Lakes of Terre Rouge and Baisse du Druos

An easy round trip hike that allows you to discover a wild area very close to the Isola 2000 ski resort.

During the ascent, you will pass close to the 5 Lacs de Terre Rouge lakes before arriving at the Baisse du Druos, which offers a beautiful view of the many Lacs Supérieurs de Valscura lakes.

Although this route is outside the Mercantour National Park, you may encounter some chamois.

Details

3368070
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.42 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 55 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 536 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 535 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 2,624 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 2,091 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park at the end of Rue Adrech de Barris just before a private chalet.

Red and white markings throughout the hike

(S/E) From marker 90a, head towards the Lacs de Terre Rouge and take the path that climbs above the chalet and quickly joins a ski slope.
Turn left to reach marker 91 at the edge of this slope.

(1) Turn right, still heading towards the Lacs de Terre Rouge. Cross a scree slope and then descend towards the Vallon de Terre Rouge, overlooking a peat bog. When you reach the stream, a path climbs up from the right and joins the GR® at marker 91.

(2) Turn left to climb up the valley on the right bank. The slope then levels out and you have to cross the stream via a ford. Then leave the valley to join the path coming from the Col de Mercière at marker 92.

(3) Continue straight ahead towards the Lacs de Terre Rouge. After a short climb up a series of hairpin bends, pass close to the first lake, then the second, then the third, and reach marker 93.

(4) Continue straight ahead towards Baisse du Druos on a path that climbs gently, skirting the largest of the Lacs de Terre Rouge lakes to the north. Continue along this path, then turn right to reach Baisse du Druos. Please note that at the start of the season, there is still quite a lot of snow in this area. Immediately after passing under a rocky outcrop, climb up to the left to avoid walking on the snow on the steepest slopes.

(5) Once at the pass, you will see the Upper Lakes of Valscura on the Italian side and the path leading to Mont Malinvern. On the right are Cime de la Lause and Tête du Claus.

Then turn around and return to the starting point via the same route (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 2,092 m - Marker 90a
  2. 1 : km 0.61 - alt. 2,184 m - Marker 91
  3. 2 : km 1.06 - alt. 2,194 m - Marker 91 at the marker
  4. 3 : km 1.91 - alt. 2,356 m - Marker 92
  5. 4 : km 2.78 - alt. 2,444 m - Marker 93 - Lacs de Terre Rouge (2452m)
  6. 5 : km 4.17 - alt. 2,624 m - Baisse du Druos
  7. S/E : km 8.42 - alt. 2,091 m - Marker 90a

Notes

Easy hike.

Be careful of snow at the beginning of the season.

Worth a visit

Numerous lakes, beautiful views and a few chamois.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 15 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
Danouche
Danouche

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

A pleasant hike with varied landscapes, we went as far as the lakes of Valescure (Italy).

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bebeghislaine
bebeghislaine

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 24, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful hike with numerous lakes. On the way back, we passed through the Col Mercière. I highly recommend it.

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CARO LM
CARO LM

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The trail begins in the forest, continues through alpine pastures and ends in a rocky landscape! It's really varied! The second point of interest is the large number of lakes that dot the hike to the pass overlooking three large Italian lakes! Yes, you're in Italy!
The return via the same trail allows you to see the Isola 2000 ski area, which was behind you during the ascent.

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User 16664135

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very nice hike

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User 14306859

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 02, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful, easy hike that took us to the still-frozen lake. Magnificent colours. Flowers everywhere on the first part of the route. Highly recommended

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Floriane AC
Floriane AC

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

Superb hike! Magnificent scenery!
The starting point is easy to find: it is on the left just before the Chalet MARANO spa.

At the moment (12 October 2023), the trail is being redeveloped (before the fork between the Terre Rouge lakes on the left and the Col de Salèse on the right). This does not prevent you from doing the hike.

There is no shade during the hike. Good footwear is recommended.

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gemmavonne
gemmavonne

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 09, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Beautiful route, but the elevation information provided during the hike is incorrect

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Boris_06
Boris_06

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 18, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very nice hike for the whole family (with a 3½-year-old and a 7½-year-old).
The route is very well described and the starting point is easy to find if you use the app option that allows you to export the starting point coordinates to Google Maps.
We tried to push on to Malivern, but it was a bit too technical with the children.
The only slight downside is that the route is very busy, including quite a few dogs, as the hike is not in the heart of the park.
But that didn't stop us from having a wonderful day and enjoying the beautiful views of the lakes.

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bertojot
bertojot
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Perfect description of the route.
The travel time shown corresponds to a family hike, which is pretty cool...
The starting point is not easy to find.
Otherwise, everything is perfect!
Thank you

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sempervivum
sempervivum

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 23, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

An unmissable hike starting from Isola 2000, and therefore quite busy (many hikers continue on to Mont Malivern). We descended the Italian side to the upper lakes of Valscura, where we saw chamois and ibex

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LMCC2018
LMCC2018

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 09, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

a beautiful hike to do from September onwards. Too crowded and no shade

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AXGR
AXGR

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

A very beautiful and fairly easy hike that takes you to the Italian side. Set off early enough to see chamois and ibex on the Italian side. Marmots are also present. Magnificent setting. A must-do if you are in Isola 2000

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Pierre.C
Pierre.C

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 12, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The only difficulty is finding the starting point...! It mentions a cottage and a street that are impossible to identify. Here's what it says: "Park at the end of Rue Adrech de Barris just before a private chalet." According to Google Maps, the chalet in question has become a hotel. So the easiest thing to do is search for the MARANO hotel in Isola 2000 and you'll immediately find marker 90 a. Then all the information is correct.
An interesting walk. A classic in Isola 2000... The view of the Italian side is well worth it.

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christiangallerne
christiangallerne

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 23, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Parish specific to Brittany, very busy in summer up to the lakes, but quiet afterwards until the low season.

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Alain.Pellerin.06
Alain.Pellerin.06

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 16, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Superb hike from Isola 2000 to the Italian border. In mid-July, there were still a few snowfields. Beautiful view of the lakes

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