Col de l'Escuichière

Date of your route : Jan 26, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

PATOU in the vicinity. It's superb up to the pass. After that, on the ridge, you have to look for the trail in the undergrowth, but it's pretty up to point 6: Baisse du Frêne. Then the descent is tedious on a track, accompanied by the Villard patous, which are apparently not very friendly. I didn't see any in January.
From point 6, it's safer to return via the track to the hut and descend via the ascent route.

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Date of your route : Dec 12, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Date of hike: December 2023.
Beautiful hike to the summit.
WARNING: I do not recommend following the return route. The passage to Point 6/7 is close to pastureland guarded by Patou dogs. You will have to go around through the woods and find your way back by sight.
The entire route is very pleasant. Plan your return journey carefully and everything will be perfect.

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Date of your route : Apr 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike to the summit!
Then a bit of a struggle with a child in a baby carrier... (through the gorse and then a very steep slope)
And above all: watch out for the dog at "Villard" who guards the cows... we couldn't get past...! We had to go down through the woods...

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Date of your route : Jan 22, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely hike between Bès and Bléone. Views of the Dignois mountains throughout the climb, passing by the art refuge, then the ridge with views of Bès, the velodrome, the bells of Barles and Géruen...
It's true that sections 4 to 6 require a strong constitution and that in section 6, a GPS is necessary to find the downhill trail.
To avoid the track (and the patous), in section 7 we continued the descent straight down to the car park. Nice but technical, only for experienced walkers.
We'll be back!
PS: We also had trouble with the patous on the way back and had to cut through the woods. Nice but tricky...

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Date of your route : Jul 03, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

No problem until the pass. The section between the pass (No. 4) and Baisse du Frêne (No. 6) is unmarked and covered in scratchy, prickly bushes and shrubs. It's not a very pleasant route, despite the beautiful view of the Bès valley from the summit.
At No. 6, near a hunter's lookout, we came across a newly created track (which is not yet marked on the IGN map or Google Earth) with piles of freshly cut tree trunks that probably hid the start of the track to Le Villard (sections 6 to 7). After a very difficult descent through woods and scrub, we finally found it, but it wasn't easy and we had a hard time!
This old, straight track facing the slope is very steep and not very pleasant. The long, drivable track it leads to (sectors 7 to 8) is very easy but tedious.

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Date of your route : Feb 08, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant uphill trail. Superb view at the summit and space to picnic with a group. We were warned that the ridge trail was congested, so we took the pruning shears and it was perfectly manageable. It's better to stay on the ridge than to go all the way down the track, as there's enough of the track at the end. It's a shame it's a bit short, but it's worth it. Well exposed in winter and shaded in summer.

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Date of your route : Nov 14, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The entire ascent is regularly marked in yellow. On the descent to the trail, we used the map and GPS track to guide us. It's surprising that there aren't any signs. Even the pass isn't marked! Beautiful view from the summit.

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Date of your route : Aug 02, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

beautiful hike to the pass and then the summit
At the summit, magnificent views over the Bleone and Bes valleys (Esclangon, Vélodrome and Lame de Facibelle)
BUT: once you reach the pass, there's no point in continuing: there are no more marked trails, and the route becomes very difficult and uninteresting, winding through broom, thorns and shrubs... to arrive at a hunting blind... and then nothing
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to TURN BACK at the end of the first part (at the summit)
we turned back at the watchtower, without going back up to the pass, through the scrub to reach the Art refuge and take the track that leads to Le Villard

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Date of your route : Jul 30, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A challenging hike... but the summit is well worth the effort... beautiful views over the Bès valley and the village of Esclangon.
No trail to find the path that is supposed to join the lower track! A hellish journey through branches and prickly, scratchy bushes... to arrive with difficulty in front of a hunters' lookout... and of course the wrong path... turning back multiple times to finally find a small path that joins the main track above La Bléone. Truly a triple zero for the trail markers: the trail needs to be cleared to make it accessible from the summit, otherwise it is advisable to turn back!!!!!!!!!!!

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Hello,
Your opinion is quite different from those posted previously.
In what way do you find the map layout disappointing?
Kind regards
Chnok

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Date of your route : Oct 26, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

when we reached the ridges, we couldn't find the circular and the passage is complicated on the ridges, you should know that... We went back the way we came before getting lost!!!

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Date of your route : Oct 21, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

a very beautiful hike
especially for the view from the summit over the Bes valley

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Date of your route : Aug 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike done with the family this summer, superb views throughout the climb and upon reaching the summit.
The initial climb is a bit steep (nothing too bad, but it starts off strong ;-)) and then remains steady until the pass
Between points 4 and 6, a hiking GPS is highly recommended. I don't know if it's the "COVID effect," but at times it was impossible to follow any path.
The descent is less enjoyable, and unfortunately, like others, we did it in the early afternoon, so in full sun and in the heat!
In short, it's a lovely walk to do with the family, with no difficulties, and following the ridge really gives you the feeling of going on an adventure

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Date of your route : Oct 05, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

On a beautiful October day with ideal weather, we took this lovely walk with beautiful views of the Bléone Valley. The views are a little more obstructed at the summit on the other side, with quite a lot of low vegetation and just a few openings. It was a great pleasure to discover Andy Goldworthy's work in the refuge. However, one thing to bear in mind is that this walk is not suitable for small children (ours was two years old) in a rucksack. Perhaps we missed the trail, but the section through the broom and low shrubs is quite unpleasant. The father has to bend down a lot to protect the child, and getting them to walk through this thicket is no easier. Otherwise, it's very good for the rest.

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Date of your route : Sep 17, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A pleasant hike offering beautiful views of the Southern Alps and the Bléone Valley.
I didn't know about the art refuge and I learnt a lot about Andy Goldsworthy, which was really nice and allowed me to find white marks on stones as I continued my hike!
The off-trail route along the ridges is a bit overgrown, but well marked along the ridge line.
Superb views at the summit during our picnic!
It's a shame about the end of the route, on the track in the scorching sun (33°C!)

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