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Park at the Pont du Countet car park in the Vallon de la Gordolasque above the village of Belvédère.
Yellow markings
(S/E) From the car park, do not cross the Pont du Countet bridge and follow the path that climbs up the right bank of the Gordolasque. Pass close to the "Belle et Sébastien" hut and continue on the path that climbs gently to a footbridge.
(1) Cross the Gordolasque via this footbridge and continue on the left along a winding path.
Ignore the route leading to Lac Autier on the right and continue climbing on the left bank opposite the Cascade de l'Estrech waterfall. Continue to the Mur des Italiens at the top of a corridor and descend towards the river.
(2) Cross the Gordolasque once again via a small ford followed by a footbridge and climb up the steep, stony path opposite. Continue up a grassy plain (La Barme) and join theGR®52coming from Pas du Mont Colomb.
Red and white markings
Continue climbing to the right, following the marked trail, until you reach the Lac de la Fous dam.
(3) Descend a few metres along the track running alongside the lake. Ignore the first unmarked path on the left (which leads to Lac Long), then turn onto the red and white marked path which climbs a few metres above the lake.
Continue around the lake, crossing two streams via small pontoons until you reach a footbridge at the foot of the Refuge de Nice.
No markings
(4) Turn left onto a well-marked trail that climbs between the Pagari and Mont Clapier valleys.
The winding path quickly gains altitude above Lac de la Fous. Approach Vallon de Pagari, but stay on the left bank and easily reach the Lacs du Mont Clapier.
(5) Walk along the two lakes on the right and continue eastwards to climb a small pass where there are a few cairns.
Follow the cairns to the right to reach the foot of a scree-covered couloir on your left. Climb up this couloir, continuing to follow the cairns.
(6) At the end of the couloir, turn right to climb up to a flat area. Look for the cairns that climb up a steeper area where you may need to use your hands. Then continue along a scree slope that can be slippery in places. Follow the cairns closely to take advantage of the few paths that appear intermittently.
Arriving below the summit from the south, climb up on the left to reach the summit cross.
(7) A superb panorama awaits you. From east to west: Mont Bégo, Grand Capelet, Neiglier and Ponset, Gélas, the impressive north face of Cime de la Malédie, Argentera, Mont Viso and the Po plain.
On a clear day, you can see the Italian-Swiss peaks, including the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa to the north, and Corsica to the south (slightly to the left of Mont Bégo).
The return to the Pont du Countet car park (S/E) is via the same route. Be sure to follow the cairns carefully to take the same passages as on the ascent and reach the Lacs du Mont Clapier to find the path that descends to Lac de la Fous.
At (2), there is an alternative route by turning right just before the footbridge. The trail descends on the right bank of the Gordolasque to (1). Then, if you cross the Gordolasque again, you can take another alternative route down to Pont du Countet via the left bank (S/E).
This hike is reserved for experienced and trained mountain hikers (steep gradient and end of the climb on scree where the path is almost non-existent).
Visorando member
Moderate 
Difficult 
Easy 
