Crête de Charande

A very easy route on the ridge separating the Autrans valley from that of Lans en Vercors.

Details

2923
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.39 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 658 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 650 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,679 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,096 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park your vehicle on the large square in Le Truc. To do this, turn right coming from the Col de la Croix Perrin at the second crossroads mentioned, Le Bouchet. Le Truc is the first hamlet you come to.

(S/E) Turn right onto the road that serves the houses of Le Bouchet and reach the first fork at an elevation of 1118 metres.

(1) Take the wide track opposite to the east and keep right at the next crossroads. The path is marked in red and yellow. This is theGRP® Tour des Quatre Montagnes, which runs alongside the water reservoirs. Further on, leave the track opposite and take the path on the right (signposted).
Wind your way through the woods until you reach a track. Follow it for 20 metres, then turn right onto the path at the overhanging fountain. Continue zigzagging until you reach the road connecting the Col de la Croix Perrin to the Montaud tunnel.

(2) Stay on the road for 100 metres, then turn right again onto the path, which is still marked in red and yellow. Cross almost horizontally before a right-hand bend (sign) and reach Pas de Bellecombe (large pylon) in the woods.

(3) Then head north up a small hill and descend to Pas de l'Ours.

(4) Continue left along the Obereaux path (sign) to rejoin the previous road.

(5) Turn right, then in a bend, turn left onto the path (sign) and follow it to theGRP® des 4 montagnes crossroads.

(6) Take theGRP® on the left, then first turn right then left to join a wide forest track and arrive at Le Truc (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,097 m - Parking at Place du Truc
  2. 1 : km 0.42 - alt. 1,116 m - Altitude 1118
  3. 2 : km 2.64 - alt. 1,435 m - Forest road
  4. 3 : km 4.49 - alt. 1,642 m - Pas de Bellecombe - Pas de Bellecombe
  5. 4 : km 5.32 - alt. 1,642 m - Pas de l'Ours
  6. 5 : km 6.32 - alt. 1,509 m - Forest road
  7. 6 : km 8.55 - alt. 1,184 m - GRP des 4 Montagnes
  8. S/E : km 9.38 - alt. 1,096 m - Parking at Place du Truc

Notes

Water source at the aforementioned fountain.
There are two lodges on this plateau:
- on the Lans en Vercors side: the Molière lodge.
- on the Autrans side: Les Feneys lodge.

This route passes through a protected area, which may be subject to special regulations:

Worth a visit

Autrans: the cross-country skiing capital of Isère with its famous Foulée Blanche race, always scheduled for thethird Sunday in January. This competition always begins on Wednesday with the schoolchildren's race and continues over the following days, culminating in a grand finale on Sunday with the last race.

Villard-de-Lans and its Côte 2000 ski area, now linked to that of Corrençon.

And then there is the whole of the Vercors with all its riches and history, where resistance to the occupying forces was a major episode.

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 17 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.4 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
User 27233768
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Escaping the heatwave (+35°C), this hike is well shaded until point 4 (it climbs up to the Pas de L'ours).
At point 2, the path is on the other side of the road (towards Pas de Bellecombe) and not 100 metres away, marked with green and yellow signs.
Alternative: from point 4, we stopped for a slice of blueberry tart (€7) and a refreshing lemonade (Ginger Pom') at the easily accessible Lodge de la Molière (+0.7 km).
We continued to the Parking de la Molière car park (+2 km). Crossing this mountain pasture offers a beautiful view, but there is no shade. We reached the Pas du Tracollet, then descended to the right towards the Feneys refuge (+2 km) and resumed the route at point 5 (Les Obereaux), which was also well shaded until point 6 (Combe Payraud).
An easy and very enjoyable hike.

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piroulie
piroulie

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 25, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A short walk done almost entirely in snowshoes, there was snow but it was well packed down. Very pleasant, partly in the forest and then on the ridge, where there is a beautiful view of the Moucherotte and the Molière plateau. The ridge is wooded, so there is no danger in doing it in snowshoes. An easy and very enjoyable hike.

