Punta Leynir


The Punta Leynir is a 3,238 metres high mountain belonging to the Italian side of Graian Alps.

Toponymy

The name Leynir comes from the Franco-Provençal for "black lake", referring to the color of a small lake located SE of the mountain. The name Punta del Leynir was adopted by the old maps of IGM. Giovanni Bobba and Luigi Vaccarone in their Guida delle Alpi Occidentali named the mountain Punta Vaudaletta, while in the technical map of the autonomous region Aosta Valley its name is Pointe du Leynir.

Geography

The mountain is located on the border between Piedmont and Aosta Valley and its summit is the tripoint where the Orco Valley meets the Valsavarenche and the Rhêmes valleys, both tributaries of Dora Baltea. The Leynir Pass divides the mountain from the Mont Tout Blanc, while the Orco/Valsavarenche ridge continues towards SW with Col Rosset and Pointe Rosset. From the Punta Leynir originates the Orco/Rhêmes ridge, heading SE. After a saddle at 3,112 m it rises to the neighbouring Punta Bes and then it goes down reaching the Nivolet Pass. The summit of Punta Leynir is flanked from SW by a subsummit, divided from the main summit by a 350-m stretch of ridge, not difficult to traverse. The mountain, due to its location, offers a very good view on the nearby massif of Gran Paradiso.

SOIUSA classification

According to SOIUSA the mountain can be classified in the following way:
  • main part = Western Alps
  • major sector = North Western Alps
  • section = Graian Alps
  • subsection = Central Graian Alps
  • supergroup = Grande Sassière-Tsanteleina ridge
  • group = Galisia-Entrelor-Bioula
  • code = I/B-7.III-A.1

    Access to the summit

The mountain can be accessed from the Nivolet Pass ; this route requires a good hiking experience. Along with Punta Leynir some hikers also climb the nearby Punta Bes. For ski mountaineers, who also usually start from the Nivolet Pass, the level of difficulty is considered BS.

Mountain huts

  • Refuge città di Chivasso.
  • Rifugio Albergo Savoia.

    Nature protection

Punta Leynir belongs to the Gran Paradiso National Park.

Maps