The Col du Clapier is like a trough three or four miles long and half a mile wide which is in a straight line across the main ridge of the Alps. The trough is about 8,000 feet above sea level. The peaks on each side rise up nearly 3,000 feet above the bottom. On the ridge in the west lies the sloping glacier Del Agnello. The descent from the pass is into a "great amphitheater" whose sides are very steep and dangerous.
There are two ways down from the Col. The ordinary path descends into the amphitheater, following the left bank of the Clarea and then through the gorge to Giaglione. This direct route into the amphitheater is exceedingly steep and dangerous after the first quarter of a mile. The alternative route skirts the top of the amphitheater on the right-hand side, keeping nearly level till it reaches the huts of Tuglia where it crosses a ridge and descends into the valley of the Dora. This alternative route is referred to as the "corniche". It has been suggested
