Punta Margherita

4,066 m

Italy, France

Also known as Pointe Marguerite, Pointe Marguerite / Punta Margherita

Pointe Marguerite · Pointe Marguerite / Punta Margherita

Elevation: 4,066 m
Prominence: 50 m
Difficulty: 6/10; Alpine climb
Best Season: Jul–Aug
Routes: 2

AdvisoryReported 18 Sep 2026 · until 1 Nov 2026
Rifugio Boccalatte-Piolti is open only on selected weekends in autumn 2026 (18–20 September, then 2–4, 9–11, 16–18, 23–25 October and 30 October–1 November); check before relying on it.
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Routes

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Approximate line — not for navigation

An automated check found that parts of this line could not be matched to mapped trails, so it may stray far from the real route. Use it for planning only, with a map and a guidebook.

Why? 8 check notes

danger scan: Rifugio Boccalatte → Pointe Whymper: straight line 1827 m (limit 200 m)
danger scan: Rifugio Boccalatte → Pointe Whymper: straight line 1827 m above the last hut/bivouac
danger scan: Rifugio Boccalatte → Pointe Whymper: straight line: 65° over 25 m (> 60°, high-res DEM)
danger scan: Rifugio Boccalatte → Pointe Whymper: sustained 57° > 45° on a straight line
30% straight-line fallback
the line does not follow 'Pointe Whymper', the route's namesake (246 m away): mislabelled
Rifugio Boccalatte → Pointe Croz: straight (unreachable; DEM rejected: no path below 45° between the endpoints, 1.8 km)
Pointe Croz → Pointe Marguerite: dem (snap_failed, 0.4 km)

AlpineADUIAAIVMixedNormal route

Sources differ: III (Camptocamp (Whymper–Marguerite ridge: 'everything goes at III, perhaps some IV')) · AD+ (Estimate for the combined outing, given its length above 4,000 m)

Pointe Marguerite (4,065 m) lies on the Grandes Jorasses summit ridge, two tops west of Pointe Whymper. The usual way to it is the Italian normal route from the Boccalatte hut (AD, rock to IV) to Pointe Whymper, then a long, exposed ridge traverse west over Pointe Croz and Pointe Hélène (III, some IV) and back, or on to the Canzio bivouac.

Elevation Profile

approximate line

Distance: ≈ 5.9 km; one way
Ascent: ≈ +2,658 m; −175 m lost on the way up
High Point: 4,101 m
Time Up: ≈ 9h 57m; DIN 33466
Time Down: ≈ 6h 38m; DIN 33466 · same way back

Pointe Marguerite has no route of its own that is regularly climbed; it is reached along the Grandes Jorasses summit crest, usually from the east as an extension of the Italian normal route to Pointe Whymper. Day one: from the car park at Planpincieux in Val Ferret (about 1,580 m) follow path 21, steep and partly equipped (a metal ladder, then fixed ropes on the final slabs), to the Rifugio Boccalatte (2,803 m), about 3½ hours. Day two, starting at 01:00–02:00: climb onto the Planpincieux glacier, pass below the Rognon de la Bouteille and through a zone of big crevasses to the Rocher du Reposoir. Climb it (III–III+, a few moves of IV low down; abseil anchors every 25 m), then a 40–50° snow slope, and cross the Whymper couloir quickly, before the sun loosens stones. Climb a 100 m corner with bolted belays onto the Rochers Whymper and follow this rib (III–III+, a move of IV, old pegs only) to Pointe Whymper (4,184 m), about 5 hours from the hut. From Pointe Whymper descend west on loose rock along the crest, then follow it over Pointe Croz (4,110 m) and Pointe Hélène (4,045 m), turning some gendarmes on the south (Italian) side; Camptocamp describes it as mostly III with perhaps some IV, and the final climb to Pointe Marguerite as more serious than it looks. A 2026 party took about 2¾ hours from Pointe Whymper to Pointe Marguerite. Either return the same way to Pointe Whymper and descend the normal route (abseils on the Rochers Whymper corner and the foot of the Reposoir), or continue west with several abseils of 20–25 m over Pointe Young to the Canzio bivouac at the Col des Grandes Jorasses, from where a line of about 13 bolted abseils (60 m rope) leads down to the Planpincieux glacier. Several small bivouac ledges exist on the ridge near Pointe Marguerite. Either way this is a long, committing day above 4,000 m.

