Beautiful stage, green at first, covered by neve at the pass then very floral in Guil Valley.
This walk is part of a multi-day hike: Trek around Monte Viso in 5 days
Country:
Italy
District:
Pontechianale 
Leave Refuge Vallanta heading north and climb up a steep trail to Col de Valante.
(1) At the pass, start heading north-west and cross the neve reaching scree. Next, head down the steep scree towards little Lac Lestio (2).
From there, follow the trail along the torrent (3).
Then, take the trail (4) heading towards Guil Valley and reaching Echalp. The loop is completed (E).
Neve at Col de Valante is present all year round. This part is generally done early morning so will most likely be frozen and slippery.
Be careful if you don't have cleats.
A stunning view point on the west side of Monte Viso.
Echalp hamlet is worth a quick visit.
Overall rating : 5 / 5
Date of walk : Jul 23, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No
Very good tour around Mount Viso, thanks again to your site!
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Overall rating : 5 / 5
Date of walk : Jul 22, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes
the markings are very present, impossible to get lost. no more neves on 22/7/2022. return by the path to the left of the guil, don't take the road to the right of the guil.
very beautiful, like the rest of the trek!
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Overall rating : 5 / 5
Date of walk : Jul 21, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes
I didn't do much training because of the confinement, so I did a shorter version of the route.
I set off from the Viso refuge to reach Lake Lestio (2), then followed the path back to Echalp.
I spotted marmots on the descent to the Grand Bevédère.
The road didn't bother me too much, as it's not accessible to everyone above Petit Belvédère, and between Petit Belvédère and Echalp there's a path on the other side of the Guil.
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Overall rating : 4 / 5
Date of walk : Aug 17, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
A pleasant climb to the Col Vallanta with its marmots and edelweiss.
At the pass, it's back to France! You can see the Viso refuge and the path you'll take along the torrent.
Descend through a scree slope, arrive at Lake Lestio, then descend along the torrent to the first car park, which is accessible to authorised visitors (not many!), then descend half-track/half-road to a huge car park (very crowded).... and finally, the descent to the road...... the black spot of the day: the road!!! ending this magnificent tour on the road spoils it a little.... but it's hard to do otherwise.
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Overall rating : 3.7 / 5
Date of walk : Sep 10, 2014
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Clarity of route map : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
We did descend the very steep scree because we'd lost the GR, perhaps in a névé. There were still 3 left at the end of summer 2014!
It's a really beautiful stage.
We admired the edelweiss on the climb (between 2600 and 2750), filmed the marmots and took time to take a long break at the lake and soak our feet in the Guil. We also had time to look back and admire the Viso, which was hidden from view on the way up.
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Overall rating : 5 / 5
Date of walk : Jul 20, 2013
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
This year, the névé on the French side is very long. You need to be very good at walking on steep, long névé. Ice axes or crampons are not superfluous in the case of poor control.
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