Refuge de la Blanche – Le Raux

(S) Head straight ahead, skirting Lac de la Blanche, along the excellent Col Blanchet path. Walk alongside Lac du Blanchet Inférieur, as the Supérieur is not visible. Continue the pleasant ascent to reach the pass.

(1) Begin the descent on a good path, which becomes increasingly difficult to follow due to the various tracks. You will reach a large boulder that broke away from the face of the Tête des Toillies a very long time ago. (On this boulder, look for an Italian^GR® marker, which is the reverse of the French ones: here, red is above white).

(2) Look carefully for the path here; otherwise, follow the route shown on the attached map, which crosses the mountain pasture to reach the junction at the Col de Longet.

(3) Turn right onto this ascending path marked Red-White-Red to reach first the Italian Longet Lakes and then the pass.

(4) Continue along the path, now marked Red-Yellow; this is the^GRP® des Marmites de Géants. You’ll soon reach the junction with the^PR® leading to the Col de la Noire.

(5) Turn right onto this^{PR® path}, which is initially almost flat before beginning a steep climb to reach Lac de la Noire. Complete the ascent to reach today’s highest point, the Col de la Noire.

(6) Begin the steep descent, which becomes steeper as you go, ending in the mountain pasture just before the Refuge de la Blanche and Lac de la Blanche.

(S) Leave the wide track coming from Clausis and turn left at the dry toilets onto the correct path heading towards the Grand Canal. Follow the yellow markers to the confluence with the Rif de Rafanel.

(7) Do not cross the Rif de la Blanche stream; instead, turn left onto the path leading to the Pont des Clausis. From here, follow the route taken the previous day.

(8) Opposite, take the^GR®58, which descends and then runs alongside the Aygue Blanche to the Pont Vieux.

(9) Leave the^GR®58and take the track that leads back to the Pont du Moulin.

(10) Head back up the track on the right to reach the car park (E).

There is little water along the route except on the return journey towards the Pont Vieux. Refreshments are available at the mountain hut.

Information on the route: on (5), the route shown on the IGN map is incorrect; the one shown on this map is the correct one – there is indeed a slight discrepancy.

Note on the difficulty rating: I have rated this stage as ‘Difficult’ for hikers accustomed to this type of outing. It should be rated ‘Very Difficult’ for inexperienced hikers, as the succession of climbs – particularly the final one, the Col de la Noire – followed by a tricky descent and then a very long return to the start at the refuge, fully justifies this rating.

Saint-Véran and the villages of the Queyras.