Pointe de la Gorma

Access via Maurienne; at Modane, turn left towards Aussois. At Aussois, turn left towards the dams. The road leads to the Carrière car park.

(S/E) The refuge trail begins at the end of the car park. Follow it to the first crossroads.

(1) Take the path on the right that climbs up to a fork after the Source du Combet.

(2) Turn left, pass by the Randolière chalets, and reach another fork.

(3) Turn left again and continue uphill opposite, passing by the pretty Refuge de la Fournache. Continue straight ahead and uphill to the Refuge de la Dent Parrachée.

(4) Above, the Lac du Génépy trail begins. Continue to the right towards this lake.

(5) Go around the lake on the left, taking the moraine, and follow a vague trail to the north, dotted with a few cairns, to a plateau above 3,000 metres.

(6) Continue climbing eastwards to reach the Labby Glacier, making the best use of the outcropping, gently sloping rocks for traction.

(7) Cairns continue to indicate the same direction, but this is the route to the Col de Labby. Cross what remains of the glacier, heading south-east, on an upward traverse to reach the difficult schistose slopes. Go around a rocky ridge, turning half-way to the north-east, which allows you to avoid another ridge on the right. The stones and boulders roll underfoot and on the exposed ice in places, but there is little exposure. Reach a crossroads.

(8) Keep to the left. A large snowfield, located just below the pass, may block access. Go around the snowfield on the right and reach the Col du Moine by crossing a small rocky ridge and following the rocks to reach the pass, which is very close, on the left.

(9) Admire the landscape, then take the gentle ridge to the south. Avoid a ledge on the right and return to the ridge. You will quickly reach the foot of the final couloir (grade II), then the narrow summit of Pointe de la Gorma. The pinnacles of Pointe de la Gorma are very close, as is the impressive north-west face of Dent Parrachée.

(10) Begin the descent via the same route, or to the right of the couloir, with an easier passage, continuing to the rock face. To avoid the snowfield and rocky outcrops, descend north-west towards the ascent route, choosing the easiest path without descending too low to avoid the rocky outcrops. Be careful of the schist, which is still loose, but there is no exposure. The slope is not that steep. Find the path you took on the way up.

(8) Descend via the ascent route to the car park (S/E).

There are no water issues on this route thanks to all the snowfields still present.

This is a hike that can be done without equipment from August onwards. Only the last 200 metres of elevation gain are difficult: there are no paths or cairns after the Labby Glacier.

The descent through the schist is fairly easy to follow if visibility is good: GPS is essential in foggy weather. Be careful not to slip, as the rocks tend to move, both small and large, but fortunately only a few centimetres, rarely more.

From (7), you can reach Lac du Génépy directly. A line of cairns winds between the rocky outcrops, probably for a passage to the left of the lake.

Lac du Génépy may be dry at certain times of the year.

Two pretty little lakes with beautiful turquoise colours are worth a detour at 3,150 m near (8).