After looking at Le Mole (in the Haut Savoie region of France) covered in snow when skiing in the Grand Massif i had decided that it was going to be walked when an opportunity arose. It was a hot summers day in August 2009; 27 degs in the valley when the decision was made to walk Le Mole.
Driving from Les Carroz D’Araches, after 30 minutes and driving through Marignier and the village of Bovere i parked the car at an altitude of 1160 m. The sign below shows the well marked route with the peak at 1863 m, estimated at 2 hr 20 mins walking.
Start of the Mole walk
Views on the Mole walk
Continuing the climb for another 30 minutes I was unclear of the route to take to the summit. With a thunderstorm on the way i took more photos and abandoned the walk in the interests of safety and decided to do the walk the next day (weather permitting) from the other sode of the mountain.
The estimate to the summit from this side of the mountain was 1 hr 20 minutes.
Start of the Mole walk from 1300m
The final ascent from about 1600 m was on a narrow steep ridge, which would not be easy to traverse in wet or windy conditions. The views at the summit were spectacular, views on the valley cities of Cluses, Bonneville, montain views of Mont Blanc and the Aravis range and Lake Geneva.
Narrow ridge at top of Le Mole
The final ascent from about 1600 m was on a narrow steep ridge, which would not be easy to traverse in wet or windy conditions. The views at the summit were spectacular, views on the valley cities of Cluses, Bonneville, montain views of Mont Blanc and the Aravis range and Lake Geneva.
Le Mole cross and views
- Narrow Ridge to top of Mole