Notre-Dame-des-Neiges chapel on the Glières plateau

Notre-Dame-des-Neiges ("Our Lady of the Snows") is the only chapel on the Glières plateau. You reach it on foot from the pass above Le Petit-Bornand-les-Glières and Glières-Val-de-Borne, where the campsite is. Here is what is known about where it stands and its history, separating what is well documented from what remains uncertain.

Where is the chapel?

The chapel stands on the plateau itself, on the Plaine de Dran at its southern end. The Plaine de Dran lies in the municipality of La Balme-de-Thuy, not Thorens-Glières or Glières-Val-de-Borne, even though walkers often set off from one of those sides.

It is next to the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges refuge and café-restaurant, about 90 m away according to Haute-Savoie Tourisme. It can only be reached on foot: along an unsurfaced track in summer, on skis or snowshoes in winter.

Beware of namesakes: other chapels in Haute-Savoie share the name, for example at La Charmette (Manigod) or Les Ranziers (Magland). They have no connection with the plateau.

Notre-Dame-des-Neiges in March 1944

In the winter of 1944, the Glières maquis spread its sections around the plateau. According to the March 1944 chronology published by the Association des Glières, Notre-Dame-des-Neiges was then a defensive post held by the "Hoche" section:

on 10 March, the section turned back a column of GMR (Vichy mobile reserve police) climbing up from La Balme-de-Thuy, taking about ten prisoners;
on 20 March, an attack by the Milice backed by mortars was repelled;
on 23 March, aircraft strafed Notre-Dame-des-Neiges, killing one member of the section and seriously wounding another.

On 26 March the maquis withdrew from the plateau. For the wider story, see our guide to the Glières plateau.

What is certain, and what is less so

Well documented:

the chapel's location on the Plaine de Dran, in La Balme-de-Thuy;
its role as a maquis defensive post and the fighting there in March 1944 (Association des Glières chronology, the reference source);
an annual commemoration held in memory of the maquis fighters.

Uncertain or thinly sourced:

its origin: the Thônes tourist office says the chapel dates from the 17th century and was built for a lord who wanted a place of prayer during his stays at the summer pasture. We found neither the lord's name, nor an exact date, nor any heritage register entry;
destruction and rebuilding: the same tourist office says the chapel was bombed in 1944 and rebuilt in the late 1940s. The Association's chronology confirms fire on the area but does not explicitly mention the chapel being destroyed. The most accurate statement is that it was hit during the attacks of March 1944 and rebuilt after the war;
services: the tourist office mentions a mass once a year in late July and a day of tribute to the Resistance. Dates vary from year to year, so check with the tourist office before making the trip.

If you hold documents on the chapel's history, we would be glad to see them and complete this article.

Walking there

Several loops pass the chapel:

from Paccot and the Nordic ski school, Visorando describes an easy loop of about 8 km and 240 m of ascent, around 3 hours, via Les Mouilles;
the Thônes tourist office suggests a loop of about 10 km and 450 m of ascent, returning via the monument.

In winter you get there on skis or snowshoes; according to the Thônes tourist office, the Plaine de Dran is one of the two sectors of the Nordic area. See our guide to cross-country skiing on the Glières plateau. In autumn, the plateau is also a place to listen to the deer rut.

From the campsite

From the campsite in Glières-Val-de-Borne, allow half an hour's drive to the Col des Glières, then the walk to the Plaine de Dran. More routes are on our hiking page, and you can book your pitch here.