Saint Véran – Refuge de la Blanche

Park in one of the car parks in Saint-Véran.

(S) Head up above the village, following the signposted Grand Canal route. It starts near the ski lift furthest to the right (to the east) of the ski area and passes above the Alta Peyra hotel.
The path turns left and climbs fairly steeply to around 2,250 m, where it meets the Grand Canal.

(1) Take this path on the right, passing several shepherds’ huts; take the path on the left after the Labounnais hut, then pass above the old copper mine. Continue to the junction with the Col du Longt.

(2) Continue straight ahead, ignoring the path to the Col du Longe, and go round the Pinilière hut.
Then head slightly downhill to pass above a former green marble quarry.

(3) You can see a few specimens of this as you look south towards the Clausis Chapel.
Join the^GR®58.

(4) Turn left onto it and follow it as it climbs gently, leaving the path at the Rocher des Marrous junction on your right. Continue on to reach the Col de Chamoussière.

(5) Once at the pass, look eastwards (to the right as you reach the pass). Take the track up to the Pic de Caramantran. From there, the hike becomes more ‘alpine’, though the only difficulties are the very stony terrain and the need to follow the track carefully. From the pass, you’ll quickly reach the ridge between the Aigue Agnel valley and the Aigue Blanche valley (Saint-Véran), then the border at the summit of the Pic de Caramantran. You’ll then reach this first 3,000-metre peak (3,025 m to be exact)

(6) Follow the ridge to the right (towards the south-southeast). Pass a southern secondary summit at 3,021 m, then descend to the Col de Saint-Véran at 2,844 m (border marker 49).

(7) Continue southwards towards Rocca Bianca, where the going gets tougher. You’ll come to an area marked with thick blue lines, featuring a climbing section that may not be particularly difficult.
Note on the route: To ensure this remains a hike, avoid this section by passing to the right beneath Rocca Bianca via a fairly faint track that bypasses any tricky sections and allows you to reach the southern ridge of Rocca Bianca just before the Col Blanchet, or right at the pass. At a glance, there are one or two couloirs that allow you to climb up to the ridge. Alternatively, simply head to the pass and climb up to the secondary summit of Rocca Bianca. The summit is only accessible via a short climb up a well-marked white-and-red-marked couloir.

(8) Head for the Col Blanche via the ridges.

(9) Descend (west-north-west) to the refuge along a well-marked path (Tour de la Tête des Toillies) to the Refuge de la Blanche (E).

(1) Note: The signposted Grand Canal path follows, almost at the same level, this old irrigation canal which, amongst other things, used to carry water to the fields of Saint-Véran, particularly those planted with rye.
If you stick to the route described, there are no particular difficulties. However, the terrain is quite alpine and can become tricky in snowy conditions. That said, I don’t think crampons or an ice axe are necessary. You rarely encounter very steep slopes, and any you do come across can usually be bypassed.
In the event of bad weather, it is very easy to reach the refuge via the^GR®58(at the bottom of the Aigue Blanche valley… not exactly thrilling, but it has the merit of being straightforward), or from the vicinity of the Clausis Chapel (4), the Col Chamoussière (5) or the Col Saint-Véran (7).

Be sure to take a look at the remains of the copper mine along the way, which was in operation for 4,000 years right up until the late 1950s.

If you need accommodation in Saint-Véran:
The Gîte des Gabelous. It’s unique, tastefully decorated and the food is excellent!
The destination for this first day is the Refuge de la Blanche. Don’t forget to book in peak season, as it fills up quickly due to its easy access and great atmosphere.

Take a good look at the rocks and their colours.
When the rock is ochre or beige, you’re on limestone (marble) or calcareous schist. When it’s green, almost black, streaked with white – sometimes powdery – you’re on the oceanic crust of the Tethys. The ocean crushed between Europe and the ‘Apulian’ plate… a little piece of Africa. The Viso, which you really shouldn’t miss, is also a piece of this oceanic crust, pushed down into the subduction zone and then ‘brought back to the surface’ by a series of faults.
If you look carefully in the heavily fractured serpentinite zones, you may find asbestos, a mineral formed by the weathering of the components of the serpentinite.