Hirmentaz, Mountain summit in Haute-Savoie, France

Hirmentaz is a mountain in the Chablais Alps rising to 1,607 m, its summit a rounded crest of layered grey rock above pale green alpine pasture and dark forest. It runs north-south, separated from the pointe de Miribel by the col du Creux and opening north onto the Brevon valley. Two linked ski areas, Bellevaux-Hirmentaz and the Domaine des Habères, occupy its slopes.

In 1963, mayor Armand Félisaz and 37 residents of Bellevaux each contributed 50,000 francs to found SESAT and install a first ski lift on the Hirmentaz alpine pasture, chosen for its easy access. The opening took place on grass for lack of snow. A lift was added roughly every year for a decade, and in 2000 an artificial lake was built for snowmaking.

The name comes from the late Latin eremus, meaning wasteland or fallow ground, and old forms include Hermente and Irminte. The Bellevaux station was founded in 1963 by 37 local artisans and farmers, each contributing 50,000 francs, who formed the SESAT and built the first lift, La Plagne, themselves.

The summit is reached on foot from Bellevaux, Habère-Poche, Habère-Lullin or Mégevette; the two ski areas on its slopes, Bellevaux-Hirmentaz and Les Habères, are linked by chairlift and share the Tout-Hirmentaz pass. The mountain is oriented north-south, separated from the pointe de Miribel by the col du Creux and open to the Brevon valley to the north.

The mountain's name comes from the late Latin eremus, meaning wasteland or fallow land, and old forms include Hermente and Hérémentaz. The summit is capped by an alpine pasture, and the two ski areas on its slopes, Bellevaux-Hirmentaz and Les Habères, are linked by chairlift and share a single pass.