The Col des Terres Blanches

From Dormillouse to Prapic via the Col des Terres Blanches.

This walk is part of a multi-day hike: Dormillouse - Prapic route

Details

n°66443

Creation:
21 Jun 2014

Last update:
13 Oct 2023

Last review:
16 Oct 2023

Activity: Walking
Distance: 19.00 km
Average duration: 9h 10
Difficulty: Difficult
Back to start: No
Ascent: + 1,298 m
Descent: - 1,165 m
Highest point: 2,725 m
Lowest point: 1,435 m

Country: France
Areas: Alps, Ecrins, Champsaur, Dauphiné
District: Freissinières (05310)
Start: N 44.733428° / E 6.449761°
End: N 44.693721° / E 6.370711°
IGN map(s): Ref. 3437ET, 3437ETR
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Description of the walk

Park in the Dormillouse car park in the Freissinières valley.

(S) Begin the climb towards the village of Dormillouse. The path rises quickly in short hairpin bends to reach a crossroads.

(1). Take the yellow-marked trail on the left where a sign indicates Lac de Fangeas. Stay on this trail, which gently leads to the lake.

(2). Walk along the lake and cross the footbridge over the stream that feeds the lake.
Continue climbing; the markings become white but are very spaced out. Look carefully for them to pass through the rocky ridge (the passage is completely safe).
You will then come out onto the mountain pasture and, after a long traverse, reach the Col des Terres Blanches.

(3) Begin the long descent and reach the Col des Tourettes crossroads.

(4) Continue the descent to reach the Drac Noir and the Saut du Laire.

(5) Take the wide path on the right and continue the descent to reach a wide track.
Take it on the right and reach Prapic and its lodge (E).

Waypoints

S : km 0 - alt. 1,435 m - Dormillouse car park. Close to the - Biaysse (rivière)
1 : km 1.07 - alt. 1,685 m - Dormillouse-Fangeas crossroads
2 : km 2.92 - alt. 1,985 m - Lac Fangeas
3 : km 8.25 - alt. 2,725 m - Col des Terres Blanches
4 : km 11.2 - alt. 2,398 m - Carrefour des Tourettes
5 : km 15 - alt. 1,883 m - Saut du Laire
E : km 19 - alt. 1,570 m - Prapic lodge

Notes

There are no water sources except for the torrents.
There is a basic shelter in the mountain pasture before the Col des Terres Blanches.

Please note: You are hiking in the heart of the Écrins National Park.

The Écrins massif is an exceptional area, open to all, with a rare natural, cultural and landscape heritage. To protect these treasures, the heart of the park is marked by blue, white and red flags, where regulations must be observed. Please familiarise yourself with these regulations when preparing your hike in order to preserve this collective asset on the site.

Worth a visit

Freissinières and its valley offer a wide range of activities: canyoning, kayaking, via ferrata.

Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5

Based on 11 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5

Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5

Route interest
5 / 5

GIELLY Bruno

16 Oct 2023 at 19:02 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

Very satisfied

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Lou-Anne

26 Jul 2021 at 12:00 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 26, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

I did this hike with two friends.
We had planned to do the circular, but one of us was in pain, so we had to change our plans.
We arrived on Friday at the Dormillouse car park and climbed for an hour and a half to Lac du Fangeas to pitch our tent. The setting was very pleasant. The only problem was that a fox came twice during the night and attacked our bags, so we had to spend the night keeping watch... at least we got to enjoy the sunrise!
On Saturday morning, we set off for the pass. Only at the beginning is the path with the white circles not very well marked, but otherwise it's a very pleasant route. There were a few snowfields at the top, but they were not dangerous. Then we began the descent to Prapic (marked as 2½ hours), but it took us 3 hours to get down to point 5 (Drac Noir), where we decided to pitch our tent. This time there were no foxes... but there was a big storm. We experienced everything during this trek ! On Sunday morning, we set off at 7:30 a.m. to do the same hike again but in the opposite direction, which seemed much more accessible than the second part, which, after talking to the shepherd and a few walkers, seemed more physically demanding and longer.
It's a very beautiful trek to do, but if you have the opportunity, do it in three days so you're not too pressed for time, knowing that the hikes are long and intense. Thank you, Visio Rando!

