Safety

Roughly half of all skiers do not complete the tour due to weather. Plan escape routes and allow a spare day or two to wait at a hut for better conditions. More days on the tour increase the risk of encountering bad weather.

The best conditions are from early March to May, when huts are also guarded.

In late May, snow begins to melt at lower altitudes, and the risk of wet snow avalanches increases in the afternoons.

Start early each day to minimize risks and review accummulating risk constantly.

Proper acclimatization is necessary before starting the route, at least a day, depending on your sensitivity to altitude sickness.

Knowledge of techniques and methodology for traversing avalanche and glacier terrain with crevasses is necessary.

You'll need to carry a full set of avalanche and glacier equipment, including crampons, ski crampons, ice axe, harness, rope (30 m is OK), pieps and probe.

• Avalanche reports and snow levels: Avalanche.report or White risk.

• French: Avalanche risk: Meteo France. Actuall conditions, crowdsourced reports and huts: La Chamoniarde

• Weather forecast: Meteo Suisse or MeteoBlue (more optimistic).

• Mountain Rescue in Switzerland: 1415 in Valais region (Air-Glaciers) (the 1414 (Air-Rescue Rega) operates in other regions)

Commute

Bus or taxi is needed a 2nd day to move to Bourg-Saint-Pierre of the classir route. A longer purist alternative avoids the commute by passing via Col de la Grande Lui.

• Trains and buses. 

• Public transportation in Chamonix. 

Maps

Swiss topo map with ski tours (Android, iOS free, including offline). Thanks Swiss Administration!

Huts

• Refuge Albert 1er (2707 m)

• Cabane du Trient (3170 m) 

• Accomodation in La Fouly

• Grand St-Bernard hospice (2469 m)

• Cabane du Vélan (2642 m) / Cabane de Valsorey (3037 m)

• Cabane de Chanrion (2462 m)

• Cabane des Dix (2928 m) / Cabane des Vignettes (3160 m) 

• Cabane de Bertol (3311 m) 

Map of Area