L'Entécade from the Hospice de France

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A beautiful, easy hike across the Campsaure plateau, offering a magnificent 360° panorama from its summit, the Entécade, over the Maladeta massif and notably the Aneto, the highest peak in the Pyrenees.

Details

n°40153824
Creation:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 11.71 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 50 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 883 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 883 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 2,258 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,374 m
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Photos

Maladeta
Campsaure Plateau and Maladeta in the background
Pic de la Pique from the Plateau du Campsaure
Horses

Description of the walk

Park in the Hospice de France car park (very busy in summer).

(S/E) Walk past the refuge heading east, ignoring the path descending to the right towards Port de Vénasque. Continue straight on the path which gradually enters the forest and reach a crossroads marked by a hiking sign on a beautiful tree.

(1) Turn left onto the path that winds its way up through the forest (Sentier de la Fontaine Rouge), then out into the open, and arrive on the Campsaure plateau.

(2) Ignore the path branching off to the right and follow the path straight ahead towards the Pic de l'Entécade. Cross a grassy track, go past a fence, then continue along the path to cross into Spain. You’ll arrive in a hollow, pass in front of a cow pasture and reach the Cabanes de Roumingau.

(3) Head south-east along a path climbing towards the Crête de l'Entécade. Several small parallel tracks may be confusing but generally all join the main path. It runs alongside a small lake to the south before heading north-east along the ridge to the summit.

(4) Pic de l'Entécade: 360° panorama.
Follow the entire ascent route in reverse to return to the Hospice de France car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,375 m - Hospice de France
  2. 1 : km 0.76 - alt. 1,457 m - Trail junction
  3. 2 : km 2.23 - alt. 1,724 m - Campsaure Plateau
  4. 3 : km 4.06 - alt. 1,943 m - Roumingau huts
  5. 4 : km 5.89 - alt. 2,250 m - L'Entécade
  6. S/E : km 11.71 - alt. 1,375 m - Hospice de France

Notes

Between 4½ and 6 hours depending on fitness level and breaks taken.
No particular technical difficulty, as the elevation gain is spread evenly throughout the hike.
Physical difficulty of the route: IBP = 99 Difficult for a hiker of average fitness.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 6 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
User 16843532

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 30, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

We weren’t able to finish the hike because of a storm and threatening clouds.
However, before the weather changed, we encountered some magnificent scenery and came across patches of snow which we were able to cross without difficulty. At this time of year, you need to be wearing the right footwear.

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User 13690719

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 22, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful autumn hike when there is no fog.

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Hachail
Hachail

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Thanks to the hiker who posted this route.
At the summit of Entecada, we heard deer bellowing for a long time and saw a herd below us on the Spanish side.
It was an interesting route, even though the clouds prevented us from seeing much of the landscape.
We completed this hike in 3½ hours (4 hours including stops), and we're old, so this hike is accessible.

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Benjalisab
Benjalisab

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 15, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A magnificent hike with very few people, but despite my relative endurance, it took me 40 minutes longer

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chuchu
chuchu

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 31, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely autumn walk

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francoise.chincholle
francoise.chincholle

A lovely walk

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tracerando
tracerando
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

I’ve done this walk several times. It’s not particularly difficult. An excellent walk to get you up to speed. There’s a beautiful 360° view from the summit.

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