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trinca richard

13 Jul 2020 at 09:16 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 13, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

lots of snowfields at the top, we had to search a bit for the path, magnificent hike

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JODIDO

09 Nov 2019 at 16:42 3600 • Edited: 13 Jul 2020 at 09:45 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 25, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Two-day hike with a friend starting from Dormillouse, with the first stage being the Col des Terres Blanches and Prapic, where we pitched our tent outside the village. A short climb to Lake Fangea (1,990 m) before starting the long ascent to Col des Terres Blanches (2,726 m), where you can admire beautiful views of Pelvoux and Barre des Écrins.
PLEASE NOTE: there is an error in the time indicated for the descent to Prapic, which is given as 2 hours 15 minutes, when in fact it took us almost 4 hours! Admittedly, it was very hot, but it is not possible to descend in 2 hours 15 minutes. I reported this error to the Pont des Fossés Tourist Office, which passed the information on to the Parc des Écrins management.
The hike took us a little over 9 hours, including a nice break at the Col des Terres Blanches.

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Pixel05

30 Sep 2019 at 14:36 7200

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 27, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike with varied landscapes.

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gispic

03 Sep 2019 at 07:43 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 20, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Superb hike: beautiful gradual climb at the start, then more challenging on the ridge to reach the windswept pass, with beautiful views of Dormillouse for a long time. Then descent to Prapic via a very pleasant path

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dv1928

29 Aug 2018 at 18:33 7200 • Edited: 22 Jan 2019 at 17:52 3600

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 20, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

I did the Prapic Prapic round trip in two days (20 and 21 August), via the Col de Fressinieres on the first day and the Col des Terres Blanches on the second day, camping in an alpine pasture opposite the hamlet of Dormillouse.
Dormillouse to Prapic is really very pretty, green during the climb with forest and streams plus Lake Fangeas, then mountain pastures.
A shepherd has set up a small dwelling near the shelter hut and there is a water source there. You are not far from the Col des Terres Blanches.

It was a beautiful hike, give it a go!

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eddydu07

13 Aug 2018 at 15:48 7200

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 second day with a completely self-sufficient bivouac.
In fact, on the first day, instead of sleeping in Dormillouse, I pushed on to Lake Fangeas to sleep near the lake, which greatly lengthened the route and the elevation gain, and on the second day, I extended the route by climbing to the Col des Tourette, adding an hour round trip for a breathtaking view. And another detour to descend to Prapic on the left bank instead of the right bank, which is a highway used by all the tourists, for an extra hour with a parish specific to Brittany view
A fantastic weekend in the great outdoors, marmotte
Thank you very much for sharing this

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J?rôme

02 Jul 2018 at 15:04 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 30, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A superb two-day hike completed on 30 June and 1 July 2018. Still snow on the ground, marmots, waterfalls everywhere, summer meadows and alpine grasslands in full bloom. A real treat.
No difficulty following the route.

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Patrick30

08 Jul 2017 at 13:45 7200

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 07, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

I just completed the round trip from Prapic to Col des Terres Blanches, with a detour to the Lauzes Rousses ridge.
A very beautiful hike.

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britdan

26 Jun 2015 at 17:45 7200

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 25, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

day 2 of our hike around Le Pinier.
Departure from the Ecole de Dormillouse refuge.
Be sure to take the path towards the Col des Terres Blanches (sign) when descending from the refuge. The path starts shortly after the crossroads that leads to the Palluel and Faravel lakes, continuing in the direction of the car park.
no particular difficulties, but take care to follow the path, especially after Lac de Fangeas. Follow the markings (white circles) carefully
according to our GPS, the elevation gain is 1,050 metres and the distance is 21 kilometres
departure from the refuge at 8 a.m
arrival at the Prapic car park at 4.15 p.m
A very beautiful hike.

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