The Conchiers tour via Puy Jaumar

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A short, unpretentious walk, best done in spring, on foot or with snowshoes depending on conditions, with a good chance of encountering ibex and/or mouflon.

Details

n°2074584
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 4.77 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,588 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,591 ft
  • ▲
    Highest point: 6,342 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 4,859 ft
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Photos

Mouflons

Description of the walk

When arriving in Monêtier from the south, take the Chemin des Preynas (opposite the post office and the “Jardin d’Écrins” shop). Follow this road for a few hundred metres until you find a car park on your left.

(S/E) From the car park, take the path (not shown on IGN maps) which continues from the car park (Chemin des Preynas).

(1) Turn right onto the path leading up the hillside.

(2) Turn right towards Puy Jaumar and ignore the path on the left, which will be the return route.

(3) Turn right onto the main path.

(4) Leave the path and continue south-east across the fields, along the cliffs where mouflons like to bask in the sun.

(5) Reach the chapel at Puy Jaumar and climb to the right, towards Puy du Cros.

(6) Turn right after the shepherd’s hut, towards the hamlet of Puy du Cros. Stay on the main path, ignoring the numerous tracks that criss-cross here and there, and follow the Cime des Conchiers, which lies at your feet.

(7) Leave the path heading towards Puy Chevalier on your right and continue along the path descending to the left.

(8) Follow the path to the left, known as the “Circular Trail of the Conchiers”, which is a snowshoe trail, and rejoin the route taken on the ascent.

(2) Follow the path back down the way you came to reach the car park, Chemin des Peynas (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 4,862 ft - Chemin des Peynas car park
  2. 1 : mi 0.07 - alt. 4,934 ft - Path leading uphill to the right
  3. 2 : mi 0.47 - alt. 5,276 ft - Crossroads of the circular loop
  4. 3 : mi 0.61 - alt. 5,456 ft - Main path to the right
  5. 4 : mi 0.77 - alt. 5,722 ft - Off-trail towards the south-east
  6. 5 : mi 1.38 - alt. 5,902 ft - Puy Jaumar Chapel
  7. 6 : mi 1.88 - alt. 6,309 ft - Turn right at the shepherd’s hut
  8. 7 : mi 2.75 - alt. 6,027 ft - Path descending to the left
  9. 8 : mi 3.5 - alt. 5,515 ft - Junction with the "Circular Route of Conchiers"
  10. S/E : mi 4.77 - alt. 4,859 ft - Chemin des Peynas car park

Notes

No water source, but stay alert, as there are many ibex, roe deer and mouflon, and they know how to be discreet...

Worth a visit

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 12 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.5 / 5
romanche
romanche

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 04, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely little spring walk, with magnificent views of the surrounding area, which is still snow-covered at higher altitudes. We were completely alone on the Puy du Gros plateau. However, we decided to head back via the direct path to Monêtier – and thank goodness we did, as there had recently been a rockfall on the path below the cliff. We’re not sure whether it affected the horizontal return path or not. Thank you very much for this walk, which we wouldn’t have thought of doing without your description

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User 4032310

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 26, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk with beautiful aerial views of the ridge. The route is fairly easy to follow, except at point 4 where we missed the path, which shortened the walk a little, but we got back on track a little further on.

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Jeanlabat
Jeanlabat

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 21, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike completed on a beautiful day in August. It offers beautiful views of the heights of Monêtier-les-Bains and the glaciers. At this time of year, the section through the mountain pastures between points 4 and 5 is not very useful or interesting. We navigated by eye (no trail on the ground) and GPS, without seeing a single cow (and of course no ibex or mouflon). Apart from that, it's a very pleasant loop!

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TiBN
TiBN
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 16, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike offering stunning panoramic views of Le Monetier and the surrounding mountains.
The trail is well marked and cleared of snow.
Done today without snowshoes. However, crampons may be a little extra reassurance, especially on the descent 😊

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Bertrand_61
Bertrand_61

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 30, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Accessible without snowshoes due to low snow cover. Easy ascent. Descent requires more attention due to refreezing in the late afternoon.
Superb panoramic views of the Monêtier dome, the Serre-Chevalier valley, the Tabuc valley, etc.

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isabelle5891
isabelle5891

Then it will be for next time. Thank you for this hike!

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bernardino
bernardino ★

Hello
Thank you for your comment on this very pleasant outing. However, you mention that there was not a single ibex or mouflon in sight. This is quite normal at this time of year because, in summer, these animals give way to cows and also hikers. To see them, you need to go higher up in the Moulette valley, for example.
Have a nice day and enjoy your hikes!

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isabelle5891
isabelle5891

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 19, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Beautiful views of the southern heights of Monetier, glaciers, Agneaux... Not a single ibex or mouflon in sight, but cows! A lovely morning, extended by a short stroll through the village.

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bidouslim
bidouslim

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Hello
Very nice hike, beautiful views
The start after point 2 is a bit steep in summer
If we return to the area, we will take it in the other direction from point 2 just to see
I think that should be nice too

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aspttrando
aspttrando

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 31, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful balcony route, completed under a beautiful blue sky and lots of sunshine. The start was very icy, so we did this hike using only crampons; snowshoes were not necessary, especially since there was practically no snow on the way back.
Very beautiful panorama.

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GillesA
GillesA

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

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

Very beautiful balcony trail with snow-covered scree slopes and a few steep sections; mouflons spotted briefly in the distance.

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manu4x405
manu4x405

It's true that with the sunshine today, the view of the Écrins massif must have been pretty nice.
Did you see the mouflons?

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Zoezip
Zoezip

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 06, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Easy to access, very well marked with a choice of different paths to take along the route. Beautiful views of Monêtier. ... easy to do despite a slightly steep climb, but caught up in the emotion of the beauty of the site ... you don't think about it anymore. It's only on the way back down that you realise how steep the climb was... even if you do a circular route.

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pilat
pilat

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 21, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Lovely walk with views of the glaciers and Monetier. Pretty little chapel.

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René.84
René.84

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

the end of the journey is of little interest

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