- French
The second stage of the Tour de la Vallée d'Illiez (TVI), Morgins to Crettet-Borney, is 12.4 km long with an elevation gain of 910 m and takes approximately 4h20 to complete.
Compared to the challenging altitude gain of the TVI stage 1, this second stage starts gently, taking the charming ‘Chemin des Ponts’ in the bucolic Vallon de They. This valley follows Morgins’ Vièze River for 3 km and offers a panoply of fascinating interpretive trails along the way.
One of these, the ‘Parcours de l’Eau’, showcases Morgins’ surprising multicolored waters over nine informational panels. Observant hikers will notice that the various lakes, rivers, and waterfalls in and around Morgins are successively red, blue, yellow, white, and green. This unique wetland area is home to a new biotope comprising a series of ponds, as well as the famous ferruginous spring which sparked tourism in Morgins in 1820, when the first tourists began arriving in Morgins to ‘take the waters’.
Alternatively, hikers can take the interpretive ‘Bee Trail’, with 23 honeycomb-shaped informational panels that traverse the Sassey mountain pasture before arriving at the fertilization station, just before the Cantine de Tovassière mountain restaurant. From there, a small road will take you 550 m further to a path up the hillside that leads to the source of the Fontaines Blanches waterfalls.
After these interpretive trails, the walk continues towards the Lac de Chésery and Lac Vert, where you will find the quaint Refuge de Chésery. This marks the start of the last major climb of the day to the Col des Portes de l’Hiver. From here, you will head downhill to the Col des Portes du Soleil, the famous pass to which the ski area owes its name.
Continue along the road on your right for about 450 m before taking a path on your left – a straight 1km gravel road to the Relais Panoramique, located in Crettet-Borney, just above the resort of Les Crosets.
Turn-by-turn direction
At the Lac Vert (Refuge de Chésery) please follow the diversion that has been put in place: take the wide path to the left of the lake and not the small path to the right, which is closed for works during the summer of 2023.Best time of year
Accessibility
Prestations
- Car park
- Pay car park
- Accommodation
- Restaurant