Girantes plateau via Étang de Labant

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Circular around Coumebière with beautiful views of the surrounding peaks. It will allow you to discover the Étang de Labant, an old mine and the Girantes plateau, which is not as flat as its name might suggest, all at the foot of the 1,975 m Mont Ceint.

Details

n°441343
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.53 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 270 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 270 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,612 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,397 m
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Photos

Labant lake
Girantes plateau
Passage between the cliffs
Girantés plateau

Description of the walk

Road access: from Aulus-les-Bains, head towards Port de Lers (D8f), stay on this road until you reach the Coumebière pasture car park.

(S/E) Take the path to the right of the cattle barriers, which climbs gently through the pastures. Continue on the path to the right just before the watering hole and follow it. It climbs into the forest and eventually leads to a flatter area

(1) At the intersection, continue straight ahead and, after a short climb, you will arrive at the Étang de Labant. Retrace your steps.

(1) Turn right; a sign a little further on will point you in the direction of the old mine. Take the path that descends slightly before crossing a stream and continuing along the hillside (note: the yellow markings are a little faded in this section). Cross two streams (often dry) and descend towards the GR®®.

(2) Follow theGR®® downhill. Shortly after the hairpin bend, cut across the mountain pasture to pick up the trail that leads to the edge of the forest. The path is more difficult to see due to the numerous animal tracks, but follow the yellow markings on the rocks to reach the Pas de la Portère.

(3) Cross the pass and follow the path that branches off to the left to cross the Girantes plateau (follow the yellow markings).

(4) You will arrive at a small pond. Continue along the path to the right (follow the yellow markings carefully).

(5) You will reach the Girantes spring. From here, you can see the passage between the cliffs to the south-west, which you need to head towards (follow the yellow markings carefully).

(6) Pass between the cliffs. The path branches off to the left and descends into a beech forest (sometimes difficult to follow and slippery if there are a lot of leaves on the ground; yellow markings are present on the trees). Cross a small stream coming from your left to emerge in a large clearing. Follow its left edge to climb up an embankment and join a path that takes you back to the road. Take the D8f road on your left until you reach the starting car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,397 m - Coumebière pasture car park
  2. 1 : km 1.15 - alt. 1,579 m - Intersection towards the - Etang de labant
  3. 2 : km 2.53 - alt. 1,553 m - GR trail intersection towards - Port de Saleix (1794m)
  4. 3 : km 3.24 - alt. 1,612 m - Pas de la Portère (1593 m)
  5. 4 : km 3.41 - alt. 1,592 m - Mare
  6. 5 : km 3.9 - alt. 1,587 m - Girantes spring
  7. 6 : km 4.14 - alt. 1,548 m - Passage between the cliffs
  8. S/E : km 5.53 - alt. 1,397 m - Coumebière pasture car park

Worth a visit

Information panel about life in the summer pastures just before the Coumebière watering hole.
Étang de Labant lake is a very accessible hike for families with young children (allow 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes for the round trip, returning by the same route).
Herds at Coumebière, sometimes horses at Girantes
Étang de Lhers: fishing, hiking, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing in winter.
Aulus-les-Bains: thermal baths, tree climbing, horse riding, shops, tourist office.
Guzet ski resort.

Reviews and comments

4.3 / 5
Based on 17 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.1 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
User 20944564

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

As indicated, carefully follow the yellow markers at the end of the route, which can be difficult to find for some.
Great walk

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User 18257958

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Hike with beautiful, varied panoramic views. Most of the climb is in the sun. Between points 2 and 3, be careful not to take the paths that climb upwards and stay just above the forest.

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Amneloris
Amneloris

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 08, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Easy route to the pond (small but very charming)
The entrance to the old mine is of little interest, but it's still worth seeing.

However, after the GR intersection, the signposting becomes rather random in some sections, and the GPS route isn't perfect either.
In addition, there are two or three fairly tricky sections for beginners, both on the climb up to the plateau and on the descent that follows.
It would be useful to indicate whether a section is easy, difficult or very difficult
(I was with beginners who struggled a bit)

In terms of elevation, given the condition of the trails (muddy from cows, lots of boulders, etc.), I think it's necessary to anticipate that it will be more difficult than expected.

However, the hike is very beautiful, with magnificent views.
The plateau is quite incredible, with these huge holes in the ground...

The last section on the road is a shame, even if it's not that long.

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amans.c
amans.c

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 15, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

An easy and very beautiful route. Just at the edge of the first snowfall. Superb views throughout the walk. However, the GPS route was very useful in helping us stay on track.

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kduval53
kduval53

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 11, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A magnificent hike with an easy elevation gain and breathtaking scenery. It is classified as "easy", but can sometimes be technical for hikers who are not used to the mountains.

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laratatouille
laratatouille

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 16, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We only did half the route because there was a lot of snow (which is what we were looking for) and we only had hiking boots, no snowshoes. Very beautiful place, open, with a beautiful view of the surrounding peaks, a pretty little lake (three-quarters frozen that day).
There were a few hikers on this school holiday, but not too many.
It was difficult to tell if the markings and trail were good because it was covered with snow, but we weren't worried about getting lost as we always had a clear view.

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SandyHamlet
SandyHamlet

Overall rating : 3.5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 05, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike with no difficulty on the first part, especially up to the pond. A little more technical from the GR intersection towards Port de Saleich.
The pond is pretty, there are lots of dragonflies, and it's a good spot for a picnic.
The views along the hike are very beautiful.
I'm more ambivalent about the signposting. Admittedly, I lack experience in this area, but shortly after the pond (be careful, it is sometimes dry), I lost the yellow markings and couldn't find the Source de Girantes. I finally found the (narrow) passage between the cliffs, but the entrance was blocked by cows and I got lost trying to get around them. Fortunately, it wasn't for long
There were lots of cars in the car park and along the road, but in the end there weren't too many people on the path.

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Hacienda
Hacienda

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 30, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, relatively easy. Quite a few walkers at the start (it's Saturday) but then it thins out, and we found ourselves alone. Lots of flowers, a few cows, beautiful colours. A lovely little half-day trip lasting 3 hours, including lunch break

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xphsto
xphsto

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 25, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Easy hike, very well marked in yellow, beautiful views!

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Lskn22
Lskn22

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 14, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A pleasant hike despite the rain.
It's true that the fork towards the pond isn't obvious on the ground.
Pay attention to the markings on the plateau.
Interesting flora at the start of the route.

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FloChilo
FloChilo

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 22, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike offering stunning scenery right from the start, allowing you to climb gently without overexerting yourself. Set off early in summer, as 80% of the route is in full sun. The route is a little more difficult to follow at the Girantes spring, but the rock step is easy to spot for the descent. Yellow markings throughout the route. Thank you!

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Rando12142
Rando12142

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 23, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

The markings are not obvious at first and we missed the turn-off to the pond. The rest of the route is well marked, but the path is not pleasant because cows have trampled it over much of the way.
The view is beautiful.

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ellega
ellega

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 01, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very beautiful hike, yellow markings sometimes difficult to identify

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PATRICE31800
PATRICE31800

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 31, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Hello, everyone
A very pleasant hike with beautiful views of the surrounding peaks. We also got to see the herds being taken up to their summer pastures.

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dipal76
dipal76

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 10, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A pleasant hike, but be careful not to miss the turn-off to the pond... it's not very well signposted.
I met some rangers there and had a chat with them about the different routes.
No particular difficulties

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