads through forest and meadows to the hamlet of La Glappaz. At the hamlet, continue straight ahead (the road that climbs to the left towards the chalets is closed to traffic). After a right-hand bend, you will come to a T-junction. Turn left towards the small car park at the end of the road.

There are directional signs at some intersections. There are a few signposts with yellow arrows and, at the end, some very old traces of red and yellow markings: do not rely on these sparse markings for guidance.

(S/E) Continue along the road on the path towards Col de Creux (sign broken in July 2019). Climb between pastures and shrubs to reach Col de Creux.

(1) Turn sharply left and follow a stony track. Ignore the access to the Sur le Creux chalets on the right and continue along the track.

N.B. At point (2), the path marked in purple on the IGN map is lost in the vegetation, which has grown considerably. The following route is steeper but accessible.

(2) Just before the Paccot chalet, leave the track and turn left into a meadow. Look for a well-marked path to the north-east: join this path and climb the slope. Reach a fence and follow it on your left. Quickly move away from the fence and climb steeply.

Rejoin the old path (marked in purple on the map) and head south-east. Follow a few short hairpin bends and, at a fork, take the path on the right which leads directly to the ridge of Montagne d'Hirmentaz (base of an old cross).

(3) Follow the ridge northwards. Climb up and down several secondary peaks and, as you do so, step over a barbed wire fence. Climb to the true summit (1598 metres), descend, pass a marker post and reach a secondary summit (1594 metres).

(4) Descend the ridge, heading north-northeast. Pass the arrival point of a ski lift coming from the right and reach the arrival point of a chairlift coming from the left.

N.B. Between points (5) and (7), there are numerous intersecting trails and the 1:25,000 map is not always up to date. In particular, the trail that is supposed to start west at point (5) no longer exists (tall grass, brush, etc.).

(5) Continue north-east towards the Hirmentaz chalets. Pass the arrival point of a ski lift on your left, then go under the ski lift line. Shortly afterwards, at a fork, turn left. Then turn more sharply to the left and join a wide track. Follow this track westwards and then south-west.

(6) At a sort of plateau, turn right (north-northeast). At the edge of a cluster of spruce trees, make a sharp left turn. Descend on a good path and pass under the Frastaz chairlift line. Continue southwest towards some clearly visible chalets. Go through a gate in the fence to leave the mountain pasture at the Replan chalets (fountain).

(7) Then follow a wide track to the left towards La Glappaz. Descend gently through the forest. Pass the first chalets in La Glappaz and then a drinking trough on the left-hand side.

(8) At a hairpin bend to the right, go straight ahead on a path between two chalets (nos. 102 and 100). You will come out onto a small road (the one used for car access) and follow it to the left. At a T-junction, turn left towards the La Glappaz car park. After a short climb (note the beautiful chalets on either side), you will reach the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,206 m - La Glappaz car park
  2. 1 : km 0.6 - alt. 1,287 m - Col de Creux
  3. 2 : km 0.89 - alt. 1,330 m - Chalet du Paccot
  4. 3 : km 1.64 - alt. 1,542 m - Crête de la - Montagne d'Hirmentaz
  5. 4 : km 2.51 - alt. 1,587 m - Secondary summit - View of the - Lac Léman
  6. 5 : km 3.29 - alt. 1,517 m - Arrival of the Crêtes chairlift
  7. 6 : km 4.74 - alt. 1,315 m - Fork in the road
  8. 7 : km 5.62 - alt. 1,235 m - Le Replan
  9. 8 : km 6.5 - alt. 1,186 m - La Glappaz
  10. S/E : km 7.17 - alt. 1,206 m - La Glappaz car park

Notes

Hiking boots are required. In summer, bring appropriate sun protection.

Allow around 1½ hours to reach the secondary summit (4) and 1½ hours for the return journey (not including stops). The actual summit (1598 m) is narrow: for a break, choose the secondary summit (1594 m; be careful of the steep slopes on the western side).

A detailed map is required (at least the one accompanying this description). A compass doesn't weigh much and can be very useful...

Additional information:
This hike can be combined with the "Pointe de Miribel circular from La Glappaz" hike, which has the same starting point. Start with this second hike and, at its point (8) (Col de Creux), follow this hike from its point (1). Allow for around 14km and 725m of elevation gain for the whole hike, which is classified as difficult.

