The Swiss Alps. Kev Reynolds

Fourche can be climbed by a PD route via its South Ridge in about 3½hrs from the hut. Of a very different proposition, the Aiguille d’Argentière (3902m) on the frontier ridge to the southwest has numerous quality routes of varying degrees of difficulty, mostly begun from the Argentière refuge on the French side of the mountains. However, the East Face which overlooks the Saleina glacier, attracts climbers based at Cabane de Saleina, the East Face Direct (AD) being one fairly popular route.

      Further north along the frontier ridge, between the Aiguille d’Argentière and Grande Fourche, the beautiful Aiguille du Chardonnet (3824m) heads the Saleina cirque almost due west of the Saleina Hut. A very popular mountain with climbers based at the Albert Premier refuge, the narrow and exposed Forbes Arête, or East Ridge, is one of the classics of the region, often tackled from the Saleina Hut from which it is gained by first climbing a snow couloir at the head of the glacier to reach the Fenêtre Supérieure du Tour.

La Fouly

      Continuing deeper into Val Ferret beyond Praz de Fort, more meadows, groups of chalets and haybarns underline the pastoral nature of the valley. Shortly before reaching La Fouly, the hamlet of L’Amône has significance for climbers; not for the proximity of any great peak, but for the 400m white limestone crag known as the Amône Slab that gives delicate climbing of TD+ with individual moves up to VI-. Note however, that a storm can transform the slab in moments, so stay clear if the weather is threatening.

      Standing astride the road at 1592m La Fouly is the undisputed mountaineering centre of the valley. Hardly a resort, this small village has a large campsite at the entrance to the l’A Neuve cirque crowned by the Tour Noir. La Fouly has a Bureau des Guides et Accompagnateurs, a ski school, some 15km of marked pistes for cross-country skiing, 160km of waymarked paths, several shops and restaurants, and an Office du Tourisme (www.verbier-st-bernard.ch) in the main street. For accommodation there are three hotels that also have dormitories: the Grand-Hotel du Val Ferret (www.ghvf.ch), Hotel Edelweiss, and Hotel des Glaciers, while Camping des Glaciers sprawls just below the village.

      Mont Dolent, on whose summit the borders of Switzerland, France and Italy unite

      Built on the north side of l’A Neuve cirque, in a spectacular position under the crest of the Pointes des Essettes at 2735m, and with a direct view of Mont Dolent’s steep North Face, Cabane de l’A Neuve is another SAC hut owned by the Diablerets section. With just 28 places it has a guardian from mid-March to mid-May, and from the middle of June to the end of September (www.aneuve.ch). The approach route, which takes about 3½hrs from La Fouly and is signed from near the campsite, is a challenging one, aided in places by fixed chains or cables and with a glacial torrent for company part of the way.

      Above the hut the rock peaks of the Grand and Petit Darray (3514m; 3508m) offer interesting, albeit modestly graded routes, while a traverse from one to the other entails about 400m of scrambling. Nearby the Grande Lui is another of those easy snow peaks that makes an excellent first-season introduction to alpinism. At the southern end of the glacial cirque, the glorious North Face of Mont Dolent is a very different proposition. With an air of remoteness, the 550m of this ice-plastered wall gives a fine TD outing, but with real danger from falling ice. Its voie normale, on the other hand is an uncomplicated PD ascent by way of the SE Ridge, as discovered by Whymper’s party in 1864. For climbs on the East Ridge (AD), a small orange-coloured bivouac hut, Bivouac du Dolent (sometimes referred to as Cabane de la Maye), has been placed on the left bank moraine of the Dolent glacier at 2667m, and is gained by an approach of about 3hrs from La Fouly. Prospective users should take their own food and stove.

MONT DOLENT

      Acting as the southeast cornerstone of the Mont Blanc range, the 3820m summit of Mont Dolent is significant for being the point where the borders of Switzerland, France and Italy meet. An attractive mountain with four irregular faces, it was first approached from the Italian side on 9 July 1864 by Edward Whymper and Adams-Reilly with their guides Michel Croz and Michel Payot, and Henri Charlet as porter. It was a straightforward climb from the Petit Col Ferret using the SE Ridge as the most obvious route; ‘a miniature ascent’ according to Whymper. As for the summit, ‘it was the loveliest little cone of snow that was ever piled up on a mountain-top … But there was nothing little about the view from the Mont Dolent’ – as many have commented since. ‘A superb view,’ said Rébuffet, ‘very extensive, over a whole series of different landscapes, from the wild to the pastoral.’ Adams-Reilly was emphatic: ‘Situated at a junction of three mountain ridges, it rises in a positive steeple far above anything in its immediate neighbourhood; and certain gaps in the surrounding ridges … extend the view in almost every direction… The view is as extensive, and far more lovely than that from Mont Blanc itself.’

The Upper Val Ferret

      Outside La Fouly the road curves southeastward, drawing away from the main wall of peaks and in so doing gains a better prospect of them. The path used by the TMB (albeit more often walked in the opposite direction) crosses the river and gives an option of climbing to the Petit Col Ferret, while the more popular Grand Col Ferret route keeps company with the Drance de Ferret as far as Ferret. Before reaching this final village (in reality little more than a hamlet), a short diversion leads to the Gîte de la Léchère which is open from June to the end of September, has 35 dorm places, self-catering facilities and meals provision (tel [phone]).

      The tiny chapel at Ferret

      Ferret (1705m) clusters at what was formerly the roadhead, and now marks the terminus of the postbus route from Orsières. Standing near the tiny chapel with fine mountain views, Hotel Col de Fenêtre is open from June until the end of September, and provides the only accommodation, with 17 beds and 18 dormitory places (www.hotelcoldefenetre.theyellowpages.ch).

      High above Val Ferret the Lacs de Fenêtre lie in a charming plateau with views to the Grandes Jorasses, Mont Dolent and Tour Noir

      Upstream beyond Ferret the road passes through light woodland, then emerges to open pastures loud with the clatter of cowbells. Ahead the valley seems to be enclosed by rolling green hills, while a backward glance shows a dramatic cluster of peaks and glaciers. The official roadhead lies below the dairy farm of Les Ars dessous, where the original TMB route (now relegated to variant status) descends to the river, crosses a bridge and follows a farm track as the initial stage of the climb to the Grand Col Ferret (2½hrs) and the Italian side of Mont Blanc.

      Meanwhile, on the other (east) side of the valley, a track winds up the hillside above the farm, and later becomes a footpath which leads onto an utterly charming plateau graced by the Lacs de Fenêtre at a little under 2500m. Reached in 2–2½hrs from Ferret, the first of these lakes presents a matchless foreground to a view of the Grandes Jorasses, Mont Dolent and the Tour Noir. To the south the frontier ridge is enticing for a different reason. In that ridge the 2698m Fenêtre de Ferret not only gives a sighting of Mont Blanc’s Italian flank, but of the Gran Paradiso range to the south; it also suggests a way over the mountains into Italy where the Grand St Bernard road can be seen descending to the plains.

      Northeast