Had a rather athletic day yesterday. I’ve been wanting to get out and really explore the mountains above Villard Notre Dame and Villard Reymond to scope out some touring opportunities for the coming winter but also to summit Le Rochail. I had the Tuesday off and thought doing it entirely human powered from the Valley floor to the peak would be nice.
I set off on my bike at 7am from Bourg d’Oisons to Villard-Notre Dame - finding a hidden spot to lock it up (completely unnecessary I’m sure) at the start of the Rochail trail. 8:10am time for a Cliff Bar. Started along the trail and made it to the Refuge de Sources in good time. I’d been told that instead of walking across the Col du Rochail and subsequently the ridge to summit, it’s possible to scramble directly up the rock face which separates the Glacier to the left and the ridge towards the right. As I advanced I was trying to choose my route, eventually committing to the line that felt most natural. A nice traverse just above some lingering snow before following a small and easy arête which soon flattened off and into easy scrambling.
Summit (3022m) at 11am. I still had a good bit of energy and felt with so much of the day ahead of me it would be a shame not to make the most of gaining all this altitude. I climbed down the ridge passing the Col du Rochail and skirting around the backside of a steep and cliffy section and up to the Pic du Col d’Ornon from this peak the wide ridge continues through to the Grand Renard and the Petit Renard and only then can you see down into the beautiful valley which leads down towards Villard Reymond (photos from a distance in a previous post) There was some cloud starting to creep over some of the higher mountains and didn’t want to risk hanging around up there for too long. From the Petit Renard there was a loose but easy descent towards a lower band of rock where there was a mellow 40m down climb/scramble. Descending on loose rock for a while before hitting grass and subsequently crossing onto the wide grassy ridge leading to the Croix de Carrelet. A few more kilometers back to Notre Dame and back on the bike for a nice ride down the hill, though the unlit tunnels are more of a shock when your travelling at speed. I’ve tried to plot a route as best as possible and I’ve ended up with a total distance of just under 30km with total ascent of 3000 meters. 10 hour trip.