Hike completed by the author on 14 July 2019.

Worth a visit

- Between (3) and (5), a pleasant walk along the ridge.
- From the summit and its secondary peaks, there is a 360° panorama of Lake Geneva, the Vallée Verte, the Chablais peaks, the Dents du Midi, the Mont Blanc massif and the Aravis.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 11 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.4 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
Netra
Netra ★

Hello Liguori, thank you for your feedback.

It's been almost six years since I did this hike, so things may have changed since then. I'm glad to hear that the signage has been updated, as this will make it easier to find your way around.

Thank you for the suggestion to go to the summit at 1,607 metres and back, at the arrival point of the chairlift.

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Liguori
Liguori

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 16, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

I did this route on a cooler day following a heatwave (on the treeless ridge, it must be very hot on some summer days).
I'm surprised by the orientation difficulties you mention. The route is well marked, with numerous signs, and there are no orientation problems (they must have installed signage). There is no barbed wire to cross.
At number 3 on your itinerary, at an altitude of 1,500 metres, there is a beautiful wooden cross installed in 2019 in a panoramic location.
It is worth making a detour when you reach point 1597 to go to the top of the Hirmentaz mountain, precisely at the arrival point of the Rhodos chairlift. You will have a better view towards the east and the Bellevaux valley (orientation table) and, above all, you can see many rhododendrons in this spot, which is rare at this modest altitude (they bloom in June). There is a nice picnic area with tables, just below the chairlift arrival point.
I would recommend doing this route in the opposite direction for the view (north-south along the ridge).
Liguori

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Sandrine f
Sandrine f

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 25, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very beautiful hike

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Patou074
Patou074

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 26, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A hike worth repeating. You have to climb up to the cross at 1,500 metres, and then the rest of the hike is along the ridges.

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Kervougron
Kervougron

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 24, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Done out of season, setting off early before the hikers arrive
Done several times, easy hike (the first part climbs quite a bit), but we quickly reach a remarkable first panorama. The ridges also offer a beautiful view, with the mountains on the right and Lake Geneva on the left. Very nice.

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alainpierremeyer
alainpierremeyer

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 02, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful circular.
Be careful, however, as there is no mobile phone network if you are using the Visiorando app for guidance, as we were. We usually print out the document as a backup, but we forgot to do so this time, which meant we ended up walking for an extra 30 minutes or so. At marker 1, we went straight ahead because there were no signs.
A little later, one of our phones picked up a signal and we turned back.
On the ridges, it's better to look towards Lake Geneva because the view of the slopes isn't great.

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doalfandary
doalfandary

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 16, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Magnificent panorama from the ridge and summit,
aesthetics spoiled locally by ski infrastructure (artificial snowmaking equipment construction site).

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cailleau annie
cailleau annie

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 01, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

At Glappaz, the sign indicating the Col du Creux is still broken.
At Le Paccot, a new path known as the cows' path leads to Les Crêtes and Le Haut Feron, but the fork to the left is not marked.
I did not take it; <>I returned as before to Haut Feron. I took a very steep path through the meadows, probably made by animals, which should be avoided in wet weather.
You reach the end of the ridges where there is a cross. The view is superb, and you can see birds of prey diving.
This was the first time I had done them from start to finish.
I met six people;
The descent is very well marked, the cows have grazed the tall grass well;

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legoupil.elsa
legoupil.elsa

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 18, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We completed this route on Sunday.
This one was as described, we completed the route in just 2 hours and 15 minutes, and found it relatively easy.
However, it lacks signage.
Perfect for a family outing.
The sky was not completely clear, but we had some breaks in the clouds to see part of the lake and Mont Blanc.

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marie-france.goaziou
marie-france.goaziou

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 08, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We went from Pointe de Miribel to Crêtes de l'Hirmentaz.
Luckily we had the description, because some of the signs are missing, particularly at the start of the ridge path and at the end. The path shown on the O.T. map doesn't exist, and you have to turn further on to find a main path that leads back to La Glappaz.
But it's a very beautiful route despite these two difficulties.

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Dr House
Dr House

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 25, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful circular with stunning views. However, the route is poorly marked or not marked at all, making the return trip difficult, but there is little risk of getting lost in the end as the weather is not good and there are many visual landmarks to use.

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PLUZATER
PLUZATER

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 07, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very well. To be done in very fine weather.

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