Mont Valier
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| Mont Valier | |
|---|---|
 Mont Valier seen from the Port d'Aula | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 2,838 m (9,311 ft)[1] |
| Coordinates | 42°47′52″N 01°05′08″E / 42.79778°N 1.08556°E |
| Geography | |
  Mont Valier Location in the Pyrenees | |
| Location | Ariège, France |
| Parent range | Pyrenees |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | By the Ribérot valley and the refuge des Estagnous |
Mont Valier (Languedocien: Mont Valièr) (2,838 metres (9,311 ft)) is a mountain of the Pyrenees in Ariège, France.
Its name comes from Valerius (Saint Valier, ca. 452), the mythical first bishop of Couserans,[2] who climbed the peak. Bernard de Marmiesse, another bishop of Couserans, had a marble cross erected on the peak in 1670.[3]
A small glacier, the Glacier d'Arcouzan, occupies its northeastern slope. It is the only glacier in the Pyrenees situated below 3000m, the most Eastern glacier in the chain and also the most isolated. The summit is located on the perimeter of the regional park of the Ariège Pyrenees.
A number of valleys originate on its sides:
On the French side, the stream of Artigues, a tributary of the Salat (which itself rises a few miles from Mont Valier) and the Ribérot, a tributary of the Lez, itself a tributary of the Salat.
On the Spanish side, the Noguera Pallaresa, and a few miles to the west, a tributary of the river Ebro.
Climbing
The normal route, in summer, starts from the Refuge des Estagnous and travels to the Col Faustin before ascending the broad South face. This is the easiest route, although it is still challenging. The other principal route to the summit is via the Arête des Antiques and involves rock climbing along an exposed ridge. The east face and its famous "Trou Noir", (black hole), first climbed by Louis Audoubert in 1971, is rarely ascended.[citation needed] The classic ascent in winter is via the Couloir Faustin; it is a long outing mostly on snow (AD).
