Gran Paradiso - first 4000er

Your first alpine 4000 Meter Peak. Climb the highest summit of the scenic Gran Paradiso National Park.

Trip Dates

Price:

490,- €

Duration:

3 Days

Group Size:

4

Difficulty:

Difficulty

Accomodation:

simple: Hut / bunks

Gran Paradiso - first 4000er

You have done a lot of alpine hiking? You have recently hiked the famous Haute Route? The next step is to climb to the top of one of those glaciated summits that you have been admiring from the distance!

Most of the high alpine peaks, namely those above 4000 meters, require substantial alpine experience: glacier travel, ropework, crampon-technique, climbing skills etc. A handful are accessible also for experienced and fit hikers, if guided by a certified mountain guide.

Arguably one of the most beautiful alpine 4000ers is the Gran Paradiso (4061 m), which is located in the famous Gran Paradiso National Park in the autonomous Region of the Aosta Valley. In contrast to the easy peaks around Zermatt like Allalinhorn and Breithorn, there are no lifts that spoil the landscape and it has to be truly earned!

The Gran Paradiso National Park is the oldest Italian park and features a large population of ibex. Actually all alpine ibex are descendants of the Gran Paradiso population, because the species was almost extinct by the 19th century except for a few individuals in the Paradiso area. With a bit of luck, you will not only see ibex but also eagles.

We have included an extra day in the Paradiso ascent for better acclimatization and to allow for crampon training and rope work. This will make the summit day a much more enjoyable experience. For hikers with a bit of experience in glacier travel it is also possible to climb Gran Paradiso in two days!

Bitte beachte unsere Infos zu den Anforderungen im Infocenter!

Itinerary

Day 1: We'll meet in the morning of the first day in Courmayeur to take the technically rather impressive Skyway cablecar up to Punta Helbronner at 3500 m. Up there we'll not only find some of the most scenic glaciers of the Alps, but also a good practice environment to learn about crampons, piolets and walking in roped party. In the evening we'll drive over to the Valsavarenche and stay with Pino, one of our favourite hosts on our trips.
Vertical ↑ 700 ↓ 0 m per gusto

Day 2: To get to the V. Emanuele Refuge (2732 m) we don't have to start early. There's enough time for packing and some practice in the valley. Vertical ↑ 900 ↓ 900 m

Day 3: Pre-dawn start for Gran Paradiso. The route follows a moraine and then a couple of steps in steep snow. At around 3400 Meters of altitude you will be greeted by the sun. One more steep snow section and you will tackle the rocky and exposed summit, secured on your guide's rope. There is not a lot of space on the summit boulder, maybe 5 × 5 Meters, but it features a Madonna, which is typical for Italian summits. After a couple of pictures and handshakes you will start to descend back to the hut, where it is time to celebrate! After lunch, you will descend back to the valley. Vertical ↑ 1300 ↓ 2000 m

Prerequisites

  • good physical fitness: stamina for 6-8 hours of hiking with a pack of 10 kg
  • technical skills: solid hiking experience on rough terrain. No climbing experience required. There's a lot of blocky terrain. Jumping between boulders is a most vital skill here.

Getting There

The nearest Airports are Geneva, Bern and Zürich. We may be able to pick you up from a convenient meeting point ans provide transportation up the valley.

Accommodation & Food

We will stay in the Vittorio Emmanuele Hut, which is well run. Normally we can get a 4-6 bed bunk room and are not going to be cramped in the bigger dormitory. The sanitary conditions are basic with common toilets and washing rooms but there is actually the possibility to shower. There's drinkable running water at the hut.

We have half board on the hut. A lean breakfast with bread, jam, butter is served along with coffee or tea. Dinner consists of 3 courses: starters (soup or pasta), sometimes salad, main course with some meat, desert. Vegetarian or other dietary requirements are accounted for.

You can order non-alcoholic drinks, beer and wine. Especially the famous Moretti. Likewise, snacks and lunch can be purchased.

Please don't hesitate to contact us in case of questions.

Gear

Full glacier travel kit is included.

Included

  • Organization and guiding by a IFMGA licensed Mountain Guide
  • Rental gear
  • All guide's expenses

Excluded

  • Skyway Cablecar approx. 50,0 €
  • 1 x Night/Half board on V. Emanuel Hut approx. 50 €
  • Lunch and drinks at the huts. (Lunch for take away can be ordered the day before)
  • 1 night in the valley either camping, bunk or hotel room.
  • personal insurance covering mountain rescue

Specials

for this trip

Top - mountain kit included.

Quite frankly our cooperating partners want to sell the gear they are providing us with. It is therefore clearly in our interest if you test gear on our trips. So why should we charge you for this?

Lend out gear is generally free of charge on all our trips. If you have your own equipment, but want to save weight on a challenging ski traverse, we will bring lightweight crampons for you. You are keen to test a wide freeride ski or the latest ice tools? No problem! Of course, we do not have multiple sizes or models in stock, but we are trying to help you with gear as much as we can.

Personal communication rather than follower and likes.

Lets face it: social media is a mere marketing tool for many businesses. To us this way of connecting with the audience is somewhat superficial. That's not our style. We prefer the direct contact to our clients - even beyond 'business'.

What does that mean for you? If you are planning a trip to the mountains on your own, get in touch, we are happy to recommend on a summit, region or provide information on the conditions. You need advice on gear? Need a second opinion on the avalanche situation? We are fostering a long term exchange, often on a very personal level, with many of our clients. We are taking the time, because its fun to chat or talk shop with like-minded people!

Climate protection: less babble.

Environmental protection must not be misused for mere image cultivation. Businesses who earn their money with air travel should not pat themselves on the back because they use recycled paper and green electricity. This is not credible. We clearly acknowledge the undeniable environmental damage our activities cause, and we try to at least partly offset them by the following actions, without too many words:

We encourage you to travel by train. If possible we give you a lift from the train station. We help to reduce your luggage by providing you all the technical gear required for your trip. Given a sufficient number of participants, we cover up to 50% of your train ticket.

We compensate our own as well as the CO2 emissions of our clients travelling by car without any additional cost in a transparent and comprehensive way. Of course, you are also invited to contribute. Get in touch if there are any questions!

Why we do not show available places online.

Because you still wouldn't know if a trip is confirmed. Bookings can be cancelled after all. Besides, well, the displayed number of available places can be fake — we all know that from the flight search engines.

Don't panic if the minimum number of participants is not yet reached! We often try to directly address long term clients, bring together bookings for different dates or find alternatives. Maybe we are really keen on doing the trip ourselves and offer you a special deal. Anyway we are keeping you updated. You might tell us your deadline by which you have to know if the trip takes place or not.