Ballandaz Gorges

While you’re there, take the opportunity to discover a site like nothing else anywhere in Tarentaise! Continue on along the forest trail to the Ballandaz Gorges, where the full power of mountain water is on view! A promontory overlooking the stream gives you a front-row seat, providing a perfect vantage point to thrill to the spectacular show that nature puts on here. A real treat! Departure from Galerie HydraulicaFrequented by Brides-les-Bains’ spa clientele and Pralognan’s mountaineers during the Belle Epoque, the site has once again become an attraction for walkers, its wonders forged by the stream. Now that the promontory has been installed and the itinerary secured, 21st-century tourists can discover and rediscover a truly outstanding site. Sheltered from the heat in high summer, the trail follows the water in all its forms: it may have been tamed for creation of hydroelectricity in the early stages of the journey, but appears indomiable once it reaches the Gorges – the unquestionable highpoint of this itinerary through the foothills of the Dent du Villard. Once you tear yourself away from the Gorges, make your way up a little higher to enjoy a splendid panoramic view over the Bozel Valley: take a short break on one of the benches to admire the landscape and breathe in the tranquillity surrounding you. There are benches along the way and the route has 2 picnic areas, one by an old trip-hammer near a brook and the other just beside Galerie Hydraulica.A family outing accessible to one and all, and an excellent introduction to Le Planay’s and the Bozel Valley’s natural heritage.