Chapelle Notre-Dame de la Gorge

Les Contamines-Montjoie

At the very end of the Val Montjoie, where the road stops and the mountain begins, the painted facade of Notre-Dame de la Gorge lights the threshold of the great passes with a luminous white. People have come to pray here since at least the 13th century: the sanctuary, long the parish church of the valley, keeps the devotion of the mountain folk and of the travellers who crossed the Col du Bonhomme on the old mule track — many pushed open the door "to give thanks after the crossing, or to pray before setting out". The present church was rebuilt in 1699 by Jean de la Vougniaz, a master mason from the Valsesia who had just completed the church of Saint-Gervais: beneath its apparent Alpine simplicity, it unfolds one of the finest Baroque interiors in Savoy, gilded altarpiece, restored frescoes and gilding, a celestial exuberance intended to dazzle the faithful of the high valleys. Every 15 August, the Assumption pilgrimage gathers a considerable crowd come on foot by the path of the oratories, whose stations are strung out from the village. For the rest of the year, the chapel sees the walkers of the Tour du Mont-Blanc pass by as they set off towards the Bonhomme up the paved climb, crossing beneath the spruces the Roman bridge over the gorge. The mountain sanctuary par excellence, Notre-Dame de la Gorge is also, so they say in Les Contamines, the church of which the young women of the valley dream for their wedding.

Getting there : At the end of the Val Montjoie road, 4 km south of the village of Les Contamines-Montjoie; car parks at Notre-Dame de la Gorge (shuttle buses in season). Where the tarmac ends, the mule track to the Col du Bonhomme begins.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound