Gorges du Durnand

Useful Information

Location:	Near Martigny, at Les Valettes on the road to Champex. (46° 3' 53" N, 7° 4' 24" E)
Open:	MAY to OCT daily 9-18. [2011]
Fee:	Adults CHF 8, Children CHF 5, AVS CHF 7. Groups (10+): . [2011]
Classification:	Gorge
Light:	n/a
Dimension:	VR=200 m, St=330, A=613 m asl.
Guided tours:	self guided, D=60 min.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Gorges du Durnand, Café - Restaurant Les Gorges du Durnand, 1932 Bovernier, Valais, Tel: +41-277-222077. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1877	developed with trails and opened to the public.

Description

The Gorges du Durnand is a gorge with a series of 14 waterfalls, which is about one kilometre long. The visit starts at the café restaurant Les Gorges du Durnand at the road between Les Valettes and Champex. The gorge is rather steep, the trail is a 400 m long staircase which is actually pinned at the cliff face on the left side of the gorge. At the end the visitors has gained 100 m. In the middle is a bridge which crosses the gorge and ends on the opposite wall. Its intention is to offer a different view on the gorge.

The gorge is open from spring to autumn, depending on the weather, but generally from May. The best time for a visit is actually in May, when there is still a lot of melting water and the air is full of the roar and the spray of the cascades. Later in the year the river becomes calmer, less spectacular but stil very impressive.

The gorge is located at the border between the granite of the Mt Blanc massif and the gneiss. The polished rock surfaces in the gorge show the difference between those rock in an impressive way.