9-A brief tour of the Rosuel Valley at the gateway to Vanoise National Park

10 points of interest

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  Water

  Pont Baudin leisure centre

  The centre’s facilities include large car parks (shuttle buses can stop off free of charge), public lavatories, 3 restaurants (the Fer à Cheval, the Petit Hibou and the Pause des Lanchettes), a gite and guestrooms, the Les Lanchettes campsite (with bicycle hire onsite) the Fer à Cheval ranch, a rollerski loop (roller-skating and cycling for young children), a biathlon shooting range, 2 tennis courts, the Gli’air Park (high-ropes trails through the trees), the 17th-century silver mine (unaccompanied and guided tours. All of them set around springs in a pine forest, with a small lake, children’s games and picnic tables.
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  Know-how

  E-bike rental: camping des Lanchettes

  Camping les Lanchettes
  Route de Boverêche, 
  73210 Peisey-Vallandry
  +33 (0)4 79 07 93 07

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  Water

  The locality of “L'eau salée”

  L'eau salée (Saltwater) owes its name to the many minerals contained in the water there, which passed its name on to the locality itself.
  This little corner of paradise is an ideal spot for family outings: there is a little pond for the kids to enjoy and a selection of games on hand to keep them amused while the grown-ups play tennis or simply relax in the shade of the spruce forest, lulled by the lapping of the water.

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  History

  The Palais de la Mine and the Larch Alley

  A historical site illustrating the municipality’s mining past. Discovered in 1644, the seam of galena (silver lead sulphide) was exploited up until 1866. An alley of larches leads to the former Ecole Française des Mines, which was headquartered there from 1802 to 1814. The saw marks on its trees date back to 1891/1892. They testify to an act of vengeance by people convicted of illegal logging.

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  Viewpoint

  View over the Refuge-Porte de Rosuel

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  The Refuge-Porte de Rosuel and the bottom of the Peisey-Nancroix Valley. Geay Glacier, Pritre Glacier and Platières Glacier (from left to right).

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  Lake

  La Gouille Lake

  In the local dialect, a gouille is a very small body of water. This particular gouille is a perfect spot for a few hours' relaxation or a family picnic. Children will much appreciate the various games available on the lakeside and the setting is truly magnificent, with the Bellecôte and Mont-Pourri glaciers as a backdrop.
  This is almost the only stretch of flat ground in the Valley! In the shade of its larch trees, you’ll find picnic tables, barbecue grills, public lavatories, a drinking-water point, a petanque ground, a wooden practice area where you can teach your kids how to ride a bicycle, a large area dedicated to ballgames, and a soft mobility path for exploration of the stream’s banks and discovery of the peatland’s flora and small fauna.

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  Refuge

  Refuge-Porte de Rosuel

  At 1,547 in altitude, the Refuge de Rosuel is also known as the “refuge-porte” (gateway shelter) of the Vanoise National Park because it is both close to the heart of the Park and accessible via the road. Designed in 1971 by architect Christian Durupt, it features a wave-shaped roof set into the slope so as not to be buried under potential avalanches. In 2010, major upgrades were made to improve its comfort and brightness. The refuge is only looked after and open in the summer period. The ground floor is a reception and information point for the National Park.

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  Refuge

  Rosuel mountain hut and reception area

  Rosuel mountain hut stands out for its exceptional architecture, which blends in perfectly with Vanoise National Park’s natural environment. Located 1,547metres above sea level, it is open from June to September and maintained by a pair of keepers with a passion for the mountains and good cooking. Closed to the public the rest of the year, it can accommodate up to 50 people and you can enjoy local products and homemade dishes there during the day and in the evenings (upon reservation for evening meals). Its keepers’ keywords are fellowship, love of the mountains and fresh encounters.
  As it is set within the National Park, which covers a protected sensitive environment, there are a few rules you need to be aware of and comply with.
  There is a panoramic area on the mountain hut’s ground floor, where you can spend a few restful and instructive hours learning about the Valley floor’s rugged geology. Deckchairs, explanatory panels, touch-sensitive modules and telescope in open access. Light-hearted information for young and old alike.

  http://refuge-rosuel.vanoise.com/
  04 57 37 65 94
  Rosuel
  73210 Peisey-Nancroix
  refuge.rosuel@vanoise-parcnational.fr

  http://www.vanoise-parcnational.fr/

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  Small heritage

  Hamlet of La Gurraz

  A hamlet that turns a blind eye on adversity. The surrounding prow-shaped hillocks that protect the houses are known as “tournes”. The largest of them accommodates an oratory. The cliffs act as the ibexes’ winter home and bearded vultures build their nests there. The water disappears underground at the foot of the great waterfall, running through a 7-km tunnel beneath Mont Pourri to the Tignes dam and onwards to generate electricity.

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  Small heritage

  Notre Dame des Neiges Chapel and the hamlet of Beaupraz

  This baroque-style chapel in the hamlet of Beaupraz was founded in 1705 on the road to Les Lauyes’ high mountain pastures. Dedicated to Notre Dame des Neiges (Our Lady of the Snows), it was on 5 August 366 that the Virgin Mary sent down a fall of snow to mark the site in Rome where the Basilica of Saint Mary Major was to be built. The painting on the altarpiece and the front of the altar both depict the Visitation (Saint Mary’s visit to her cousin Elisabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptist). Saint John the Baptist is also depicted on the right of the altar. Saint Lawrence, Patron Saint of the poor, holds a palm branch and the gridiron associated with his martyrdom. The hamlet of Beaubraz still contains a few old montagnettes (little stone houses, only inhabited when the snows have passed). Down below lies the hamlet of Les Lanches, its houses aligned in the direction of the slope, each one protecting its neighbour.

  Evening Mass held in summertime