Tour Monte Rosa — Stage 1: Gressoney-Saint-Jean → Lago Gabiet
Warnings
- Book overnight stops in peak season
1 / 2Map & route
GPX track — verify on the ground before hiking
Fitness level
From Gressoney-Saint-Jean follow the Lys valley through Walser villages to Gressoney-La-Trinité, then climb steadily to the lake and Rifugio Gabiet (2,375 m), below the icefalls of the Lys glacier.
You set off from the Walser capital among the dark timber houses of Obre Platz and head up the Lys valley floor past Savoy Castle, beloved of Queen Margherita, and the hamlets of Tschemenoal and Orsia. From Gressoney-La-Trinité the climb gets serious: trail 6 mounts the Salza glacial step through larch woods and boulder fields to the Gabiet lake basin, closed by its dam. The hut looks one way into the Olen valley, the other at the Lys icefalls: at sunset the Lyskamm wall glows pink. Water and refreshment points all along the stage.
Earth sciences
Geology & landscape
Aosta Valley flank of Monte Rosa: gneiss and micaschists, Lys glaciers and Holocene moraines. Walser culture in Gressoney.
History & culture
Gressoney is the southernmost of the Walser colonies founded by Alemannic settlers from Valais in the 13th century: the Töitschu language, timber houses on stone bases and German place names survive to this day.
Water sources
Water at the stage's support points (Gressoney-Saint-Jean, Rifugio Gabiet, Lago Gabiet). On the high ground and at the passes springs are not guaranteed: fill bottles in the valley and at the huts.
Getting there
VITA buses and connections from Aosta; check seasonal timetables at vita.it.
Parking
Refuges & bivouacs
Photo gallery
Photos are published immediately. JPG/PNG/WebP, max 6 MB.
Flora along the trail
Adjacent stages
ACurated and verified by Andrea Rama
Data source: Tour del Monte Rosa — itinerario internazionale segnalato (TMR) · Traccia calcolata su rete sentieri OpenStreetMap (ODbL); verificare sul terreno
Last verified:
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