From the Bassin du Flumet to Montouvrard

This is a half-day hike. A steady climb takes you to the village of Montouvrard, where you can enjoy beautiful views of Belledonne.
The yellow markings are a little faded.

Details

5760046
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.12 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 387 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 395 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 887 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 495 m

Description of the walk

Park near the southern end of the reservoir, close to a rest area at the Bassin du Flumet, which includes a tree-top adventure course.

(S/E) Head south, pass the facilities and look out for a good track. N.B. Only the post remains of a signpost.

(1) Head up the track, keeping to the right at every junction. Further up, near the houses of Le Coudrai, the route cuts across the track’s hairpin bends. Continue the climb towards Les Fontanettes.

(2) Continue climbing until you reach the edge of a lovely meadow; cross it to reach the village of Montouvrard. Walk up through the village to the start of the iron trail. That will be the subject of another adventure.

(3) Near a small metal cross, head down the path on the right towards the lower part of the village. Continue the descent; the path will cross the road three times before joining a good track.

(4) Ignore the path on the right which leads down to Allevard.
Head slightly uphill, turning left onto the track, and join the road. Follow it for a long way downhill to the hamlet of Colombet and cross through it.

(5) As you leave the hamlet, leave the road and take a path that descends to the left. Join the road further down and follow it to the left to descend to the lake.

(6) Leave the road and head for the eastern shore of the lake. Stay on a tarmac section at first, then on a good track. Towards the southern end of the lake, leave the track.

(7) Head into the meadow and you will soon reach the car park at the rest area (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 518 m - Car park at the Bassin du Flumet recreation area
  2. 1 : km 0.09 - alt. 531 m - Start of the track
  3. 2 : km 1.29 - alt. 781 m - Les Fontanettes
  4. 3 : km 2.36 - alt. 887 m - Montouvrard
  5. 4 : km 3.58 - alt. 634 m - Barbet Trail
  6. 5 : km 4.61 - alt. 580 m - Exit from the hamlet of Colombet
  7. 6 : km 5.41 - alt. 496 m - North-eastern tip of - Bassin du Flumet
  8. 7 : km 6.86 - alt. 503 m - Meadow – Southern tip of the - Bassin du Flumet
  9. S/E : km 7.12 - alt. 516 m - Car park at the Bassin de Flumet recreation area

Worth a visit

The Bassin du Flumet is an artificial lake; there are some explanations on the return track.

Near (3), there is an information panel about the Iron Trail.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
5 / 5
Ease of following the route
5 / 5
Route interest
4 / 5
Bouconne VTT
Bouconne VTT

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 26, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely route, best done on hot days as it’s very shady.
It has plenty of ups and downs. Be careful on rainy days as it can get slippery.

However, the GPX track does not match the map at all. The direction is very similar (except for points 5 and 7) but the route is reversed.
Furthermore, the map starts from the south-east of the lake, whereas the GPX track starts from the town centre.
Ultimately, it’s best to follow the track, starting from the Allevard Casino (point 6) but in the opposite direction to the GPX, i.e. the direction shown on the map, so that the hike
Be aware of ongoing roadworks near point 7. Turn east (as on the GPX track) before point 7

Machine-translated

Picson06230
Picson06230

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 26, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk, fairly easy according to the guidebook, with a steep climb at the start. The start point is located to the left of the treetop adventure course.
Don’t hesitate to set off from the car park east of the Flumet reservoir, which avoids having to climb up to Montouvrard on dry ground.
When you reach Montouvrard, do take the well-marked trail known as the "Sentier du Fer". It is a circular trail of around 5 km, with 300 m of elevation gain, taking approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes.

Machine-translated

Droopy91
Droopy91

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 13, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

An easy walk, ideal for getting back into the swing of things with its 400-metre elevation gain. The walk isn’t particularly interesting as there are no viewpoints, but it is almost entirely shaded, which is pleasant in hot weather. The Flumet reservoir is not accessible as it is an EDF facility; if you’d like to go for a swim after the walk, head to Lake Mirande near Allevard.

Machine-translated

cmoifrancky72
cmoifrancky72

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 25, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Dated 25 July 2021.
Just a quick note: in my opinion, the start should be at point 6. That would give you time to warm up between point 6 and the start, as this route involves quite a steep climb right from the start up to Montouvrard. Otherwise, it’s a lovely walk: shaded, not very busy and therefore peaceful.
We didn’t do the section between points 3/4 and 5 because, once we reached the Montouvrard cross, we followed the road leading to Clarabou and then the railway track that winds down towards the old mines and the end of the world.
Thanks Bisserain73 for this lovely walk

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.