Via La Roche Parstire

The Lac de Saint-Guérin car park is often full in summer; arrive early to find a space and make the most of the mild temperatures for a walk.

(S/E) From the car park, take the road following the lake to the left along its eastern shore. This is the direction of the Cormet d’Arêche and Lac des Fées. Ignore the road on the left – which will be your return route – and carry on. Pass a waterfall and join a path on the left.

(1) Head east along the narrow path which climbs towards the Passage de Miraillet. The path climbs steadily (500 m elevation gain over 2 km) but is in the shade in the morning. You’ll arrive at the Passage de Miraillet.

(2) From here, you can admire Lake Roselend to the east, with Mont Blanc in the background, and Lake Saint-Guérin to the west. The walk continues straight ahead along a path overlooking the valleys, though it’s not vertiginous. It’s 1.5 km from the Passage de Miraillet to the Passage de la Charmette. From this direction, you have Mont Blanc in front of you, which is lovely in the morning. Continue northwards towards the Passage de la Charmette.

(3) At this point on the walk, you can shorten the route by descending directly westwards towards (8) Les Acrays.
Alternatively, continue along the original route to the right, heading north-east to reach La Roche Parstire. There are no particular difficulties on this part of the route.

(4) From La Roche Parstire to the Col du Pré: take care, as the descent is somewhat steep (350 m elevation loss over 1 km). A few metres of rope provide assistance and make the passage safer. On the small plateau, there is sometimes a herd of cows. Make sure you close the pasture fence wires properly behind you. From here, you can admire the lake and the Roselend Dam more closely on the eastern slope. Head north towards the Col du Pré.

(5) This point can also serve as the start of the walk if you wish to do the circular route in the opposite direction. Access by car to the car park here is more difficult as the road is closed to motorhomes (due to the narrow width making it impossible for vehicles to pass each other), unlike the access to the Lac de Saint-Guérin car park.
Turn left, heading south, onto the path that passes through the red ravines. You may spot a few ibex on the hills to the east. The path is wide and only slightly undulating. It is shared with mountain bikers, so take care.

(6) Head south towards Le Perrier. Along the way, you’ll find a few artworks by an artist made from wicker and hiking boots, as well as two painted panoramas depicting the neighbouring peaks.

(7) Head south towards Les Acrays.

(8) Continue downhill in the same direction towards Lac de Saint-Guérin, enjoying a lovely view of the lake and its dam before reaching the car park (S/E).

Views of Mont Blanc and the lakes of Saint-Guérin and Roselend from (2) to (4).