Country:
City:
(S/E) From the Pré du Four car park, take the track known as the ‘Marchand’ track to its end: this gently sloping track heads south-west and runs alongside the Pré du Four before turning generally westwards on almost level ground.
(1) A yellow sign points towards the Col de l’Arc. Take the path that winds its way up through the forest and joins the yellow-marked trail coming from the Pas de l’Âne.
(2) Turn left (south) onto this path and continue in this direction, ignoring the path on the right after a hairpin bend which climbs directly to the Col de l’Arc (follow the path that passes by the spring; see sign). The path climbs above the edge of the forest and forms a hairpin bend when it reaches a conifer.
(3) Continue in the direction you came from (do not turn right at the hairpin bend and do not pass the spring) by going round the tree at the bottom to join a very faint track overgrown with vegetation. This path comes to a scree slope, which you climb westwards up its flank before crossing it southwards beneath small rocky outcrops.
The path climbs gently southwards and crosses a ravine. After this, the path skirts a slight ridge and crosses a valley again, offering a view of the Arche des Crocs a few metres below. Reach the arch via its northern flank (see photo for its appearance – the arch is only really clearly visible when you get close to it). If you follow my GPS track to also visit it from its southern side, this increases the difficulty.
(4) After visiting the arch, return to the path, which briefly passes to the north on the other side of the valley. The Pierre Fendue is located on the path that continues southwards.
(5) Pass beneath the rock and continue along the path, heading south. The path turns back near a small scree slope, crosses another one, then turns back southwards, climbing gently. It becomes more distinct again and eventually joins the Sentier des 2 Cols.
(6) Continue south (left) along the Sentier des 2 Cols, which remains relatively level. In the hollow of a valley, two cairns mark the start of the path leading to the pass beneath the Rochers de l’Ours.
(7) Turn right onto this path, which is even less marked than the previous one and climbs from one small cairn to the next, winding its way through the alpine meadow. A few streaks of cyan paint occasionally mark the route. After a wide bend, you’ll arrive beneath the small rocks that provide a passage onto the ridge.
(8) However, do not go onto the ridge; instead, look due south for a rock standing out in the grass between the summit cliff and a small rocky outcrop. Climb up towards this rock (south) and descend on the other side to see its distinctive hand-like shape. Continue to the next small pass to view it from above.
(9) Retrace your steps (north) to rejoin the ridge. Turn round on the ridge and follow it southwards to the summit cairn of the Rocher de l’Ours.
(10) Pass the summit and follow the ridge southwards to view the rocky outcrops leading to Roc Cornafion. When the rocks become too prominent on the ridge, turn back to return to the summit of the Ours. Continue along the ridge north-north-east, pass the small pass, then climb northwards until you reach the Pierre Virari, balanced on one of its sides.
(11) From this stone, continue northwards along the ridge path. This path runs up against small rocky escarpments, some of which are fitted with a rope to help you cross them. Where there is no rope, fixed bolts mark the route over a crack that begins at the end of the path. This rope is not really necessary, as the rock, with its good handholds, offers much better security.
(12) A few metres past the rope, fluorescent red markings indicate that you should turn sharply right to climb up onto the grassy shoulder overlooking the previous cliffs. Climb up to the ridge and follow it closely northwards to reach the summit of Les Crocs, which is about fifty metres higher than that of Pic Saint-Michel. Staying on the ridge, you’ll reach a tiny grassy ledge followed by a ‘step’ in the rock, allowing you to continue further along the cliff.
(13) Cross this step heading north and continue following the ridge northwards until you reach the vertiginous drop at the Col de l’Arc. You’ll need to use your hands once or twice on the rocks to get there, and the path is marked only by animal tracks. Turn back to return to the start of this stage.
(13) On this grassy plateau, turn right to descend due west along a grassy slope leading into a scree slope, which runs alongside low rocks forming a barrier on the left. At the end of this barrier, continue the descent, veering slightly to the right (north) and looking for a faint path heading north.
Follow this path due north until you reach a grassy shoulder marking the end of the cliff face descending from the Col de l’Arc. Turn right (east) at the end of this shoulder to descend towards the clearly visible track crossing the scree below the cliff. Follow this track to join the Sentier des Anciens at a bend and follow this path back up to the Col de l’Arc.
Cross the Col and take the path heading south down towards Saint-Paul and the Pré du Four. At a signpost, turn left to descend via steep hairpin bends to a level path that rejoins the junction from the outward journey.
(2) Do not continue the descent to the right, but stay on the level path marked in yellow, which heads first north then north-east towards the Pas de l’Âne.
At the hairpin bend at the Pas de l’Âne, turn right onto the track heading south-east, looking out for a forest track on the left that descends more steeply. Take this track and, when it reaches the large clearing at Pré du Four, turn left (east) to descend along the meadow to the Chemin du Marchand. Turn left onto this path to descend to the car park (S/E).
Visorando Member
Moderate 
Easy 
