Start from Lans-en-Vercors, at the top of the village in the hamlet of Les Jailleux (1075m), Impasse des Sources. This cul-de-sac begins at a small square with a fountain. Space for 5 or 6 vehicles.
(S/E) Follow the signs for “La Grande Fontaine” and “Pic Saint-Michel”. The tarmac road gives way to a path that leads to the top of the ski lift. Follow the sign for “La Grande Fontaine”.
(1) Walk over the ski lift, admire the rocky outcrop, then take the path that leads into the woodland. 500m further on, you’ll cross “Le Pré de l’Aigle”, a clearing equipped with tables and benches. Another 600 metres and the path widens before leading to Rue de la Grande Fontaine (1070m).
(2) Turn left and head uphill towards “Pic Saint-Michel” – “Combe du Crêt”. You’ll pass between two traditional houses; the path becomes a forest track and climbs… rather steeply. The markings are very clear, in yellow and light green. At the top of the climb, which is about 1 km long, you cross a large clearing and then head back under the fir trees to meet a path marked in yellow and red.
(3) Turn right at the junction; the wooden signpost indicates “Les Barnets”. You are now on the Quatre Montagnes trail (marked in yellow and red).
(4) You arrive at the edge of the Les Barnets car park (1,266m). Continue straight along the path, following the signs for “Pic Saint-Michel” – “Auberge des Allières”.
(5) Once you reach the top of the Auberge des Allières, take the sharp left-hand bend onto the path leading gently down towards La Sierre. There are no signs for “La Sierre” at this point.
(6) At the barrier for the La Sierre cross-country ski area (1375m), head up the wide, unpaved road to the right towards the ski resort car park. Walk down the resort’s tarmac car park to the 1380m mark (La Sierre ski lift), then, facing you, follow the path passing beneath the other two ski lifts (purple snowshoe markings).
(7) At the fork 200m after the last ski lift (“de la combe des Virets”), leave the wide path leading up to the “Vertige des Cimes” footbridge and take the path on your left, signposted from a sign reading “Itinéraire obligatoire – Les Jeux”. This more pleasant path winds its way up in four hairpin bends until you reach a fork with the same wide “Vertige des Cimes” path.
(8) Turn left for about 40 metres, then, on your left, take the path marked with white snowshoes on a mauve background (“trail no. 1”) without paying attention to the White Cross and Red Cross. You will arrive at Pas de la Tinette (1,470m).
(9) Facing you, slightly to the left, take the exceptional, short descent between the jagged rocks, heading towards “Lans en Vercors” and “Les Jeux”. Once you reach the hamlet of Les Jeux (1370m), continue following the signs for “Lans en Vercors”, turning left just at the foot of a ruined barn. The descent presents no difficulty. However, do follow the yellow and red markings carefully: at the final fork, take the path on the right.
(10) When you reach the hamlet of “Furon”, you will find yourself facing an old house at No. 141, and to your left is a large, striking house with a new roof, whose covered car park is on the upper floor! Take the path back to Lans, which goes round this house in an anti-clockwise direction. The path down from this spot is often damp; water runs across the path and fosters wet meadow grasses.
(11) You’ll reach the tarmac road (elevation 1091m), which you cross immediately to join the path marked in yellow and red on a road sign. You’ll now descend along a path between the left-hand side of the tarmac road and the Furon stream. At the École d'Escalade (1066m), follow signs for "Lans en Vercors". Cross a clearing and, just beyond it, do not go more than 10 metres up the forest track to the left; do not go past the chain.
(12) Take the path on the right that leads back down to the banks of the Furon (yellow and red markings), a path that starts next to a very ugly green metal hut, making it very easy to spot. The path crosses a bridge and leads into a small lane which in turn joins the road to Lans-en-Vercors. Turn left, follow the road back to your starting point and then to your car park (S/E).