1-day Aiguille du Tour in Alpi Trail Mode (Chamonix)

I invite you to join me on a challenging alpi trail ascent to the Aiguille du Tour summit (3540m), in just one day.  This unique climb combines the excitment of trail running along with mountaineering, making for an amazing experience, reserved only for the extremely fit.

This program is also a great first alpi trail experience and a preparation for more ambitious goals in 1 day, like climbing Mont Blanc.

Alpi trail climbs allow you to complete in only one day a high mountain ascent usually carried out in 2 days, descending to the valley on the same day. If you are a trail runner used to covering long trails with a significant elevation, and you also have some basic mountaineering experience, then this is the perfect program for you!

Starting from Chamonix-Mont Blanc, this Aiguille du Tour alpi trail climb is a great challenge and an excellent opportunity to give your trail running practice a new dimension. This program is suitable for athletes practicing regular and intense endurance activities.

We will depart at 4:00 am and return at 02:15 pm. So, you need to be have an excellent fitness level and previous experience on long efforts, of about 10 hours. Climbing from the parking area in the village of Le Tour to the summit entails a positive altitude gain of 2090m. It is a good alpitrail start.

Additionally, you also need to have previous glacier hiking experience with crampons and knowledge of basic mountaineering techniques. We will ascend with trail running shoes up to the glacier and then we will change them by mountaineering boots.

We will depart from the Le Tour village parking, near Chamonix. After reaching the Albert I Refuge, we will continue hiking on the glacier until we reach the airy rocky yet easy section that takes us to the Aiguille du Tour summit. From the top, our effort will be rewarded with spectacular views over the Mont Blanc range and the distant Swiss peaks.

We will cover the following 4 sections during the ascent:

– Section 1. Parking du Tour (1450m) – Glacier du Tour Moraine (2130m)
Trail: steep path through steep terrain.
Elevation gain: 680m.

-Section 2. Glacier du Tour Moraine (2130m) – Albert I Refuge (2706m)
Trail: steep path over the moraine edge. Break at the refuge and change of equipment.
Elevation gain: 1250m.

-Section 3. Albert I Refuge (2706m) – Foot of the Aiguille du Tour (3400m)
Mountaineering: glacier itinerary on a gentle slope. Passage of the Col Supérieur du Tour (3289m).
Cumulative elevation gain: 1950m.

 Section 4. Aiguille du Tour Base (3400m) – Aiguille du Tour Summit (3542m)
Mountaineering:  Mixed route with easy rock passages.
Cumulative elevation gain: 2100 m.

The ascent will take us from 4 to 6 hours, and the descent another 3 or 4 hours. I will make sure you enjoy a safe and enjoyable mountain experience!

So if you are up for this challenging alpi trail program, just send me a request. Join me and let’s reach the the top of Aiguille du Tour in just one day!  You could also have a look at my Gran Paradiso alpi trail climb or the really demanding Matterhorn alpi trail ascent, combined with an e-bike approach.