Valle di Gressoney

Refuges and Bivouacs in the Gressoney Valley

sleep by the stars

By: Gressoney Monterosa

Active

The Gressoney Valley is full of refuges and bivouacs located on different altitudinal ranges, from the 1779 m Alpenzu refuge to Capanna Margherita (Europe's highest refuge) located at an altitude of 4554 m.

Refuges generally have multi-bed rooms, and a sleeping bag is not always necessary: especially in hiking refuges, managers provide blankets and comforters and, for guests without them, a sheet bag, either disposable or reusable cotton, for sale or rent. Use of the sleeping bag is generally mandatory. The managers of the alpine refuges in the Aosta Valley, who will welcome you in the refuge, are all licensed professionals who know the mountains well and can help you to enjoy them in the most correct way, offering assistance, information and, if necessary, rescue. It is a different matter for bivouacs, which are smaller and more spartan than refuges; they are unattended facilities, entrusted to the fairness of those who frequent them.

Low-altitude refuges

Refuge Alpenzu located at 1779 m, can be reached by taking trail 6 starting from the hamlet of Chemonal for info call +39 3792854953

Rifugio Ospizio Sottile located at 2480 m can be reached along path 11 from Valdobbia for info call +39 0163326472

Refuge Gabiet located at 2370 m reachable by trail 7A starting from Staffal or using the gondola Staffal-Lake Gabiet for info call +39 01251891506

Refuge Orestes Hutte located at 2625 m can be reached via trail 6B starting from the Lake Gabiet area for info call +39 01251925484

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

Rifugio Alpenzu Grande

High-altitude refuges

Rifugio Quintino Sella is located at 3585 m and can be reached from Staffal by following trail no. 9

Starting point for the ascent of Castor, one of the most accessible 4000 m peaks in the Alps. It turns out, moreover, to be a crucial stop for the Monte Rosa Summit Tour, which traverses the entire chain of 4000-meter peaks at high altitude, and for the ascent to the Western Lyskamm or the traverse to the Eastern Lyskamm.

For info contact the hut:

Tel: +39 0125366113
Mobile: +39 3488107793
E-mail: rifugioquintinosella@gmail.com

Rifugio Città di Mantova located at 3498 m above sea level can be reached from Staffal via trail 6A/6C across in Indren Glacier or alternatively by using the lifts and then walking the last section on Indren Glacier.

It is the starting point for the major climbs of Monte Rosa (Capanna Margherita, Piramide Vincent, Christ of the Peaks, Lyskamm, Dufour and the Col del Lys). Thanks to a major renovation whose main objective was to improve customer comfort, the refuge now has indoor facilities and a room with a direct view of the glacier.

For info contact the refuge:

Tel: +39 0163 78150

E-mail: info@rifugiomantova.it

Rifugio Capanna Gnifetti hut located at 3647 a 30-minute walk from the Città di Mantova hut, is the historic support point for the most challenging climbs, the ascent to Capanna Margherita and high altitude traverses.

For info contact the refuge:

Tel: +39 3481415490

Rifugio Capanna Margherita is an alpine hut that rises on the summit of Punta Gnifetti, in the Monte Rosa group, at an altitude of 4 554 meters above sea level and is the highest alpine hut in Europe.It houses an important laboratory used for scientific research and is dedicated to Queen Margherita of Savoy, who stayed there in 1893, the year of its inauguration.

For info contact the refuge:

Tel: +39 3481415490

Tel: +39 3481415491

The bivouacs

Carlo Gastaldi bivouac located at 2560 m was built in 1949

it can be reached by taking path 3/3A from Gressoney-La-Trinité

The bivouac has 4 beds that cannot be reserved and a fee to be paid to CAI of 3 euros per night per person

The bivouac is the starting point for mountaineering routes such as: Punta dell'uomo storto 3014m - Punta di Nétschò 3280m - Punta Ciampono 3233m and Corno Bianco 3220m.

For info contact the CAI of Gressoney Tel: +39 331 7893125

Ulrico Latteltin bivouac located just below Punta Pinter at 3132m opened in 1983 and refurbished in 2023

can be reached from Gressoney (Chemonal hamlet) by taking the path through the village of Alpenzu Grande to the Pinter Pass

can accommodate 16 people at a price of 3 euros per night per person to be paid to the CAI of Gressoney

For info contact the CAI of Gressoney Tel: +39 331 7893125

Mamo bivouac located at 3600 m along the ridge of the Lyskamm Nose

was placed in the summer of 2015 in memory of mountaineer Massimo Comotti

Access is from Gressoney La Trinité, Staffal locality and up the valley towards the Lys glacier, then continuing along the ridge of the Naso del Lyskamm.

Felice Giordano bivouac located at 4167 m below the Christ of the Peaks

built in 1916 for military purposes was later renovated in 1985

The bivouac can be reached from the terminal station of the Punta Indren cable car via the Città di Mantova hut and the nearby Gnifetti hut, along the route up to the Lys pass, in about 3 1/2 hours.

It has 6 beds

For info contact the CAI section of Varallo

Tel: +39 016351530
E-mail: info@caivarallo.it

Remo Passera bivouac located at 3175 m

Reached by taking trail 7C that leads to Alta Luce just before reaching the final bell, there lie the remains of the bivouac that was intolated to the mountain guide Remo Passera, who disappeared in 1970 on the Castore. The bivouac was swept away by a blizzard in 1983.

A new version of the Bivouac will be placed and inaugurated in 2024