Pic de Saint-Guiral and Lac des Pises

Hello,
Camping around the lake is indeed prohibited. The park ranger comes by from time to time, and I met some campers this summer who had just been fined.
In fact, throughout the park, camping is only allowed 50 metres on either side of the GR and GRP trails and nowhere else, such as along the PR trails, for example.
Please note that the car park is neither a GR nor a GRP.
You can find more details at these two links:

• http://www.cevennes-parcnational.fr/site...
• https://www.cevennes-parcnational.fr/fr/...

You can camp along the GR at the entrance to the hatched area to the west at Col des Pises.

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Hello,

Part of the GR trail around the lake is off-limits for camping, but we can still sleep on the authorised part of the lake, right? The part on the car park side.

Thank you very much.

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Date of your route : May 14, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We set off from Arrigas (car park for hikers in the centre of the village) and not from Vernes
There are numerous signs at the car park giving directions and distances (very good).
We headed towards Col du Villaret, Col des Airettes and Col des Tempêtes to reach St Guiral, where we climbed Pic St Guiral (you need to use your hands to climb up and down, but it doesn't require much technique and the view is well worth the effort).
From Arrigas to the St Guiral cross, it is 9.10 km and 900 metres of elevation gain, but the slope is steady on excellent paths with good directional signage.
We then took the GR66-GR71 to reach Lac des Pises (note that after about 3 to 4 km on a forest track, you turn right into the forest).
Numerous trees felled by the last storm mean you have to vary your route slightly, but it is very easy to follow as there are many recent markings to help you find your way and reach Lac des Pises (we met many hikers around the lake).
At the lake, turn right towards the dam (cross a small wooden bridge) and about 200 metres before the dam, turn right onto a grassy path that takes you away from the lake (with the lake behind you). Continue along this path, which descends and passes in front of a house (the Pialot hut). A few metres further on, you will reach a wider track. Turn right and after 100 metres, leave this track and turn right again onto another track (a concrete track for loggers) which leads into the forest and takes you to the Col de Portes. Cross the pass and continue for about 200 to 300 metres, then turn left towards AUMESSAS (signposted).
Stay on this path (marked in yellow) for the entire descent to Vernes and then ARRIBAS. The track is very wide with a few hairpin bends over approximately 1 km, then turn right onto a single track that will take you through numerous fields of broom to the valley (approximately 800 metres of descent over 3 to 4 km).
Keep following signs for Aumessas. At the bottom of the descent, after crossing the river for the first time, you will come to a sign indicating Aumessas to the left and right. Turn right and cross the river a second time. After about 500 metres, turn right (small sign indicating Vernes) and continue to Arrigas.
Distance of the hike: approximately 27 km
Elevation gain: 1,085 metres and elevation loss: 1,075 metres
Hiking time including the climb to St Guiral, lunch break and numerous photo stops: 7 hours
A glimpse of St Guiral and the descent to Aumessas through vast fields of flowering broom make this magnificent hike well worth the effort
(water is only available on the return trip to Vernes)

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Date of your route : Nov 20, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Two-day trek in this magnificent park in November 2021. Very few people encountered; hunters had special permission and I saw far more of them than hikers. But 95% of the time I was alone in the world in absolute calm. Tent pitched in one of the few authorised areas with grass (just before point 14).
The variety and beauty of the landscapes make up for the wide forest paths (some of which are paved!). I'm nitpicking, as most of the route is on enchanting trails. The autumn colours are fabulous and walking through the leaves is a treat (be careful, walking sticks are essential to avoid slipping and getting stuck; I sometimes walked with leaves up to my knees and I'm 1.77 metres tall!).
For your information, the private refuges are still private. There's no problem finding water in the many rivers (which obviously needs to be filtered).
Peaks, a lake, sumptuous landscapes, a varied circular route with no difficult passages – it's a real treat.

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The shortcut suggested in the description does indeed correspond to the "classic" Cévennes hiking route.
The descent along the river is currently very disrupted due to runoff and forestry work. Keep the river on your right and follow the yellow markings. The GPX track may help.

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Date of your route : May 25, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A magnificent route, but very long. I shortened it by going directly from point 3 to point 16. This makes for an 18.5 km route, taking 5½ hours to walk and covering 760 m of elevation gain.
I agree with the comment that the climb to point 3 is easy and steady. Chestnut and oak trees up to an altitude of around 1,000 metres, then young trees before reaching the beech forests.

Between points 21 and 22, just after the circular path marked on the map, forestry work has severely damaged the path. There are many ruts, the path has disappeared in places, and the markings may also disappear on certain sections. However, there are still a few cairns and yellow markings here and there. The main thing is to stay on the left side of the stream and always take the paths that are closest to it.
From point 23 to the finish, the scenery is magnificent, the streams are crossed via footbridges, the descent is sometimes quite steep and, on arrival, your knees will be glad to finish the hike on a dirt track.

I am also familiar with the route between points 3 and 16, which passes through Saint Guiral and is also a very beautiful route.

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Date of your route : May 17, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Magnificent hike! Breathtaking scenery.

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Thank you for these details...

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Hello,
Camping is permitted 50 metres east of the GR 71, with the exception of certain sections, including the area around Pic St Guiral and Lac des Pises (see here).
There is a small area on the left after the point (16) with a stream nearby, as well as just before the Col des Pises (17) (after the pass, camping is prohibited).
This weekend, it should be quite cold at night (-2°C, -5°C). It all depends on your equipment.

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Hello,
We are planning to go on this hike this weekend and camp halfway. Where would you recommend? Do you think it will be too cold at this time of year? Thank you for your reply.

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Thank you for these comments.
A departure at 2 p.m. puts the Peyrebesse shelter at a good distance for improvising a bivouac. You can take the opportunity to update its file here.
You'll need to come back in early May to enjoy the broom and coronilla flowers in bloom.

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Date of your route : Feb 07, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike. We did it in winter on 7 and 8 February. It's a very long hike, and given how short the days are in winter, we did it over two days. We left the car park at 2pm, which was a bit late, and climbed steadily, gaining altitude without too much effort. There were no problems with navigation as the route is well marked. As the day drew to a close, we reached point 4, where there was fog and rain. We decided to spend the night in the shelter near point 4. There were two places to lie down, but the shelter was clean and there was a fireplace. We had a very good night's sleep, as we were equipped for bivouacking. On the 8th, we set off for St Guiral. It was drizzling and foggy. At the summit, there was fog and gusts of wind. We stopped for lunch at the Col de l'Homme Mort, then the Col des Pises, the lake visible in the fog. After the Col des Portes, with very low light in the rain, we navigated with Iphigénie. It worked well, but be careful on the last kilometre: there is only one path on the map, but in reality there are several on the ground, some more important than the right one, which is confusing. It has been pitch dark for some time, but we finally find the right path, which is very narrow but takes us straight back to the hamlet of Les Vernes. On this second day, we walked for nearly ten hours. To be repeated in the summer. We didn't meet any other hikers on the trail.

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Date of your route : Oct 28, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Great hike. Also good to do over two days, but you need to be a bit creative when it comes to finding a place to camp.

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Date of your route : Sep 02, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Also feasible by mountain bike

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