Start

Planpincieux1,583 m

Bus to Courmayeur, then the free summer shuttle up Val Ferret to Planpincieux.
Parking at the trailhead

Stages

Day	Stage	km	m ascent	m descent	Time
1	Planpincieux → Rifugio Boccalatte	3.7	1,232	0	4h 34m
2	Rifugio Boccalatte → Pointe Marguerite	2.2	1,426	175	5h 23m

Waypoints

Parking:
Planpincieux1,583 m
Hut:
Rifugio Boccalatte2,808 m
Shoulder:
Pointe Whymper4,181 m
not on route line
Shoulder:
Pointe Croz4,105 m
Shoulder:
Pointe Hélène4,036 m
not on route line
Summit:
Pointe Marguerite4,066 m

Key Passages

Exposed, partly equipped path to the Boccalatte hut
Rocher du Reposoir (III–IV)
Whymper couloir crossing (stonefall)
Rochers Whymper rib (III–III+, a move of IV)
Loose descent from Pointe Whymper
Ridge over Pointe Croz and Pointe Hélène (III, some IV)
Final climb to Pointe Marguerite

Equipment

0/12 packed

Downloads

Route confidence 65%

Overview

One of the six named tops on the summit ridge of the Grandes Jorasses, on the French–Italian border above Val Ferret. At 4,066 m it is a UIAA 4000er reached only by long, exposed ridge traverses from Pointe Whymper or from the Canzio bivouac, never as an easy side trip.

The Grandes Jorasses crest runs about a kilometre from Pointe Walker (4,208 m) in the east to Pointe Young (3,996 m) in the west, with Pointes Whymper, Croz, Hélène and Marguerite in between. Pointe Marguerite (Punta Margherita in Italian) is the second top from the west, a rocky double summit with the 1,200 m north face dropping to the Leschaux glacier on the French side and steep rock and hanging glaciers falling to the Planpincieux and Grandes Jorasses glaciers on the Italian side. With about 50 m of prominence it is a subsidiary summit, but it is on the UIAA 4000er list.

There are two practical ways to it. From the east, the Italian normal route from the Boccalatte hut (AD) leads to Pointe Whymper, from where the crest is followed west over Pointes Croz and Hélène, mostly grade III with some IV. From the west, the Rochefort ridges lead from Pointe Helbronner to the Canzio bivouac at the Col des Grandes Jorasses, and steep rock over Pointe Young (to V) leads on to Pointe Marguerite; this is the first half of the classic Rochefort–Jorasses traverse (D). Most people who stand on Pointe Marguerite are doing that traverse.

Expect loose rock, old in-situ gear, many abseils, stonefall in the Whymper couloir, a serac above the normal route and long days above 4,000 m with few easy escapes.

Climbing Notes

This is a route for experienced alpinists: you need to move fast and roped together on loose grade III–IV rock in boots, manage many abseils, and be comfortable on crevassed glaciers and steep snow, all at 4,000 m. Acclimatise beforehand, for example on the Rochefort ridge, Gran Paradiso or around the Torino hut. A Courmayeur guide is a sensible option if you have not done routes of this length.

