Lac de l'Agnel

de fr

Hike to one of the largest lakes in the Mercantour National Park, surrounded by ibex and chamois.

Details

n°133845
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.86 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 734 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 729 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 2,435 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,707 m
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Photos

Ibex
Lac de l'Agnel and Pas de l'Agnel
Chamois
Waterfall

Description of the walk

To reach the start of the hike, take the Roya Valley (D6203) and at Saint-Dalmas de Tende, head towards Lac des Mesches and the hamlet of Castérino. In the hamlet, continue along the narrow road until you reach marker 394, just after the sheepfold on the right. There is a car park with around 20 spaces.

(S/E) Marker 394: go through the gate and follow the wide track on the left overlooking the Ruisseau de Valmasque until you reach marker 393. Allow around 30 minutes.

(1) At the sign indicating "Le lac 2h", turn right and cross the stream on the small footbridge. The location is magnificent and very pleasant. The hike really begins here. The trail climbs steadily but without difficulty until the final steep section. The trail is direct and there are no intersections.

(2) The steep section is more impressive than difficult. It took us 10 minutes to complete this section. At the top, you arrive at a plateau that leads to the foot of the dam. Continue for a few more metres to reach the lake.

(3) The return journey follows the same route back to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,708 m - Marker 394, car park
  2. 1 : km 1.8 - alt. 1,829 m - Marker 393, turn right - Bieugne (torrent) - Affluent de la Roya
  3. 2 : km 5.03 - alt. 2,426 m - Steep slope without difficulty
  4. 3 : km 5.44 - alt. 2,435 m - Lac de l'Agnel
  5. S/E : km 10.86 - alt. 1,708 m - Marker 394, car park

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

Worth a visit

As you approach the steep slope, you can see a large waterfall cascading down from Lac de l'Agnel.
From the steep slope to the dam, we were accompanied by a multitude of chamois, which were later joined by a pair of ibex.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 21 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
cyril Oddoz
cyril Oddoz

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike that is fairly easy to follow, no snowshoes required as there is little snow.
The detour to the green lake only adds a few kilometres and is well worth the effort

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JLV06
JLV06

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 05, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Great route, well marked and beautiful encounters (ibex, chamois).

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dededecarras
dededecarras

Overall rating : 4 / 5

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

Hello
The last steep climb before arriving at the lake was snowy on Saturday and therefore slippery...! To be on the safe side, we turned back...
At this altitude, it's probably normal and common, but in mid-September?
So you have to take it into account!

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bebeghislaine
bebeghislaine

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 15, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike for flowers and ibexes, but otherwise I found it average with lots of rocks.

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ML83
ML83

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 24, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello,
This magnificent landscape never ceases to amaze me! No ibexes nearby, but lots of chamois!
A few more details in the description would have been helpful for our progress.
There are few places to spend the night at altitude (between 7pm and 9am), unless you stop before tackling the steep climb (there are a few water sources nearby).

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Jean-Jacques P.
Jean-Jacques P.

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

We enjoyed the flowers, an explosion of diversity, including alpine primroses. Above 2,100 metres, the landscape is rocky and there are snowfields. Ibex accompanied us throughout the hike, with chamois further away.
We couldn't make it to the lake because there was a snowfield crossing a couloir with no recent tracks at 2,500 metres.

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christiangallerne
christiangallerne

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 27, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Chamois, ibex, marmots, beautiful walk. Please note that the access trail is closed for a few weeks during the week for repairs.

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JLMH
JLMH

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 08, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, wilder than the classic trails in the region, with some lovely encounters with wildlife that is not shy.
One comment: the description is very brief. It would benefit from a few more details, such as additional landmarks to help pace the hike, for example:
- arrival at the small pass near the Pointe de Valmasque (halfway point): from here, the slope becomes less steep
- long traverse of the scree: you can see the steep slope from a distance (the note saying that it is more impressive than difficult is very useful!).
- flat section crossed by the stream between the end of the steep slope and the dam: a more pleasant picnic spot than on the banks of the lake

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ericaubertin
ericaubertin

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

nice walk

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didfbvr
didfbvr

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 24, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A beautiful hike. There are indeed many ibexes and they are not shy; they shared a little post-lunch nap by lying down a few metres away from us on the rock where we were sitting: a great opportunity for some beautiful photos, including a few unusual ones!
The "wall" before reaching the lake is impressive when viewed from below but can be climbed easily in less than 15 minutes (be careful of falling rocks, however)
There is only one risk of taking the wrong route after the bridge that crosses the valley: don't take the well-marked path on the left, but take the path that climbs up through the larch trees on the right (there were no signs when we passed through, and a couple ahead of us took the wrong path at this point).

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osiris130
osiris130 ★

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 20, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A beautiful hike whose main attraction is the lake, but also the friendly ibexes nearby!
No particular difficulty.

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AMA 17
AMA 17

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 01, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Beautiful hike with ibex, chamois and marmots
A somewhat challenging climb over rocky terrain
We couldn't make it to the lake because there was still snow and therefore no visible trail...

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poher
poher

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 02, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

not many people at the end of the season... Nice hike with gentle elevation gain

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SORY
SORY

I haven't done this hike yet because I have a minor health issue. I downloaded this information for a friend who wanted to know more about the route.
Best regards.
Sory

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Les2mathieu
Les2mathieu

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A magnificent hike that ends at Lake Agnel surrounded by around twenty ibexes! We really enjoyed it!

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