Albert I cabin (2,702 metres)

Why not do it?

By André Rotach, UNOG

I am proposing a few small hikes of varying degrees of difficulty, to let you see new things, get some fresh air and relax a bit. Don’t forget: doing nothing is bad for your health. Here’s hoping you have days of fun hiking and relaxing in pleasant and sunny weather.

Albert I cabin (2,702 metres)

Take the autoroute to Chamonix, then towards Argentière, which you drive right through. On leaving town, take the road to the right, towards Le Tour. Pass through Monroc and then the village of Le Tour. This is the start of the télécabine rising towards the Col de Balme. At the top of the télécabine trip, you reach Les Autannes (2,162 m.), the starting-point for this hike. You cannot miss the path towards the Albert I cabin. It includes some fairly steep sections; two parts are particularly difficult to negotiate. Care is needed here. Near the top, the path continues along a moraine beside a glacier.

After about 2 hours and 15 minutes, you arrive at the mountain hut, with its superb view of the Glacier du Tour, the peaks of the Génepi range, as well as those in the Tour and Chardonnet ranges. If you are quiet, you might just have the luck I did, in getting as close as 2 metres to a marmot.

You can also get something to eat at the cabin. The return hike is by the same route, in about an hour and a half, for a total trip time of 3 hours, 45 min., and a change in altitude of 55 m.

For more details, see the Guide des randonnées autour du Mont-Blanc, Edition Rother.

Also indispensable: an IGN 3630 OT map. Don’t forget to wear good hiking boots and weather-suitable clothing. Good trekking!

(Translation by David Winch).