Head up from Saint-Pierre d’Entremont (Savoie), which can be reached from Les Échelles and the Pas du Frou or from Chambéry and the Col du Granier; pass through the hamlets of Saint-Même via the D45c and park in one of the many car parks located before the barrier blocking access to the site.
(S/E) Pass through the barrier and follow the road towards the chalet. You can either cross the Pont Drugey and walk up the left bank of the Guiers Vif or stay on its right bank. Continue across the entire alluvial plain to the footbridge at the bottom of Saint-Même.
From this footbridge, walk up the left bank for the final few metres leading to the first waterfall, the Pisse du Guiers.
(1) Return, cross the footbridge and head back down the right bank for 100 metres to reach the junction with the path leading up to the other waterfalls.
(2) The climb is quite steep through the forest, winding upwards and then traversing the hillside southwards, until you reach a sign at 1,035 metres.
(3) Continue climbing (signpost warning of a difficult mountain path) via the Pas de la Mort route and, at the first hairpin bend, veer right to descend slightly towards the Guiers before reaching the upper waterfall, the Source du Guiers.
Climb up the scree cone on the right-hand bank and enter a section equipped with a cable (a chimney followed by an exposed ledge on the right), which allows you to gain a foothold at the top of the waterfall, where the Guiers usually resurfaces (except during floods).
Enter the upstream cave (a short section secured with a cable), cross it over chaotic boulders and, upon exiting, climb up a cable-secured ledge to the right. You’ll reach the threshold facing the imposing Grotte du Guiers Vif.
(4) It is possible to visit this cave by climbing up to a small footbridge on the right and returning via the same path.
The return journey begins with a climb eastwards up a small rocky ridge equipped with a chain; the rest is an easier path along the hillside, which joins the Pas de la Mort path, which you follow down to the left until you reach the junction you passed on the way up.
(3) Follow the signposted route down to the Grande Waterfall, cross the footbridge and head down through the forest to the junction signposting the Isolée Waterfall.
(5) Take a short round trip south to visit this waterfall, then continue the steady descent through the forest. This leads to the cirque’s meadows, from where the return journey presents no difficulty: cross the footbridges to reach the chalet opposite, or turn left to take the Pont Drugey (S/E).
Let's be clear, from Pas Ruat onwards, it's a via ferrata without a harness or carabiner (and therefore without the associated safety features). If you've never done a via ferrata before or have been scared on one in the past, don't go beyond the foot of the Source du Guiers waterfall. If you suffer from severe vertigo, don't even go beyond the danger sign (point 3) and follow the main path to the large waterfall. To illustrate: here is
), it is forbidden to take the footbridge leading to the Guiers Vif cave. As I understand it, this does not prevent you from doing the 3-4-3 circular route.