Col de Clausis walks

Quite a long stage but a steady route. A climb up to Col de Mary then a long downhill hike all the way to the shelter, in Chiaperra, Italy.

The passage between the two departments of Alpes de Haute Provence and Hautes Alpes is via the famousGR®5, which supports theGRP® of the Tour de la Font Sancte on this section.

Return to Queyras by crossing the Col Girardin via a path that starts off quite steep but then levels out before ending with large hairpin bends that finish at the pass. This is followed by a long descent past the lakes, which reflect the famous Font Sancte, the highest point in Queyras.

Etape de la traversée des Alpes à partir du hameau de Maljasset qui suit la route de la Haute Ubaye avec une vue époustouflante sur les sommets qui bordent le flanc sud du Queyras. Traversée de la Haute Ubaye dans un univers minéral parmi les sommets de plus de 3000m.

This fifteenth stage crosses the Escreins massif (not to be confused with the Écrins massif) and, via the Ubaye valley, enters the Chambeyron valley. From the Refuge de la Cime, the route—off the GR®5—crosses the Torrent du Mélezet valley and climbs up the Pré Girardin valley via the ski runs; then, on the plateau, it skirts the rocky ridge overlooking Lac Miroir, reaches the lake and rejoins the GR®5. The route climbs up the valley between the shoulder of the Pic des Heuvières and the Crête de Coste Belle, passing the small pass of Sainte-Anne and then the lake of the same name before reaching the Col Girardin. It descends towards a basin, where the Torrent des Séchoirs has its source, and follows it. Clinging to the side of a steep slope, it joins the D25 road in the upper Ubaye valley and continues downstream, alternating between the road and paths close to the river. It leaves the D25 for the Fouillouse road, passes the vertiginous Pont du Châtelet, a tunnel and, via a path, reaches the hamlet of Fouillouse.

A very long day criss-crossing the border. But what breathtaking scenery! And you won’t be bothered by the neighbours... there’s little chance of coming across other two-legged creatures. But perhaps some ibex, vultures, including (apparently) a pair of bearded vultures.

Here, the names change from white to black with great dexterity. Indeed, the passage from Queyras, Refuge de la Blanche, to Ubaye is via the Col de la Noire. Original, isn't it?

On the second day of this trip, the plan is to walk the Tour de la Tête des Toillies and finish the day with a long walk back to Le Raux.

A foray into the Haute Ubaye to round off the route in style at its highest point. With the option of watching the sunset from the summit of the Bric de Rubren. The route deliberately moves away from the border to take the easiest route up the hill.

This is the second stage ofthe GR®®58, but it takes a variant route via the Col de Saint-Véran or the Col de la Cavale and includes an ascent to an altitude of 3,000 metres at the Pic de Caramantran. There’s a magnificent view of Mount Viso at the highest point of this route. At the start of the season, there were still plenty of snowfields. This is a very wild route, which I recommend as an alternative to the Col de Chamoussière path, which tends to be quite busy.