Friday 6 August 2021
| Distance (km) | 6 kms | |||
| Distance (time) | 1.5 hrs | |||
| Climb / Descent | 15m / 750m | |||
| Hard / Soft surface | 40% / 60% | |||
| Landscape |
|
|||
| Weather |
 24° 2 Bft
|
|||
|
|
||||
|
After we closed the gap between Pralognan and Les Prioux yesterday, we will walk closer to home (the tent) today for the last bit from Polset to Modane. Again we had to make a reservation for the shuttle bus in advance so that we have it at 8:40am from the railway station in Modane to Polset. So we park the car somewhere close to the station and wait for the bus....which again is some unmarked black minivan, but this time a volkswagen. The drive up is fast, so fast that the drive passes the stop in Polset and we have to interfere. A few hundred meters further we can get off the bus. And from here it's just descending. First it's a double track gently descending. Arriving at a house it looks like it's a dead end, but here we have to practically cross the garden to take a narrow path that goes down quite steeply. The first part with a lot of stones, but after that it is mostly forest ground and that is quite nice for a change. It feels like an infinite amount of hairpins down until we get to the path that comes straight from Orgère. That is an interesting point ... at Polset it said that the GR5 came from Orgère to Polset and then joining the GR55 descend the way we did. But here at the crossing it says that the GR5 goes directly to Orgère and not by Polset. Does it matter a lot? Not really, through Polset is 30 minutes longer and less steep. It's just confusing that different signposts give different information. Anyway, we are now for sure back on the GR5 and continue to descend. The last bit is less steep and wider and then we see the first houses. Officially this is still not Modane, but Loutraz, but it feels like we're there. We cross the river and enter the center of Modane that is actually not so exciting - most commercial activities are around the railway station which is a bit further on. We take some photos, check the distances for next year (Refuge de Mont Thabor - 6h15, quite a distance) and walk to the railway station where the car is parked. The GR5 is done for this year. Many people told us that the Vanoise is the best part of the GR5, but we have mixed feelings. In the end we're happy we chose the GR55, but all together it is a hard section with respect to transport and overnight stays (no bivouac allowed, fully booked refuges) in summer. |
        |
|||
|
|
||||
Download track PolMod.gpx