Pointe d’Areu is a mountain overlooking the Arve valley at the end of the Aravis massif. Due to an omission on the IGN map, the Pointe d’Areu is often confused with the Pointe des Arbennes (also called Pointe d’Arbenne or Pointe d’Areu de Romme) which, in reality, marks the “true” summit with an altitude of 2478 m. The hike I am describing here will, therefore, be aimed at the Pointe des Arbennes and not the Pointe d’Areu located about 350 m just in front of it at an altitude of 2462 m.<\/p>\n
The itinerary starts at the place called “La Lanche” south of Le Reposoir and climbs into Bois de M\u00e9ry to reach La Gueule \u00e0 Vent in the first place and the T\u00eate du Ch\u00e2teau in the second place before finally reaching Pointe des Arbennes. It is to be noted that the panorama offered at the summit is splendid since one can observe a large part of the Mont Blanc Range, the Aravis Massif as well as the Fiz on the other side.<\/p>\n
I’ve classifed the course in the ” Hard ” category because of its length (14.3 km round trip) and the physical effort required (1330 m of elevation for an average slope of 19.8%). Also, the ascent in the forest between Le V\u00e9lard and Les Chalets de M\u00e9ry can be challenging due to the many nettle trees and spiny plants on the route. I, therefore, recommend the use of walking shoes with high upper to avoid the risk of injury or itching on the ankles.<\/p>\n
The toponym Arbenne<\/em> refers in patois to a “white partridge”, a species that was once found in large numbers on the mountain 1<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n