Rifugio Dondena (Rifugio Miserin) – Rifugio Dondena (Champorcher)
The loop trail follows, for much of the ascent, the mule tracks built by King Victor Emmanuel II.
The descent is along a well-marked path, with a final steep section.Today we will have the opportunity to visit the head of the Champorcher valley with a loop trail that will allow us to reach four lakes and arrive at Miserin, where there is a refuge and shrine.The place is magical and will remain in everyone's heart.
Most usefull data
| Difficulty | E |
|---|---|
| Uphill slope | 585 m |
| Total length | 12.500 m |
| Total time | 3h 50m |
| Assiduity | medium |
| Recommended period | Jul - Aug |
Map
Other technical data
| Start point | Dondena Refuge (Champorcher) |
|---|---|
| Start elevation | 2.192 m |
| Arrival point | Dondena Refuge (Champorcher) |
| Arrival elevation | 2.192 m |
| Max elevation | 2.710 m |
| Exposure | nessuno |
| Downhill slope | 585 m |
|---|---|
| Uphill time | 2h 20m |
| Downhill time | 1h 30m |
| Trail sign | 8, 7A, 7 |
Start point description
At the Pont-Saint-Martin highway exit, turn left in the direction of Aosta.
At the traffic circle, continue on the left in the direction of Aosta. Continue until you reach Bard. After the village, turn left at the traffic circle in the direction of Champorcher. Drive through the village of Hône and enter the Champorcher Valley. Drive past Pontboset and continue to Champorcher. At the end of the village, turn right in the direction of Dondena.
Continue up the mountain slope until you pass the parking lot of the Barbustel refuge, where you continue on an unpaved, uneven road to Dondena, where there is a traffic ban. From the Verrès tollbooth, turn right in the direction of Turin, pass Arnad and at the traffic circle turn right in the direction of Champorcher.
Trail description
From the hut, continue along the dirt road that crosses above until you reach the junction for Mont Glacier. You descend slightly to cross the stream on the small bridge and then cross the long plateau to take the royal mule track. You continue in not steep switchbacks until you reach a junction where you climb to the left and reach another mule track further up.
You follow it to the left, with a few small, somewhat uncomfortable sections, until you reach a long traverse that follows the valley above. You reach, with a straight section of the mule track, the basin of Lake Pontonnet, where the ascent ends. After the break at the lake, you skirt it on the left, cross the outfall and, with a steeper downhill section, reach Lake Bianco. You cross the stream and climb to Lake Nero, which you skirt on the left.
Then, with a long traverse through wide pastures, you reach Lake Miserin with its shrine and hut.From the hut, you skirt the lake for a few hundred meters, then find, on the left, the path that descends.You follow it slightly downhill with a long traverse, pass under Mont Dondena, then descend very steeply towards the valley floor, reach a fork and turn left to descend to the Dondena hut.
