Tour de Saint-Barthélemy

Introduction

The proposed route is a long ride between the Chaleby and Saint-Barthélemy valleys. The difference in altitude is already good, plus there is a lot of movement. We go from the beautiful pastures above Lignan to those of the upper Chaleby valley, following the stretch of the Alta Via 1 that comes from the Chaleby pass, and which has the Rosaire and Clermont bivouac as a stage point, climbs to the Col Vessonaz and descends to Valpelline. The return of our tour is via the col du Salvé and the flowery pastures of the Tsa di Fontaney. 

Description

Parking the car (1633 m), take the little road that leads to the Observatory, signposted No. 10B, and then the dirt track that climbs along the meadows next to the old ski lift, now demolished, passing near a stable; follow it up to an altitude of 1910, where in front of the Véplace Damon alpine pasture, at the fork, you must turn left and reach the basin at an altitude of 2015 on steep tracks, continuing further on, then entering the wood. Our path crosses to the left uphill between larch trees and then clearings until the shoulder at an altitude of 2165m, from where it enters the Chaleby valley with a long diagonal under the Champorcher ridge, joining the inter-country track serving the Champannement mountain pasture. Follow the dirt track uphill as far as the mountain pasture (2330 m, 2h30'); our trail marker is now signpost No. 10-Signpost No. 10A, and the path blurs into the tracks of the herds; it climbs in twists and turns to the right, then makes a wide semicircle to the left and joins the high route at Plan Piscinaz (2562 m), a little to the left of a wetland carpeted with eriophores. Our route continues halfway up, always uphill, crossing a whole series of canals, with a few slightly exposed sections. At an altitude of 2,705 m, it is necessary to descend slightly to the left to reach the bivouac (2,700 m, 4h00'). The construction is masonry, always open, has a kitchen and sleeps 18, and overlooks an emerald-coloured pond, 50 metres below; there is no water, so to get water you have to descend to the pond. From the bivouac, return to the crossroads and climb diagonally up the path that with a few hairpin bends leads to Col Vessonaz (2794 m), about twenty minutes from the bivouac. From the pass, the panorama sweeps from Valpelline to Mont Blanc. To the left of the pass is Mont Faroma, to the right, the Denti di Vessonaz. From the Vessonaz pass, retrace your steps to Plan Piscinaz, and after admiring the beautiful little lake, climb up to Col Chaleby (2683 m), in small twists and turns, on a beautiful path (1 hour 30 minutes from Col Vessonaz). Here, the panorama sweeps from Mont Morion to Monte Rosa, to the hollows below the pass full of small flower-filled lakes. We descend along the well-trodden path, until we cross the one leading from the col du Salvé to Cuney: the oratory is a stone's throw beyond the valley. We take this path to the right, and in a short time we are at the col du Salvé cross (2569 m); from this point onwards, our path is all downhill, a long descent; it dips below the pass over small bumps, until we reach the traces of an inerpoderale (uphill track) that, leaving a small lake to the left, in the midst of marmots reaches the Tza de Fontaney mountain pasture, one of the oldest in the area, since it is mentioned on maps dating from 1344. From the mountain pasture, descend on a path to the right of the dirt track, or on the dirt track, until you reach a fork, at which you must turn sharply to the right, along trail marker No. 10B, which passes among sparse larch trees and clearings, then through thicker woodland, until it leads into the meadows above Lignan and joins the route taken in the morning at the fork at an altitude of 1910. From here, it is a short walk back to the car (7/8 hours in total)