Tour of Monviso, around the “Stone King”
Emanuele, UIMLA certified mountain leader, will guide you in the summer on this famous and beautiful hiking tour of Monviso in 4 days, crossing to France.
Alps
4 Days
Jun - Sep
Description
In the Cottian Alps, in Italy and close to the French border, rises the famous Monviso. Italians also call it the Stone King due to its prominence in the Italian Alps. In fact, people can see this pyramid-shaped mountain from very far as it's much higher than its neighbouring peaks.
During the summer we can go on this 4-day hike around Monviso. This is one of the most popular hiking trails in Europe, right in the heart of Piedmont. Indeed, at the refuges we will meet many other hikers and climbers.
Some added beauty of this tour is its history. In 1839, James David Forbes completed the tour for the first time doing the inner circuit. Today, doing this circuit allows us to see history. In fact, we can learn some geology understanding how the continents, and in particular the Alps, were formed.
Going from hut to hut, we get to appreciate each day a different aspect of the area. We will go by beautiful lakes, cross a stone pine forest, and of course reach impressive passes. Besides, we will go through the Monviso tunnel, the oldest in the Alps! Conveniently, the tour starts and ends in the small village Castello of Pontechianale.
Have a look at the 4-day program below, and if it looks interesting, don't hesitate to contact me! I love this tour and taking you there would be a real pleasure.
Italy is a prime destination for beautiful and historic hiking tours. I also guide my clients in this one in the Lanzo valleys.
Price includes
- Guiding fee
Itinerary
Day 1: From Castello of Pontechianale to Alpetto hut
We start at the small village Castello of Pontechianale, by the artificial lake. A steep trail takes us up to the Vallanta valley. Then it becomes easier and we start seeing the foothills of Monviso. We continue to the Alevè forest, full of Swiss stone pines, until the Giargiatte valley. We go up to the San Chiaffredo pass, then down to the Gallarino pass. We can already see Monviso and the Quintino Sella refuge. We sleep at the Alpetto refuge in a beautiful setting.
Duration: 6hs
D +1100m
Day 2: From Alpetto hut to Giacoletti hut
We follow the trail and take the deviation for the Tour of Monviso. We go up with beautiful views of the east face of Monviso, passing nice alpine lakes. We reach the Quintino Sella refuge, where we take a break. Then as we continue on the trail we pass by the Viso pass and descend to the beautiful Chiaretto lake. From here we go up to the Giacoletti refuge, passing by the Superiore and Lausetto lakes and the Cosas pass.
Duration: 6hs
D +850m
Day 3: From Giacoletti hut to Refuge du Viso
We go down the Porco couloir on a trail leading to the entrance of the “Sendero del Postino”. We take a shortcut to reach the passage of the tunnel of Monviso. Here we go down to the French side, to the Refuge du Viso. We will go through the oldest tunnel of the Alps!
Duration: 4:30hs
D +450m
Day 4: From Refuge du Viso to Castello of Pontechianale
We go to the Vallanta pass by a trail that goes first up and then down. This pass ends in Italy. We go down to the Vallanta valley, a scenic setting, and to the Vallanta refuge. Finally, by a wide and easy trail, we return to Castello of Pontechianale.
Duration: 4:30hs
D +450m
Details
More info
Equipment: : required hiking clothes, with clothes suitable for the season, waterproof boots (not shoes!), change for 3 (or 4) days, water.
It’s possible have lunch in the refuges or to take a lunch bag.
Meeting point
About the guide
Emanuele
Mountain Leader
My name is Emanuele but everyone calls me Lele. I live in the heart of Piedmont, in northwestern Italy, near Turin.
I am a mountain leader and a mountain bike teacher.
My passions are rock climbing, freeskiing and cycling. In other words, simply wilderness and nature.
My favourite playground is the Alps. While in winter I look for fresh snow, during the summer I like hiking, cycling and climbing in the valleys.
I also love exploring the world in search of new adventures.
I'm waiting for you to go on the next adventure together!
Languages
Italian | English
Certificates
UIMLA
What people are saying about Explore-Share
Man
Climbing with guide Guillaume was absolutely a highlight of my 2-week Europe vacation. Originally, we were planning on climbing in the Calanques, but the park was closed due to wind and fire danger. Guillaume chose another amazing location (Pic de Bretagne) based on my climbing abilities and preferences and kindly offered train station pick-up and hotel drop off, which I appreciated very much. The multi-pitch route we did was not only fun but also the right amount of challenge, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The communication from the team (Gauthier) was prompt and clear—highly recommend!
Maxine
Luis Silva was a great climbing guide and belayer! He taught me how to do moves that were difficult and encouraged me to try routes that were challenging for me! Because of his encouragement, I managed to complete these routes! I really enjoyed the climbs and completed 8 routes in the Sesimbra/Azoia area. The weather was perfect, no direct sun and cool enough to enjoy the climbs. Explore-Share made booking an outdoor climbing experience in Lisbon extremely easy. Luis, our guide, was fantastic, and the platform’s organization was flawless.
Valeriya
You’re simply the best!!! :))) Explore-Share made everything easy and stress-free. Will definitely use again.
Joshua
We had Léo as a guide for our day climb in Fonty. We were blessed with a knowledgeable, warm, and instructive guide. Communication with Léo and Ivan was smooth and swift. Explore-Share was excellent in arranging everything for our day climb. The communication was quick, and the platform was easy to use, making our adventure stress-free.
Cami
Patrick was a great guide. He took us on an intermediate Via Ferrata at Passo Sella. Renato was quick to respond with any outreach on the Explore-Share platform. The booking process was straightforward, and once Patrick was confirmed, all went well. It was a wonderful experience, and I’d highly recommend the platform.
4.8
Read all our verified reviews
You may also like
Join our newsletter!
Stay up-to-date on the best adventures.