Travel program

DAY 1: meeting in Borgo San Dalmazzo at ATL – Global Mountain Guides Office (Bertello Palace) at 2:00 PM; check of individual equipment and transfer by private van to Valle Gesso in Sant'Anna di Valdieri – Tetti Gaina (1,100 m). Ascent in about three hours to the Valasco Refuge (1,763 m) – ancient hunting lodge of the Royal Savoy Family – located in the center of the beautiful plain of the same name. Dinner and overnight stay at the end of a short day in which you enter the “world” of the Maritime Alps.

DAY 2: from the refuge, you reach the top of the Piana Superiore del Valasco to enter Val Morta and reach the Testa di Bresses with a sustained climb. After briefly descending to the Fremamorta Lakes, you skirt them to gain a beautiful descent that leads to Pian della Casa. Once you put the skins back on, you start climbing again to reach the Remondino Refuge in about two hours, where you have dinner and spend the night.

DAY 3: breakfast at dawn and departure for the Brocan Pass: without reaching it, you head slightly downhill towards the Mercantour Pass to conquer Cima Ghiliè (2,998 m), a splendid panoramic balcony in the heart of the Maritime Alps and Valle Gesso. The subsequent descent is little known to Italian ski tourers and winds through the rocky spires and snowy couloirs of Cime de la Baissette (2,822 m) and Mont Pelago (2,768 m), descending much of the Vallon de Sangué before a final traverse through a beautiful forest of sparse larches to reach the Refuge de la Cougourde (2,090 m). A stunning and sunny place on the edge of the larch forest, overlooked by the elegant rocks of the Caïres de Cougourde.
Dinner and overnight stay at the refuge.

DAY 4: departure on a descent that quickly leads through spectacular centuries-old larches to the Vallon de Trécolpas and shortly after to the Pas des Ladres (2,448 m). A short but beautiful descent towards the Refuge de la Cougourde leads into a basin where the snow begins to give way to the first grass; here you put the skins back on and start climbing again along the French route of Monte Gelas, reaching the Balcon du Gélas (3,085 m). The final descent is spectacular and unique: passing through the Col de la Terrasse, it leads along splendid slopes to Lac Long, from where you continue to the Refuge de Nice (2,232 m).

DAY 5: a final "broad-reaching" day during which you expect to see the sea at every turn... you climb along the Vallon de Niré, passing the lakes of the same name, to reach the Brèche Montolivo (2,751 m) and then descend to Lac Noir de Valmasque. We are in the Valley of Wonders in the presence of Mont Bégo and Grand Capelet.
With skins back on, the itinerary continues to reach the summit of the latter (2,935 m), passing through the Col de Valmasque (2,548 m) and crossing the last steep slopes with the French Riviera behind you. Long final descent into the Fontanalba Valley, famous for its rock carvings, down to Casterino. The Cuneo – Nice "on skis" finds its finale here: the Mediterranean and Nice are now close; the vegetation, lights, and scents provide clear confirmation of the gradual transition from the austere Cuneo valleys to the softer and more relaxing environment of the French side. Return by private van to Borgo San Dalmazzo and end of services.