Lac de la Balmette

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The light green Lac de la Balmette is located in a very wild cirque dominated by the Grand Pic de Belledonne and Pic Lamartine. Several torrents flowing under the scree feed it and its overflow gives rise to the Ruisseau d'Articol.

Details

n°15734200
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.12 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 6h 05 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Difficult
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,118 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,112 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 2,104 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,059 m
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Photos

Pic de Belledonne on arrival at Lac de la Balmette
Rockfall
Les Rousses
Ruisseau d'Articol

Description of the walk

(S/E) Departure from the Molard car park: take the path towards Lac de Belledonne, marked in yellow.

(1) After about 200 m, cross the Molard stream via the concrete bridge. Climb the steep, winding path towards Lac de Belledonne. At the first intersection, keep right and you will soon reach a second intersection: signposted Sous le Clot du Molard, at around 1490 m.

(2) Turn left towards the Chalet du Clot du Molard. Go around the chalet on the left, pass the ruins and climb up the slopes of the mountain pasture.

(3) At the fork, bear left (red and whiteGR® markings).

(4) After about 100 metres, follow the most obvious path to the right (north-west), which is not shown on the IGN map. Join theGR® and follow it. Climb with theGR®, heading west, and ignore the paths branching off to the right.

(5) At the Chalet du Rif Premier sign (indicating 1983 m but at an elevation of 1956 m on the map), turn right and descend with theGR® (red and white markings slightly faded). Cross the Combe de l'Ours and continue northwest to the Ruisseau d'Articol.

(6) Ford the stream and follow it to the left as it climbs (you are now on the left bank of the stream). Cairns mark the path as it climbs.

(7) Continue straight ahead until you reach Lac de la Balmette.

(8) There are two options for the return journey:
- If you are uncomfortable on scree, return to the previous junction via the same route.
- Otherwise, as shown on the map, head into the north-east valley. Pass to the left of the 2122 altitude to reach two adjoining lakes embedded in the scree. Continue through the scree, curving to the right and descending to reach the stream.

(7) Continue downhill to the left (if you have passed through the scree, go straight ahead otherwise).

(6) Ford the Ruisseau d'Articol stream again and descend via the outward route to return to the Molard car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,059 m - Car park at Le Molard
  2. 1 : km 0.25 - alt. 1,110 m - Footbridge
  3. 2 : km 1.53 - alt. 1,500 m - Signpost "Sous le Clot du Molard"
  4. 3 : km 1.91 - alt. 1,564 m - Fork
  5. 4 : km 2.01 - alt. 1,597 m - Fork in the road
  6. 5 : km 3.28 - alt. 1,953 m - Signposted "Chalet du Rif Premier".
  7. 6 : km 4.22 - alt. 1,975 m - Ruisseau d'Articol
  8. 7 : km 4.48 - alt. 2,051 m - Junction
  9. 8 : km 4.85 - alt. 2,074 m - Lac de la Balmette
  10. S/E : km 10.12 - alt. 1,060 m - Car park at Le Molard

Notes

Access from Vizille: follow the D 1091 towards Bourg d'Oisans. At Rochetaillée (before Bourg d'Oisans), take the D 526 on the left towards the Col du Glandon, passing Allemond. Before Articol, take the second road on the left to reach Le Molard. Park in the car park 100 m after the bridge.
No controlled water source, but there are streams.
The terrain is quite difficult, unmarked on the section leading to the lake, with scree.
When the snow melts, the Ruisseau d'Articol ford can be tricky to cross.

Worth a visit

Hydrelec Museum in Allemont.

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.

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Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5
Based on 7 reviews
Reliability of the description
5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
renatore
renatore

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

A very beautiful hike with magnificent autumn colours.

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Anibac
Anibac

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The hike was exactly as described. I set off at 7am and returned at 2pm, including a break. I only met one person at the start of the hike, otherwise I was completely alone, with the hike and the lake all to myself!
However, BEWARE, the stream was impassable due to snowmelt. Refusing to turn back and unable to find a dry crossing, I waded through the water. For the return trip, I chose to scramble up the mountain on the right bank.
A beautiful hike, alone in the world.

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GFrando38
GFrando38

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 06, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello Dominique
When you are between points 7 and 8, after the two small lakes, there is a ledge that heads north-west and leads easily to the Etang du Boeuf, which is also very wild and little known. The return journey follows the same route and you end up right in the middle of the blueberries.

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Nonia
Nonia

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 21, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

We did this hike in July and were a little disappointed. The climb through the forest is pleasant but very long, and the landscape at the end is not particularly spectacular. The climb up the stream is enjoyable and well marked by cairns, which is the only interesting thing we found about the route. In our opinion, the effort required is not sufficiently rewarded... Perhaps this is because we were captivated by other landscapes in the surrounding area? In any case, the route is not very popular; we didn't meet anyone else, either on the way up or on the way down.

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sempervivum
sempervivum

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 01, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, from the climb through the forest to the rhododendron meadows and then the scree along the torrent to reach this clear green lake dominated by the Pic de Belledonne. Moderate difficulty if you don't go as far as the Étang du Bœuf, which was my case. No risk of getting lost. Frequented only by wild boars and chamois. In comparison, I prefer this place to Lac de Belledonne, which I visited two days earlier.

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gypsie38
gypsie38

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 15, 2021
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

Unable to download the GPX track (website issue?)

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GFrando38
GFrando38

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We are very familiar with this hike, which we love and have done several times.
The Articol stream was impassable one spring, so we prefer to start from Riviers d'Allemond, which is east of the stream.
When you start the descent along the small double lake, you can climb up to the left to reach the Etang du Boeuf, which is superb and not far away but off the trail.

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