Link to more route details: www.komoot.de/collection/901179/-via-alpina-6-10

The trail starts off in a south-easterly direction on the GR® national long-distance trail heading towards the Bostan chalets (spring). Junction with the GR® 5 on reaching a car park (1,096m). Continue towards the south along the road, cross the Allamands (1,028m); after 3 bends, leave the road just before it reaches a bridge. The trail heads towards the south east (ignore the path that turns off to the left), straddling a foot-bridge (787m) and entering a forest where you must along the left bank of the Clavieux stream, passing through the Chevret and Moulins hamlets before arriving in Samoëns (703m). The trail leaves the village towards the D 907, taking the GR® 5 again at the bridge at the 714m spot height, and turning right to follow the Clévieux stream and arriving on the bank of the Giffre river. Near the confluence of the two streams, opposite the Nant d’Ant waterfall (listed site) near a foot-bridge, the GR® trail heads up along the Giffre on a wide path through forest, and reaches the dyke on the right-hand bank of the Giffre. It follows this for 2km to arrive at the hamlet that gave its name to the Perret bridge (726m). Cross the Giffre and climb up to the Faix hamlet along a little road. After this, continue along a wide, paved forest trail on a level course. (5 minutes away on the left, overlooking the Giffre river, stands the Notre Dame des Grâces chapel, a cool oasis). The trail descends to open out over vast meadowland, crossing it diagonally to reach the foot-bridge over the Giffre (735m) - Metallic structure over the stream at the mouth of the Tines gorges (listed site). Do not cross the foot-bridge, but instead take the route on the right leading uphill from the ruins of two farms, a little uphill path through the woodland, then head into a narrow gorge, which is the old riverbed of the Giffre. The rocky outcrops are equipped with three ladders. At the upper exit from the gorges, the route takes the trail to the right, which rises upward, zigzagging along at the foot of the cliffs in beech and spruce undergrowth. Another ladders makes it possible to reach a ledge from where the view stretches out over the entire Sixt basin. The trail descends along a rocky slope, crosses a meadow leading to three old chalets and then the Nants bridge (768m). Cross the bridge, leave the GR® 5 trail and continue on the alternative route via the hamlet of Fay (old houses, chapel dating back to 1641 and 1869). At Maison Neuve, take the D 29 on the right to reach Salvagny.
(Gilbert Blatter, Codérando 74)

Just after leaving the hut, the trail passes the traditional pasture chalets of Bostan before descending again to the Allamands hamlet. It then follows the little Clévieux valley to arrive at Samoëns, a village of traditional architecture. The “Septimontains” (people of Samoëns) owe their name to the seven mountains that were granted to them by the monks of the Abbey of Sixt. The village originally consisted in little hamlets, but today the urbanisation generated by tourism has joined them together. In Samoëns, most of the buildings and other aspects that contribute to the village’s charm are due to the generosity of Marie-Louise Jaÿ, a native of Samoëns, who married shopkeeper Ernest Cognacq and together with him created “La Samaritaine” in Paris before returning to the area. Today, a botanical garden that she donated to the village in the early XXth century still exists: “la Jaÿsinia”, where some 8,000 plants from all over the world can be discovered. There is also a listed lime tree, which has crowned the square by the same name for over five centuries. The Haut-Giffre region is marked by the story of the “kègnes” (masons), “frahans” (stonecutters) and other “bouscolins” (carpenters) who left their valley for 6 months to sell their services all over the country (Vauban fortification sites, large canals under Napoleon, etc.) before returning after making their fortune. The “Eglise des 4 Couronnés de Verchaix” church is, incidentally, dedicated to them. Today, their brotherhood has become the Société des Maçons (Society of Masons), which organises a Symposium on Stone Sculpting every year in early August. On leaving Samoëns, walk alongside the stream. Alternatively, you can cross it to admire the typical limestone houses of the valley in the two hamlets of Vallons, with their stone basements and very beautiful wooden doors and superstructures. They had to be very voluminous in order to allow for the storage of large quantities of hay for the animals in winter. Upon arriving in the Tines gorges, you can picture the processes of torrential erosion, as the trail passes through the old bed of the Giffre, a stream mainly of glacial origin and therefore particularly impetuous. On leaving the gorges, you will come out onto the Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval plain, a village famous for its proximity to the Fer-à-Cheval cirque, a major national site situated further upstream along the Giffre and an exceptional natural monument bearing witness to glacial history. But the Sixt community is also marked by the fact that 75% of its land is included in the Sixt-Passy nature reserve, which makes the setting around the village very pleasant. It should be pointed out that the locals here have always had to struggle against the forest, which explains why the settlements in these valleys are situated closer to the summits. The loft structures in the listed hamlet of Salvagny before Pont-de-Sales with its listed chapel are very interesting.
(Nicolas Aubertin, Gilles Chappaz, Grande Traversée des Alpes)