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Delph1969
Delph1969

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 30, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very nice... a bit sporty...

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24bis
24bis

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 21, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful walk, in the rain but with magnificent views upon reaching the ridge. No particular difficulty except that it climbs non-stop for the first third. Done in 3 hours walking at a brisk pace. Recommended in summer, as it is almost entirely in the shade.
On a Sunday in July, I only came across two runners. It felt like I was alone in the world 😁

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Senior73
Senior73

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 13, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

nice walk, a bit too much in the woods but good

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JPhR
JPhR

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 28, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

what a shame that the highlight of the route, the La Molière car park, is still accessible to cars and motorhomes!

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Philexpat
Philexpat
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 24, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Excellent hike, but be careful : the trail is marked in green and yellow from point 1 to point 6 and the arrival at the fountain.
At point 2, the path is opposite on the other side of the road and not 100 metres away, marked in green and yellow.
Alternative route: beyond point 4, you can continue for another 500 metres before descending towards Autrans, following the red and yellow markings. before reaching points 5 and 6, marked in green and yellow

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ninilu
ninilu

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 28, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

After point 1, do not follow the yellow and red markings, but take the small path on the right with yellow and green markings.
For my part, with your description in mind, I didn't question it and followed the red and yellow markings. The path is almost straight and flat, running south to north. I quickly realised my mistake but decided to do the route in the opposite direction to the one described. We saw the sign for Col de l'Ours and took the path on the right leading to it. This was a good decision as the climb was cool and a little stony at the start (which I prefer on the way up rather than on the way down). Then there was a beautiful path through the forest, passing under a few rocky areas. Raspberries and then blueberries under the Pas de l'Ours. So we descended via the Pas de Bellecombe as described and didn't regret our initial mistake because the path through the forest was easy on the feet. It's worth doing at this time of year when it's very hot. Lots of beautiful views.

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Dany MS
Dany MS

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 04, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A beautiful hike to do on a clear day. Reliable and accurate description; thank you

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jnlavieille
jnlavieille

Unable to retrieve the track on my Garmin GPS - file unusable!! Hike not completed.

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opale
opale

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 07, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A pleasant hike with beautiful views of the ridge.
at the summit, take a short detour between the picnic area (pylon) and the Pas de Bellecombe.
We climbed the small hill on the other side of the Pas de Bellecombe: parish specific to Brittany view before realising that we had to
retrace our steps.
To enjoy the ridge and the view, we extended the walk by an hour,
going to the summit of Charande, then to the Pas du Tracollet where we found
the descent path that passes by the Feneys refuge and the combettes
before rejoining the Chemin des Oberaux.
For those who would like to cover less elevation, it is possible to start from the Molière car park
and walk along the ridge, returning via the clearly visible mountain track
accessible from the Pas de Bellecombe or the Pas de l'Ours.

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bernardino
bernardino ★

Hello and thank you for this important comment about signage. I have made the correction and thereby remedied a very significant confusion in the Vercors, where many trails are marked VJ (green and yellow). This was previously the case for the GRP Tour des 4 Montagnes, which must be marked with the colours chosen for these GR de Pays trails, namely red and yellow.
Enjoy your hikes, and especially in the Vercors, where the site offers a wide variety.

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collines26
collines26

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 25, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Beautiful hikes offering stunning views between the Pas de Bellecombe and the Pas de l'Ours; lots of nice places to picnic along this route.
However, the markings at the start and end are not green and yellow, but red and yellow. A small detail worth noting. The return route is more or less visible, and we ended up back on the same path we took on the way there.
But the hike took about 5 hours, including a lunch break.

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lamainphilippe
lamainphilippe

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 18, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Hike offering a superb view from the summit. Option to extend the hike by following the ridges to the orientation table and descending to Villeneuve. As for blueberries, I think the spring drought will disappoint many!

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LYS
LYS

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 13, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

The climb up and descent through the shady forest are very enjoyable, and the view from the summit is superb, accompanied by the sound of cowbells. Very good, very good. If you're undecided, don't hesitate – it's too beautiful

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