Lake Etroit

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Superb hike with a serious elevation gain. The lake is a beautiful reward.
However, it is essential to do it in the direction indicated.

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Date of your route : Aug 12, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

very beautiful hike. The climb is steep, but the lake is superb

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Date of your route : Aug 15, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike. I went there in August with my Australian Shepherd dog. The forest was cool, but be careful of sunburn and mosquitoes...

The lake is splendid, like a large natural swimming pool, and the water was warm.

The hike is rated as moderately difficult, but given the steep climb up to the lake, I would rate it as difficult (athletic). I almost convinced my children, who are not very athletic, to come along, but they would have suffered. And in summer, the heat when you leave the forest is intense, so you need to bring plenty of water and wear sunscreen.

But the landscape and the variety of paths make this hike well worth the effort. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I think the dog did too. It took me 3 hours and 26 minutes, including a few breaks for water, the lake, photos, catching my breath, and chatting with a few hikers (three groups we crossed paths with).

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Date of your route : Jul 30, 2023
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

-HIKE FROM PLAN PEYSEY SAVOIE-30 JULY 2023-LAC DE L'ÉTROIT AND LA CROIX BOZON-

I set off from Plan Peisey and reached the Baudin bridge via Nancroix.
As I didn't have a vehicle to pick up, I didn't follow the same route as the one given in the description, because I wanted to take a different route back to Peisey, rather than to the Baudin bridge.
Instead of following the path to the Romano bridge, I climbed up to the Grandes Baraques and continued on to the Étroit lake. I attempted to climb Mont des Croix directly from the start of the ascent to Croix Bozon, referring to another description found on AltitudeRando, but I turned back after 10 minutes because there was no longer a path. Once at Croix Bozon, I took the somewhat aerial path leading to Mont des Croix. But after 20 minutes without seeing any signs, I realised that I was tackling the first difficulties of the climb to Pointe de Friolin (2,678 m).
Following the advice of a mountain guide friend (named Pierrot) about the difficulty of this route, I decided to turn back and return to Croix Bozon, where I stopped to eat.
The descent took an hour and a half to reach Peisey via Moulin.
In total, 15 km, 1,000 metres of elevation gain and a duration of 6½ hours. A very beautiful hike, mostly in the sunshine. Once in Peisey, I went back up to Plan Peisey with the cable car.

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Thank you for your comment!
As for crossing streams, the flow is indeed lower in summer, and at the moment it is particularly important due to significant snowmelt caused by heavy snowfall in May and high temperatures in recent weeks.
Another point is that the local authorities are only just beginning their summer maintenance of the trails, as the tourist season does not really start until July, both because of visitor numbers and because of the snow in the mountains. This explains the absence of bridges and footbridges in some places.

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Date of your route : Jun 19, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Nice hike, but the climb up Pont de Romane is really steep and long (it took me 2 hours and I struggled the whole way). If you are not experienced walkers or are families with children, do the route in the other direction and, above all, take walking sticks with you for the descent if you want to do a circular route, otherwise go back down the way you came up (via Grandes Baraques) to avoid any difficulties.
The descent was a bit tricky because the path had disappeared, swallowed up by the numerous streams during the snowmelt period. Thanks to the GPX track, we were able to find our way back, but we had a nasty surprise when we had to cross a fairly wide stream twice without any special equipment. The first crossing was fine (jumping from stone to stone), but the second was more complicated. A tree trunk had been placed there, but it looked slippery. As a result, my partner got his shoes wet, while I managed to cross on the trunk with the help of my hiking poles (without poles, it would not have been possible). To those in charge of the hiking trails in Peisey, please consider marking these streams along the route (for example, with a sign at Lac de l'Etroit), because with children, it is very difficult to cross without getting your feet wet (and even dangerous given the current on the second crossing). If possible, please also place more logs/stones to make the crossing easier! I imagine that in the middle of summer, the flow is weaker, but hikers in June also deserve a little consideration.

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Date of your route : Jul 16, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

The hike is short but spectacular! The steepest part is in the grassy corridor, where there are many remarkable flowers (spotted orchids, martagon lilies, yellow monkshood) and already a beautiful, inspiring view of the Mont Blanc range! You arrive at the rhododendrons on the edge of the lake. The view from the shoulder is sublime and the descent to the Palais de la Mine is really very pleasant.
After visiting the site, I extended the hike by climbing up to the Chapelle des Vernettes on the other side. I descended to the Baudin bridge via the larch alley; a short stretch on the road, then climbed up from La Chénarie (a pleasant, well-marked trail in the Carro Blanc forest). I descended back to the starting point via Pracompuet (well-marked trail to Nancroix).

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Date of your route : Aug 18, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Starts at Pont Romano. It's worth the effort. "Dra dein l'pentu" in the local dialect. Best done in dry weather. Beautiful hike.

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Date of your route : Jul 26, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

We did the hike in the other direction...
A very steep descent, but it was fun

The lake is magnificent

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Date of your route : Aug 15, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

We did the hike in the suggested direction, and the climb is very steep. Fortunately, the path was dry. But what a reward when we arrived at the lake! It was magnificent, with the landscape and clouds reflected in the water. There was a beautiful view from the top. The descent is much less steep.

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Date of your route : Aug 20, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

In my opinion, it is essential to do the hike in the suggested direction, i.e. climbing steeply immediately after the Roman bridge.
I can't imagine how difficult the descent would have been in the other direction.
To do the route in the right direction, it would be good to specify that you have to turn right after crossing the Roman bridge, and that the climb is signposted 15 metres after the turn.

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Date of your route : Jul 17, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We did the circular in the opposite direction. To avoid the GR trail, we took the black dotted path on the map that passes by an old lead mine. It is in very poor condition and disappears. Trees lie across the path, and there are rockslides that have blocked the path (to be avoided). Beautiful scenery, nice lake, the descent from the lake to Nancroix is very steep, as the guidebook had warned us.

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Date of your route : May 30, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A lovely little lake, especially at this time of year as it is still frozen in places.

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Date of your route : Jun 06, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Alternative route:
Starting from Pont Baudin, head to the Palais de la Mine via the magnificent (listed) larch tree-lined avenue.
Descend via the GR trail to Pont Romano.
Steep climb (we were warned).
In June, there is snow above 1,800 metres
Another alternative: from the lake, it is possible to make a round trip to Croix Bozon, with a total elevation gain of over 1000 m.

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