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Warning: as the hike takes place on an unmarked route after Ouillon (5), the photos help to identify the key crossing points.
(S/E) From the car park, follow the tarmac road south towards Namière, which ends at a barrier after the first hairpin bend. Go through the barrier and continue to the second hairpin bend.
(1) Less than 100 metres after this, turn left onto a sunken path. This path, lined with trees, climbs straight up the slope heading east and quickly crosses a carriage road. Take this road to the left to climb north-east towards Les Combes.
(2) At Les Combes, the route crosses another forest road coming from the left. Opposite this road, on the right, there is a fairly steep logging track. Follow it for less than 200 metres, first south and then east.
(3) At the first intersection with another logging road, take the one on the right that heads south into the forest. After a short flat section, the logging road turns into a narrow but well-marked path. After a few switchbacks, this path is marked with blue dots. This will take you to the base of the Pas du Sappey.
(4) The pass is marked with old blue and salmon-coloured markings, and a tree on its right bears the number 22 (see photos). This passage is on wet rock, but a quick link on a bolt at the top of the pass allows less confident climbers to secure themselves. The path leads to the ridge of the Rocher de l'Église, marked by a cairn. Turn left to follow the ridge north-northeast, still following the blue dots.
(5) You will reach the Ouillon, a distinctive isolated pillar with a hole in its top (see photos). Stay there or, if you have gone to admire the Ouillon, return to the ridge to reach the limestone scree below the western flank of the southern ridge of the Rocher de Chalves. Cross these scree slopes for 50 metres until you come to rocks interspersed with grass and easy to climb (see photos for reference). If you decide to rope up, do so here and put your walking sticks in your rucksack.
Climb these easy rocks (2) to reach the ridge and swing over to the east face. From here, the route is obvious and consists of following the ridge to a cairn marking the end of the difficulties. Along the ridge, stay mainly on the east face and close to the ridge, except to bypass a few large boulders or shrubs that sometimes obstruct the path.
At the cairn, stow your harness and rope, but keep your poles in your bag as you will sometimes need to use your hands. Continue north along the ridge, passing the intermediate peaks to reach the main summit of Rocher de Chalves (1,844m).
(6) At the summit, a path heads north under the west face and quickly turns west after a hairpin bend. This path is marked in yellow. It descends over a grassy shoulder to join the Bannettes path.
(7) Turn left south-southwest onto the Bannettes trail marked in yellow. Stay on this trail until you reach the car park, following the signs for Les Combes then Namières; it turns into a fairly wide forest path with large hairpin bends.
(8) It is also possible to follow the paths that cut across these hairpin bends along the edges of forest plots (light green continuous lines on IGN maps). This option is shown on the route.
(9) Once at Les Combes, continue to the right on a tarmac path alongside a stream to return to the car park (S/E)
Visorando member
Moderate 
Association / Club / Walk leader
Very difficult 
Easy 
