Arolla cross-country ski loop | full version
Arolla
-6/0°
ClosedComplete loop including an easy first part and a more technical second part, discovering the upper Arolla valley, from Satarma to the foot of the glaciers.
Difficulty
DifficultLength
15.24 kmDuration
4:00 h
Description
This magnificent trail takes you to discover the alluvial plain of Satarma and the bottom of the Arolla valley, in an alpine environment close to the glaciers. The route includes many variants allowing you to avoid more technical parts.
Along the way, you can stop at La Monta, at the Tza hotel-restaurant.
The whole track offers a breathtaking view of the Pigne d'Arolla and Mont Collon.
Turn-by-turn directions
The route starts at Satarma, a charming hamlet in the Arolla valley. Begin by warming up on the Satarma loop before crossing the road and starting the ascent towards Arolla.
The first part is easy up to La Monta, where you can enjoy a well-deserved break at the “Aiguille de la Tsa” hotel. Several shortcuts also allow you to enjoy this flatter part without continuing on the more difficult part of the track. The route then gets tougher, first with a 1.5-mile ascent with 328 feet of elevation gain via Tsalion, allowing you to reach the base of the ski lifts and continue towards the Arolla hydroelectric plant. This is followed by another 328 feet elevation gain over 1.2 miles to reach the highest point of the route, in the lower Arolla glacier area. An exceptional environment!
You can then glide down a steady slope along the river to Arolla, La Monta, Pramousse, then Satarma and return to your starting point.
Start
Satarma (1808m)
Destination
Satarma (1808m)
Author's recommendation
This loop can be divided into several sections:
Satarma - Plan Lucel = Easy
Plan Lucel - La Monta = intermediate
La Monta - Lower Arolla glacier = difficult
Technical information
Altitude
2120m
1797m
Ascent
+338m
Descent
-338m
Technique
Stamina
Experience
Landscape
Best time of the year
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Tags
Public transport
From Sion, take the Sion-Les Haudères regular bus line. At Les Haudères, take the bus towards Arolla and get off at the Satarma stop.
Approach
Sion East motorway exit (no. 27), Val d'Hérens.
Cantonal road towards Les Haudères.
At Les Haudères, continue straight towards Arolla until Satarma.
Parking
Free parking at the start of the track.
Source
This activity is brought to you by Val d'Hérens Tourisme. Valais/Wallis Promotion is not responsible for the content provided.