From the east: day 1 Planpincieux to the Boccalatte hut (3½ hours); day 2 a 01:00–02:00 start, Pointe Whymper in about 5 hours, then 2½–3 hours along the ridge to Pointe Marguerite and either back or on to the Canzio bivouac. From the west: day 1 Pointe Helbronner to the Canzio bivouac (6–8 hours), day 2 over Pointe Young to Pointe Marguerite (3–4 hours) and usually on to Pointe Walker and down the normal route. Carry bivouac gear; several parties use small ledges near Pointe Marguerite. Check with the Boccalatte warden or the Società delle Guide di Courmayeur on the Whymper serac and glacier conditions before going.

History

Luigi Amedeo di Savoia, Duke of the Abruzzi, made the first ascent on 22 August 1898, together with neighbouring Pointe Hélène, with the Courmayeur guides Joseph Petigax, Laurent Croux and Félix Ollier. He named the summit after his aunt, Queen Margherita of Savoy. Géraldine Fitz-Gerald, Alfred Couttet and Anatole Bozon made the first traverse of the whole summit ridge from the Col des Grandes Jorasses on 31 August 1930, and the first traverse from the Rochefort ridges followed in July 1935. The south face of Pointe Marguerite was first climbed on 2 August 1937 (Massimo Strumia with François and Camille Salluard).

Season

Best Jul–Aug

January: Not advisable
February: Not advisable
March: Not advisable
April: Not advisable
May: Not advisable
June: Possible
July: Best (best window)
August: Best (best window)
September: Good
October: Possible
November: Not advisable
December: Not advisable

Jan: Winter; huts unstaffed
Feb: Winter
Mar: Winter
Apr: Spring snow; ridge not in condition
May: Snowy ridge, huts mostly closed
Jun: Possible late in the month with a dry ridge; snowy approaches
Jul: Main season; Boccalatte staffed
Aug: Main season; dry rock but more stonefall in heat waves
Sep: Stable weather often good; Boccalatte staffed only part of the time
Oct: Shorter days and cold; Boccalatte open only some weekends (2026)
Nov: Winter conditions
Dec: Winter

Access & Permits

Hut Booking

Rifugio Boccalatte-Piolti (CAI Torino): contact the warden, +39 375 6596222 or info@rifugioboccalatte.com. Rifugio Torino: book via rifugiotorino.com. The Canzio bivouac is first come, first served.

Fees

Overnight fee at the Rifugio Boccalatte or Rifugio Torino
Skyway Monte Bianco ticket for the approach from Pointe Helbronner

Rules

Val Ferret road in summer: compulsory parking in equipped car parks from La Palud, limited to about 400 vehicles a day, and no cars beyond Lavachey between 09:00 and 17:00 (guides and valley residents exempt); a free shuttle bus runs from Courmayeur
Courmayeur can close the Boccalatte hut path and the Grandes Jorasses normal route by ordinance when the Whymper serac is judged at high risk of collapse
The Canzio bivouac (8 places) is unstaffed and cannot be booked

Getting There

Courmayeur

Geneva (GVA) or Turin (TRN)

Bus to Courmayeur from Aosta, Turin or Milan, or from Chamonix through the Mont Blanc tunnel
Free summer shuttle from Courmayeur up Val Ferret to Planpincieux (normal route)
Bus to Pontal d'Entrèves and the Skyway Monte Bianco to Pointe Helbronner (western approach)
By car: from Courmayeur or the Mont Blanc tunnel via La Palud to Planpincieux, subject to the summer traffic restrictions

Hazards

Rockfall
Exposure
Glacier
Crevasses
Altitude
Weather
Remoteness

Huts & Shelters

Rifugio BoccalatteRefugeStaffed
24 beds · Staffed in summer (Montagnes Magazine: July to end of September); weekends only in autumn 2026; winter room
Website of Rifugio Boccalatte
2,803 m
Rifugio TorinoRefugeStaffed
Summer season (roughly June to September); the old hut by the cable car sometimes opens outside it
Website of Rifugio Torino
3,375 m
Bivouac CanzioBivouacUnstaffed
8 beds · Year-round, unstaffed; mattresses and blankets, no gas; emergency radio
3,825 m