Hikes with a lake and a mountain hut

Hikes that combine an alpine lake and a mountain hut in the same day, from Lago d'Emet and the Rifugio Bertacchi to the Valle del Rutor.

An alpine lake for a rest and a mountain hut for lunch is the combination we are asked for most often, and these are the hikes that offer both in the same day, from Valchiavenna to the Aosta Valley and the Maritime Alps of Piedmont.

All of them are grade E or T, and almost all climb more than 900 metres, because the most beautiful lakes lie high up: the reward, beyond the view, is a hot meal on the hut's terrace.

Good to know: huts and lakes

Lunch at a mountain hut is a small institution with rules of its own. At CAI huts, members, and members of alpine clubs with a reciprocity agreement, are entitled to a minimum 10% discount on food, drinks excluded, so it is worth keeping your membership card in your rucksack. If you are staying the night, booking is recommended, the warden may ask for a deposit which by regulation cannot exceed the price of the bed, and a sleeping bag liner is compulsory. On summer weekends a phone call even just for lunch, especially for a group, is a courtesy that makes the day easier for everyone.

Not every lake on these walks is entirely natural: in Valmalenco, for instance, the path to the Rifugio Bignami starts from the Alpe Gera dam, and hydroelectric reservoirs can sit at very different levels depending on the month. Natural alpine lakes are fragile environments, so it is best to keep soap and sun cream out of the water, and in protected areas such as the Mont Avic Natural Park the park's own regulations apply and are worth reading before you go. If you decide to swim, remember that these lakes stay very cold even in high summer: go in slowly, and never alone.