Le Bec de l'Orient and La Buffe via the northern ridges

Date of your route : Jun 09, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike along the cliffs at the northern end of the Vercors. The view is breathtaking. There are no difficulties, and the path is very easy going until you reach the cliffs. It is important to go all the way to La Buffe, as the view is very beautiful and different from that on the northern slope.
I did the Bec de l'Orient hike this autumn from Montaud via the Fessole plateau, which is more challenging. But it's interesting to approach this peak from another side.
The return via the tracks after La Buffe is a bit tedious, but very easy going. Hike completed in 3 hours 40 minutes
Thanks to the author

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Date of your route : Aug 11, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We made a small change to the start of the route, but this does not alter the spirit of this very pleasant morning hike. We went directly to point 3 without passing through points 1 and 2, taking the path that branches off to the left under the ski jump bridge, halfway between the car park and the Gève refuge (altitude 1291). The path climbs eastwards then turns north until it reaches point 3 via a pleasant, little-used path. The GR9 from the chimney to the Pas de la Clé is very pleasant and accessible to hikers of all levels, but caution is advised at the chimney for young children as there is a real risk of falling.
Be careful, on the GR9 when leaving Pas de la Clé, it is very easy to take a wrong turn and end up on the southern trail that leads to Gélinotte and Vira Gros Jean, which allows you to return to Gève more quickly if necessary, but you will miss the magnificent section of Grande Brèche and La Buffe. From Pas de la Clé, make sure you head eastwards along the ridge, looking out for the RB signs for the GR9, to reach Grande Brèche.
It is possible to do this circular in the cool of the morning, from around 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., and finish with a pleasant drink at the refuge.

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Date of your route : Jun 26, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

This route is a bit technical (slippery rocks along the way) but so exotic.

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Date of your route : Jun 17, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Starting from the Gève plateau, the elevation gain is reasonable, making the hike accessible. The climb to La Cheminée is very well marked. Then, on the ridges, there are beautiful views. The trail is easy to La Grande Brèche, then more difficult to La Buffe. The return trip is more complicated from Pas du Mortier. We decide to return to the starting point by following the cross-country ski trail that connects Gève to the Molière plateau. The hike takes 5 hours and is recommended for those who enjoy panoramic views.
It's a shame that the Gève refuge was closed on Friday afternoon, even though the manager was there, sitting at his computer. Serving a beer wouldn't have been too much trouble and would have boosted takings a little! But anyway...

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Date of your route : Jan 19, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We did this snowshoe hike on a Wednesday in January, starting from the cross-country ski car park at the end of Route de Geve. You can take a shuttle bus. The route is well marked, but we preferred a few variations and continued on to Pas de la Clé. Between Bec d'Orient and Pas de la Clé, you have to stay along the ridge, which isn't easy because there are well-marked tracks leading down to the right.
There was sufficient snow, but the trail was damaged by pedestrians. During the week, we didn't encounter many people. The route is mostly in the forest and there aren't many views except of the valley, which is a shame.
If you enjoy forest routes, I recommend it.
No difficulties.

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Thank you @Babour Rando for your feedback!
Glad you enjoyed the hike
Happy hiking!

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Date of your route : May 24, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

It's hard to get lost: the trail is well marked and even without a compass, it's easy to find your way... The walk takes you close to the cliff that forms the northern tip of the massif. In the foreground is the Isère river, from Grenoble to the Rhône Valley; in the background is the Chartreuse and a large part of Belledonne.
The Gève refuge closes early at the moment due to Covid!
Well, it was raining at the end of the afternoon.
A lovely walk!

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Date of your route : Jan 09, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful hike with lots of snow in the forest. The snow on the fir trees was magnificent at Bec de l'Orient. We set off towards Pas de la Clé and arrived at Pas with 3 to 4 cm of icy snow and very few tracks, making it difficult to lift our legs. When we reached point 8, there were no more tracks except for a small one that led off on a variant. We decided to take it, but the descent was very difficult because the ice patches under our snowshoes were very hard (no one else on this 12 km 400 route)

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Date of your route : Aug 19, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful route taking you along a large section of the Vercors ridges. The route is a little physically demanding on the ridges, but the return trip along the forest path is a relaxing pleasure!
There are some beautiful views over the Isère valley, the western edge of the Chartreuse mountains, the Voironnais region and beyond!
Thank you to the hiker who suggested this route.
It is reasonably busy, but you can easily pass other walkers while maintaining physical distance.

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Date of your route : Aug 09, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

a pleasant hike. You can enjoy beautiful views of the plain and mountains. The path along the ridges is relatively physically demanding (especially for the joints). As a reminder, the limestone in the Vercors is very slippery even in dry weather
(be very careful in autumn when the leaves are falling and even more so in wet weather).
to extend the route, I parked well before the Geve car park. I passed in front of the Ture cave and climbed up to the Bec de l'Orient. I extended the return journey a little by passing through Les Gelinottes and the Cyclone forest road
a total of 20 km

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Date of your route : May 25, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A beautiful hike at the eastern tip of the Vercors, with magnificent views of the Isère. However, it is a very well-marked and busy trail.

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Date of your route : Oct 25, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very pleasant hike against the backdrop of autumn scenery, despite the fog that failed to lift that day (even though the weather forecast predicted sunny skies...). The recent rains made the descent slippery in places (but nothing insurmountable). As for the ridges on the "edge of the cliff", we found that you would really have to try hard to fall...
Thank you for this post.

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Date of your route : Jun 08, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

very beautiful hike with magnificent views of the Isère river – pure joy!
one small downside: after the Pas de la Clé, the signposts are very poorly placed, so we took the descent on the Gélinottes
so we had to turn back to get back on the route, but it was worth the effort to climb back up
be careful along sections 7 to 9, as you need to be very cautious and attentive because you are on the edge of a cliff
that said, there are no major difficulties
we took the time to admire the scenery, so we didn't look at our watches. We had wonderful weather
we weren't in a hurry to go back down. That's also part of hiking

i plan to take a group of hikers there
thank you again, and see you soon with Visorando, of course
Mr Chalavoux Jean Pierre

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Date of your route : Sep 22, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

very beautiful views of the Isère valley
no major difficulties

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Hello
Thank you for your comment.
Indeed, the small path is not easy to spot. I will mention this in the description.
Welcome to Visorando
Best regards

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