The four lakes from Lac Blanc

A magnificent hike with trails that are sometimes alpine in character.

Details

7273049
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 14.79 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 45 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 522 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 520 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,305 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 954 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Large car park on the Lac Blanc dam.

(S/E) Turn right onto the Anneau Rouge trail towards Rocher Hans (south side of the lake).

(1) Magnificent silhouette of the rock standing out against Lac Blanc. Continue to the nearby viewpoint with picnic table.

(2) Follow the red/white/red rectangle markings to reach the ridge.

(3) Turn left onto theGR®5towards the Faing grassland, following the red rectangle.

(4) The Faing grassland is often wet. Continue on theGR®5.

(5) Cross the ridge above Lac des Truites and continue towards Lac Vert.

(6) Pass the car park and continue along the Chevalet Jaune trail, which descends towards Lac Vert.

(7) A beautiful spot for a picnic. Then take the path marked with a yellow disc towards Lac du Forlet.

(8) Lac du Forlet is an exceptional place whatever the season. At the end of the dam, follow the red disc.

(9) Walk along a beautiful balcony path overlooking the Orbey Valley.

(10) Continue opposite on the wide forest path marked with a red disc, which descends to Lac Noir.

(11) Leave the forest path and descend to the right onto the path marked with a red/white/red rectangle.

(12) Cross the Lac Noir car park and walk up the road for about 100 m, then turn left onto the Sentier Cornélius marked with a yellow rectangle, which will take you back to Lac Blanc.

(13) Continue right on a wide forest road.

(14) To avoid continuing along the road, go up the path on the left. This is the last bit of effort before the Lac Blanc car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,057 m - Car park - Lac Blanc (massif des Vosges)
  2. 1 : km 0.89 - alt. 1,262 m - Rocher Hans
  3. 2 : km 1.22 - alt. 1,280 m - Viewpoint
  4. 3 : km 1.45 - alt. 1,296 m - GR5
  5. 4 : km 2.41 - alt. 1,300 m - Gazon du Faing
  6. 5 : km 3.84 - alt. 1,289 m - Crête du Forlet
  7. 6 : km 5.58 - alt. 1,223 m - Car park - Lac Vert ou de Soultzeren (Vosges)
  8. 7 : km 7.31 - alt. 1,054 m - Lac Vert ou de Soultzeren (Vosges)
  9. 8 : km 9.66 - alt. 1,065 m - Lac des Truites
  10. 9 : km 10.47 - alt. 1,114 m - Balcon d'Orbey
  11. 10 : km 10.99 - alt. 1,125 m - Crossroads
  12. 11 : km 11.65 - alt. 1,071 m - Fork
  13. 12 : km 12.31 - alt. 954 m - Lac Noir
  14. 13 : km 13.19 - alt. 1,019 m - On the right
  15. 14 : km 14.39 - alt. 1,032 m - Start of the path on the left
  16. S/E : km 14.79 - alt. 1,057 m - Car park - Lac Blanc (massif des Vosges)

Notes

Good footwear is essential and you may encounter snow quite late in the season on slopes that do not get much sun.

This route passes through a protected area, which may be subject to special regulations:

Worth a visit

The trail is often busy but there is room for everyone.

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.

Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5
Based on 31 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
5 / 5
patrick guignot
patrick guignot

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 22, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Route reserved for experienced hikers due to the start and distance.
From the grassy area onwards, it becomes easy.

Machine-translated

damittix
damittix

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 08, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The climb up the scree slope is not for everyone

Machine-translated

User 19638738

Very beautiful hike, it is a very well-marked trail on Visorando, although we found it to be a little longer and, according to our hiking watches, with more elevation gain and loss
Otherwise, the GPS tracking was perfect
Thanks to the team

Machine-translated

User 6229568

Hello,
we couldn't go on the hike because it was raining too much.
Thank you for your services
Kind regards
Martial

Machine-translated

User 19638738

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

This hike is superb. We were very lucky because it was a beautiful day with stunning views of the lakes. For beginners, start slowly on the climb along the Lac Blanc, but after that there are no difficulties on the route. I recommend this route, although it is a shame that the areas accessible by car at each lake are a little crowded and there is a lot of anti-social behaviour.
Thanks for the route.

Machine-translated

User 4135647

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 18, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very beautiful route

Machine-translated

User 8687287

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 03, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful hike with the family, including two children aged 9 and 11.
The scenery changes along the route, and it was quite busy during the May bank holiday weekend.
Thank you for the route map

Machine-translated

Alsacenath
Alsacenath

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 23, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A magnificent hike in every season! Please be careful in wet or snowy conditions, as it can be perilous or even dangerous in some places, particularly on the climb from Lac Blanc

Machine-translated

Cathy21200
Cathy21200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

Thank you for sharing this hike that we did on Sunday, 10 November 2024.
We started from the Dreieck car park.
We had beautiful weather, which made the scenery even more beautiful!
The black lake and white lake aren't particularly beautiful, but they're part of the route.
There's a nice, fairly challenging climb after the white lake. Make sure you've got good shoes!
My GPS tracked 16.6 km with an elevation gain of 592 m.
We left at 10 a.m. and arrived back at the car at 4 p.m., taking the time to take lots of photos and enjoy a nice snack break on the Gazon du Faing.

Machine-translated

castel martine
castel martine

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 27, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Magnificent hike, superb views.
There are also some nice climbs and numerous sections on stony paths.
Good footwear is essential.

Machine-translated

Rose de Vernon
Rose de Vernon

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 27, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike that is easy to follow. The beginning is challenging, with a steep climb up Hans Rock, and it is quite dizzying (I would advise against wearing flip-flops, even though we saw some people wearing them). There are many people at the beginning, but it gets less crowded as you continue along the trail. After that, it is fairly easy, as you are on the ridges and then descend to the lakes. There is a short climb back up to Black Lake. Be careful of rocks between the black and white lakes; walking shoes are essential. We loved it, the views were splendid, as were the lakes.

Machine-translated

T0urmaline
T0urmaline

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 02, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We'll have to do this tour again... when the weather's better! Unfortunately, on the day we did it, the weather played tricks on us and we couldn't see any of the views because of the clouds and rain.
We still enjoyed it though

Machine-translated

Ciquest
Ciquest

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : Not used / Not applicable
Very busy route : No

I wanted to point out that the climb up to Hans Rock is quite challenging and strewn with stones.
The circuit is not suitable for dogs. My medium-sized dog refused to climb the stone steps, even though they are parish specific to Brittany.
So I went back down and found another route.

Machine-translated

Djocad54
Djocad54

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 09, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Beautiful hike; be careful of the wind on the ridges.

Machine-translated

nadiag
nadiag
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Great hike, detailed description and itinerary, except that the route is much longer than described. I had 22 km on my GPS.
This hike was a feast for the eyes🤩

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.