Cabane du Demècre
In the heart of the Valais Alps nestles the Cabane du Demècre. Like a precious jewel, this refuge settles into a mineral setting at 2,361 m, at the Col du Demècre. Overlooking the bend of the Rhône, facing the vertiginous walls of the Dents de Morcles, its panorama opens onto the Grand Chavalard, plunges towards the upper lake of Fully and sets ablaze the mountains of the Trient plateau, before losing itself as far as the shores of Lake Geneva.
Construction of the refuge began in the midst of the First World War. At the time, this barracks housed 120 soldiers and was considered by the army to be a strategic location. The men slept on kelp, a seaweed brought up on the backs of mules to the Col du Demècre. In 1915 the army ceded the dilapidated building to the bourgeoisie of Fully for the symbolic price of one franc. The bourgeoisie of Fully entrusted the running of the refuge to the “Trotteurs” club. From a military barracks, it was transformed in 1989 into a lodge and has hosted hikers ever since.
Used for some thirty years as a refuge by the “Les Trotteurs de Fully” club, it was fitting to rethink its operation and organisation while optimising its energy and infrastructure. Concerned with safeguarding the heritage and preserving its authentic character, the project opts for a renovation that retains the general appearance of the building.
The configuration of the rooms inside is rethought using the current volume. A significant enlargement and the addition of further light give the refectory a more welcoming character. It thus becomes a more spacious and luminous place. This living space can now accommodate a number of guests proportional to the bed capacity.
At the heart of the refectory, around the wood stove, a new lounge area brings warmth and comfort to hikers. The functional, open kitchen invites hikers to take part in the life of the refuge: preparing meals, washing up. The fittings are therefore designed to foster contact and the development of a collective, ephemeral life. In the sleeping area, the creation of a cloakroom near the dormitories markedly improves the guests' comfort while giving them the opportunity to better appropriate this space that is at once intimate and communal.
The original roof structure is freed of all cladding and thus brought back into view inside. It gives the building all its character by revealing the various traces of its history. The renovation of the façade completes this rejuvenation through the use of durable materials such as pre-greyed larch wood.