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From the Jabiore gîte, take the wide path waymarked in Yellow which heads due north, going up Torrent de Blaisin.
Pass close by the Tombeau du Poète ('Poet's Tomb') - there is a sign - (1) and continue northwards. You will reach a series of zigzags in the path which end up at Pisses Lake (2).
Go along the lakeside on its southern bank and head in a westerly direction, then north-west until you reach a series of lakes (Jumeaux Lakes and in the north Grand Lac des Estaris (3)).
Then, at the crossroads, take the paths on the right heading to Freissinières Pass or Orcières Pass (4).
Then undertake the long descent through the Chichin Valley, go alongside the small Lauzeron Lake, until you reach the shelter of the Chichin hut.
You will reach a crossroads in the Arindoux forest, take the path on the left (5) which enables you reach the top of the village, very close to Dormillouse (6).
Go down the narrow streets which connect the Roman quarter with the Enflous quarter.
Leave the village via the small bridge over the Chichin river. You will join a wide path heading to the car park (7).
Fressinières Pass (Col)
From Prapic to Dormillouse via the Fressinières Pass.
Please note: the height difference is only 1200 m.
This walk is part of a multi-day hike: Circuit Dormillouse - Prapic
Technical sheet
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Activity: Walking -
Distance: 21.23 km -
Average duration: 10h 00 -
Difficulty: Difficult -
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Return to departure point: No -
Vertical gain: + 1,366 m -
Vertical drop: - 1,497 m -
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Highest point: 2,772 m -
Lowest point: 1,432 m
Photos
Description of the walk
Waypoints
- S : km 0 - alt. 1,570 m - Gîte de Prapic
- 1 : km 1.16 - alt. 1,605 m - The poet's tomb
- 2 : km 5.21 - alt. 2,495 m - Lac des Pisses
- 3 : km 8.57 - alt. 2,478 m - Lacs des Jumeaux
- 4 : km 9.68 - alt. 2,563 m - Grand lac des Estaris
- 5 : km 10.65 - alt. 2,772 m - Col de Freissinières
- 6 : km 14.69 - alt. 2,183 m - Cabane de Chichin
- 7 : km 17.44 - alt. 1,847 m - Towards Dormillouse.
- 8 : km 19.51 - alt. 1,728 m - Dormillouse
- E : km 21.23 - alt. 1,432 m - Dormillouse car park - Biaysse (rivière)
Practical information
There are many water points - they are the springs which appear alongside the paths.
Shelter at the Chichin hut.
In the nearby area
Dormillouse: a village you can visit where nearly all the houses have been restored. This village sheltered the Vaudois (Protestants) chased out of the valleys during the religious wars.
Reviews and comments
4.4 / 5
4.2 / 5
5 / 5
Overall rating : 5 / 5
Date of walk : Jul 12, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No
everything is great ....... not recommended for amateurs
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Overall rating : 5 / 5
Date of walk : Jul 25, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : N/A
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Second day of the Tour Dormillouse/Col des Terres Blanches/Prapic/Lac des Pisses/Col de Fressinières/Dormillouse.
Magnificent weather: sunshine, blue skies and warmth!
After spending the night in a tent on the outskirts of Prapic, we started our ascent to Lac des Pisses (2500m) at 7.30am.
It took us 2 hours 30 minutes to get there. We then followed the ridges (where we passed a small fountain donated by the hunters) to reach the Grand Lac des Estaris (2500 metres), which is located above Orcières-Merlette. The lake was being worked on, so we had to bypass it to begin the ascent to the Col de Fressinières (2782 metres), where we took advantage of the superb view to have a snack break.
A very long descent to Dormillouse, through a coniferous forest. We didn't meet any other hikers.
Back to the Cascades car park to head back to l'Argentière-La-Bessée.
2 superb days of hiking, 17 hours of walking, over 40 kilometres, 2595 m of ascent, 2575 m of descent...
Definitely worth doing again!
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Overall rating : 4.3 / 5
Date of walk : Sep 27, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
the hike includes 1386m of positive ascent (GPS track) and 23.5 kms, a slight diversions from the original path to the Estaris lake because of the dam construction work to increase the capacity of the lake (nature reserve)
superb walk, I was a bit worried about the passage after the Pisses lake (I'm afraid of emptiness), but it goes well with great scenery.
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Overall rating : 4.3 / 5
Date of walk : Aug 27, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Hike in the other direction from the Dormillouse school hut, with a lunch break at the Estaris lakes and then a return to the hut. An 8-hour day's walk in a fabulous setting...
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Overall rating : 5 / 5
Date of walk : Aug 13, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Magnificent loop over two days with bivouac in complete autonomy.
nothing else to say...magnificent magnifique
Merci pour ce partage 
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Overall rating : 4.7 / 5
Date of walk : Jun 23, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
We set off from Prapic to do the Tour du Pinier. The first day consisted of reaching the refuge de l'Ecole de Dormillouse via the Col de Fressinières. This was a very nice hike, with the biggest difficulty being the final ascent to the Col.
A difficult hike because of the difference in altitude and the distance. According to our GPS 1388m and 22kms. Departure from Prapic at 10am and arrival at the refuge at 6:15pm.
There is a firn at the Col de Fressinières that can easily be avoided by going round to the left.
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A much-debated subject in the forum, the calculation of the altitude difference is very random. Nevertheless, the author has added a clarification on this subject in the introduction to his hike. 
Thank you all.
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Overall rating : 3.7 / 5
Date of walk : Sep 13, 2014
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
the positive altitude difference given in the description is incorrect. starting from Prapic 1550 col de Freissinières 2782 gives 1232m instead of the 1632m announced!
The same applies to the negative altitude difference. From the Col de Fressinières 2782 to the finish at the Dormillouse car park 1441, this gives 1341m instead of the 1750m stated.
So always check the topos! and check that what I'm saying doesn't contain any errors either?
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