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In Camurac, take the D1020 towards the ski resort. After about 500 metres, look for the small (very discreet) wooden sign on the left-hand side indicating the lake and picnic area. Leave the road and head for the car park, which can accommodate five to six vehicles.
(S/E) Return to the road and carefully descend to the right until you reach the first two wooden chalets on the left.
Yellow PR® markings, dense at the start but lacking in several parts of the route
(1) Turn left into the meadow. Continue along a sunken path between two embankments with overgrown vegetation (muddy in October 2019) which leads to another much wider path.
Cross this diagonally to the left to continue on the path marked by a signpost bearing the sign "Sentier des Crêtes" in the opposite direction to our progress. Return to a wide grassy path, which you follow straight ahead for a short distance before leaving it and turning right onto a narrow uphill path.
(2) Cross the D1020 and continue opposite, shifting slightly to the left. A few metres before a gate, you will come to a track coming from the right and go straight up. The path leads higher up into open terrain, makes two hairpin bends and then enters the woods again just before the posts of the Labière ski lift, which is no longer in operation.
(3) Turn right, leave the woods behind and follow the main path, ignoring several turnoffs on the left. After a long left-hand bend, you will reach the end of the access road to the resort, opposite a concrete block building that does not really enhance the area.
(4) Turn right for a few steps, then veer left onto the wide, flat, stony track. You will reach the Col du Teil at a small electrical transformer on the left. Leave the track and enter the meadow on the right (south-west), keeping some distance from a wooden fence. Please note: there are no markings at this point!
Pass a picnic table located high up on the left and continue in the same direction. You will (finally) find the yellow markings at the end of the fence and continue, following the multiple herd tracks that look like a giant scratch in the meadow. After a steady climb, the slope levels out.
Once you can see the Coste Rouge double ski lift, continue forward and then veer left (east) to climb easily to the top of the small hill (1,776 m), where you will find the first orientation table, followed by a second one further south.
Breathtaking 360° view: to the north-west, the Montagne de Tabe with the haughty silhouette of the Pic de Soularac standing out clearly, and to the south, a panorama of the Ariège Pyrenees.
(5) Descend westwards, passing two picnic tables on your left, then walk past the ski lift arrival posts to find a wide grassy track that is not very marked on the ground. Go around Pic de Pénédis on the right, then head south-west to begin your descent and arrive at a cairn with a wooden post bearing yellow markings.
(6) Turn right towards Roc de Quercourt, recognisable by the wooden post and cairn marking its summit. The trail is not very visible, but just keep heading west-southwest to reach it after a short, very steep climb.
(7) Exceptional 360° panorama. Descend south-west along a narrow path, heading for a wooden post in the meadow, soon followed by two others that indicate the direction to follow. Cross (without difficulty) an area planted with thistles and arrive at a crossroads marked by a signpost.
White and red GR® markings
(8) Turn right, following the sign for "Col de Balaguès". The trail is very clear, although it sometimes splits and has been damaged by passing herds. Pass at the foot of Sarrat de l'Assaladou, a small rocky peak on the right where the Occitan flag flies proudly, and after passing a small orange metal structure, arrive at Col de Balaguès where there is another signpost.
(9) Turn right. When you reach a crossroads (Mountain Bike sign + red and white cross on a pine tree trunk), take a sharp right turn. Just after another signpost, an extremely muddy section (as of October 2019) requires you to make a detour to the right for a few metres. Further on, turn left onto the trail, go through a metal gate and begin a very steep descent.
(10) Cross the path to continue opposite, following the Balaguès stream on your right.
Yellow PR® markings
(11) Leave the GR® trail, which heads left, and turn right to come out onto a track suitable for vehicles. Turn left, pass a hay barn and continue along the tarmac road, which leads to the town hall in the centre of the village of Montaillou via a steep climb.
(12) Turn right. Pass a pretty chapel and continue along the path, which loses its surface and levels out.
(13) At the crossroads (windsock for paragliders), continue straight ahead and then turn immediately right at the stone cross. Continue straight ahead at the next crossroads and rejoin the D1020 at the tennis courts. Turn right and drive carefully along the road.
(1) Continue straight ahead to return to the lake and the car park (S/E).
We enjoy the view for about an hour and then descend back into the forest. The end of the route, once you've passed the village of Montaillou, is a gentle walk along a track that isn't particularly interesting but is still pleasant in today's fine weather. I completed the route in 4½ hours with several short breaks, including a 20-minute picnic break. I'm quite fit but only walk occasionally.
Association / Club / Walk leader
Easy 
Visorando member
