Mont de l'Arp Vieille, from Bonne

Access

Take the motorway as far as the Aosta East tollgate, which you pass, and exit at the next one, Aosta West. Take the direction of Aosta and, once at the traffic lights, turn left following the signs for Courmayeur. After passing the village of Arvier you will immediately arrive in Leverogne where, on the left of the road, you will find signs for Valgrisenche. Once you reach the main town, follow the signs for the hamlet of Bonne, where you can leave your car in the small car parks present or, just beyond the houses, in the stretch of road still cleared of snow.

Introduction

Sunlit all the way, this beautiful climb can be divided into two parts: the first up to Arp Vieille easy and with gentle gradients, and the second from the alpine pasture onwards challenging and with steep gradients. In the second part, attention must be paid to orientation in case of fog or poor visibility. This is a very long and strenuous hike with a considerable difference in altitude, which should be done with very well packed snow (especially in the part beyond Arp Vieille) due to the steep slopes and the somewhat exposed traverses. Depending on the condition of the rocky section of the final ridge, crampons may be useful. The great effort will certainly be repaid by the magnificent 360° panorama from the summit.

Description

From the car, continue along the road, which becomes snow-covered, for a few dozen metres, turning right onto an obvious little road, signposted by posts indicating trails 15 and 16, which climbs in gentle bends. After a couple of the latter, you come to the crossroads for Alpettaz (1920m), which you leave to the right, continuing on level ground as far as the Bochat mountain pasture (1951m); from here, you can shorten the itinerary a little by cutting a few hairpin bends, following the numerous tracks on the route. After rising a hundred or so metres, you come to a small plateau from which, high up on the right, you can see the Refuge des Anges on the rocks, and leave any tracks leading to Arp Vieille on the right, remaining in the centre of the small valley. As you ascend it, the slope increases a little and, passing in the centre between an isolated hut on the left and the half-hidden Arp Vieille alpine pasture on the right, you arrive at another small plateau and must continue, aiming decisively in the direction of the summit, the destination of the excursion, which can still be seen in the distance. After ascending another hundred metres or so, you come to an area with a slight incline where the valley widens out and which you walk through until you are almost under the eastern slopes of Mont de l'Arp Vieille. At an altitude of around 2400 m, one must turn sharply to the left towards the steep slopes of the mountainside. The slope now increases decisively and will always be steep until the summit. As you ascend the slope, you must make an exposed traverse with a semicircle to the left, arriving above some evident small rocks where you can possibly stop. Climb up very laboriously in the direction of a col, where you can see a ruined hut (which should not be reached, however) and, having reached its height, but far from it, stay to the right, climbing up a steep slope with a few zig-zags in the direction of the evident construction of the Capitano Ricci shelter on a col. Reaching it at the end of a tiring ascent, continue to the right following the ridge that climbs gently for a few dozen metres, coming out over a hump. From here, take a fairly long and exposed traverse to the right, approaching the final crest of the summit that is now close by. Once at the base of the steep ridge of mixed terrain, go directly up it and you will soon reach the small metal cross and the summit cairn. On the way back, a short diversions to the beautiful and scenic Arp Vieille huts is certainly due.