360° walking tour over 2 days on the crests of Mont Jovet

Located at 8 km from Bozel, the hamlet of la Cour is easy to reach only in summer. In winter, the road is closed from Villemartin.In summer, la Cour is a good place to do many walks. The most famous is the Mont Jovet. In winter, the nature lovers can practice snowshoeing or ski touring from Villemartin to la Cour. It has a really nice view on the Vanoise Massif and on the Valley of Bozel. La Cour is a “Montagnette”, which means that it is a small hamlet where the houses were lived in at the spring and the autumn for farming. These houses are now used like second home.

The panorama offers a view of the Ecrins as well as the Cervin, with the Mont Blanc and the Vanoise domes in the foreground. Enjoy the autentic characteristic of the Mont Jovet hut, one of the first refuge inaugurated in 1890: a wooden construction almost untouched.Summit: the Mount Jovet is situated in 2 558 m of height, where we can, in clear weather, admire a panorama of 360°, with the Mont Blanc on the horizon. It's name could be a derived of the god Jupiter. Geology: The hillside of Bonrieu consists of a basis of schists of the coal bearing (layers of sedimentary rocks) on which a tablecloth of gypsum triasique covered by the glossy schists (glossy aspect due to the presence of white mica). Below 1600 m of height, the torrent dug its bed in schists of the coal bearing. On both sides, the slopes are covered by former moraines. Downstream the torrent flows on more stable conglomerates. In left bank the ground is constituted by glacial resides. Refuge: In August 24th, 1889, the mayor of Bozel, Mr GARCON Victor-Marie-Ernest presented the project to the municipal council for the construction of a chalet-refuge on the Petits-Reys mountain for the benefit of the Tarentaise section of the CAF. It was completed on August 24, 1890 and served as a cottage or hotel for tourists on an excursion to Mount Jovet. A diligent system allowed to go from Albertville to Moutiers, then from Moutiers to Brides. Then we went up on the back of mules to the shelter. In 1893, a train replaced the hitch on the first section. Then it became disinterested for almost 15 years after the war, and the refuge became less and less profitable. Then the CAF decided to sell it in 2004 and the municipality of Bozel acquired it and obtained the right to exploit it in the summer of 2004. Since 12 January 2005, the municipality of Bozel has been the owner of the sanctuary and various contractors manage it during the summer. Impluvium des Sources de Brides: The history of Brides-les-Bains is inseparable from the thermal waters consomation there for their healing virtues, from the 17th century. But the springs are silted between 1653 and 1774, and it is necessary to wait 1818 founding date for the station, with the gushing of the thermal spring. A benefit that we owe to a natural disaster upstream from the valley... It is the Doctor Hybord who makes the first analysis of these waters and the following year, the first treatment cabins are built. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the clientele of the spa of Brides les Bains climbed on the back of a mule to contemplate the sunrise and sunset at the summit of Mont Jovet. By the Perrières woods, the trail climbs towards the Grand Rey. Climb in alp towards the refuge, then Mont Jovet. Alpine: The term refers to a mountain pasture where herds of cattle, sheep or goats are brought mainly in summer to enjoy fresh and abundant grass. It also designates the period of the year when the flocks grazein this pasture (we also speak, more precisely, of "estive "). The Chapel of the Bozelet or Chapel of Our Lady of the Alps: It is the smallest of the chapels, the furthest and most isolated of the commune. This private building was built in the middle of an alpine pasture and on top of a mountain at 2,271 m above sea level. It is accessible, for example, after the beautiful hiking route of the crests of Mont Jovet (PDIPR).

Come and enjoy the breathtaking panorama from the recently restored Mont Jovet refuge. Guarded in summer, it is ideal for a discovery with family, friends or as a couple.