Country:
City:
Park in the Poursollet car park, just before the barrier. ⚠️ See the warnings regarding difficulty in the practical information.
(S/E) From the car park, follow the red and white signposted route ofthe GR®®50towards the Plateau des Lacs and Ornon.
(1) After just under an hour’s walk, at a sharp bend in the path, leave theGR®® and take the path on the left (heading north-east). Join the southern branch of the Ruisseau des Sagnes. At a fork in the road, turn right and head to the southern end of Lac Fourchu. Continue along this path towards the east.
(2) At a yellow signpost, follow theGR®®50to the right and soon head west. Walk up alongside a small dry lake on your left.
(3) At the first junction, leave theGR®® again and head due south up a cairned path marked in pale green, through scree and rocky, grassy terraces.
(4) At around 2,400 m, a cairn marks a fork:
- to the right, the green-marked path is the standard route to the Col du Grand Van,
- to the left, a poorly marked path leads through scree above the rounded rocks towards the unnamed pass between the Taillefer and the Pyramide.
Take the path on the left, heading south-east at first, then due south for the final, slightly steeper few metres.
(5) At an unnamed pass (elevation 2619 m), there is another large cairn. Look out for the very rounded summit of the Pyramide to the left (due east). Head towards it by sight, following the northern ridge (on your left) to enjoy the view of the lakes.
(6) From the summit, descend back towards the pass, either via the same route or more directly, and you will find yourself facing the Taillefer (due west) at the large cairn visited earlier.
(5) To the right, towards the north, a few cairns mark a path that climbs towards the shoulder descending from the Taillefer in a general east-to-west direction. Take this path, which quickly heads westwards, climbing up fairly steep scree and rocky steps. Keep to the left-hand side of the ridge/shoulder as you work your way around a few rocky outcrops, eventually reaching the summit of the Taillefer and the statue of Saint Eloi (patron saint of goldsmiths, farriers and other metalworkers).
(7) Descend via the path of the standard Taillefer route, first south-west then due west down the fairly steep scree slopes leading to the Col du Grand Van.
(8) At the pass, take the cairn-marked path heading west towards the Petit Taillefer (a peak lower than the imposing Rocher Culasson to the north-north-west) and the Arête de Brouffier. Climb up to the Petit Taillefer.
(9) Continue along the Arête de Brouffier in a west-south-westerly direction and reach a grassy slope from which one of the alternative routes described below begins. Below this slope, look out for Lac de la Courbe and, to its left, the grassy summit (12) which overlooks it to the west and which we will pass later.
(10) Continue along the Brouffier Ridge, passing the Croix du Sergent Pinelli. Shortly after a south-to-west bend, reach the junction at the Pas de la Mine.
(11) Leave the Arête de Brouffier and take a well-marked path to the right (north). Immediately after the junction, just past the small rocky section of the Pas de la Mine, do not continue along the path, but veer right and cut across to the grassy summit. Walking by sight, first over scree and then across grassy slopes interspersed with rounded boulders, reach this summit, leaving the lake below on your right.
(12) At the unnamed summit (elevation 2434m), veer left due west to follow the Crête de Brouffier (not to be confused with the ridge of the same name) across very gentle grassy slopes, still off-trail. Stay along the edge of the ridge, marked by a few cairns, to enjoy the view towards Le Poursollet. Continue due west up a slope that steepens slightly, following the valley of the Ruisseau des Fontenettes until you rejoin the main path at a junction.
(13) Then take the path on the right which descends north-north-west and leads through the woods to the tarmac road at Poursollet. Once on the road (marker), follow it to the right for 300 m to reach the Combe Oursière car park.
(14) Shortly after the car park, turn right onto theGR®®50, marked in red and white, which heads east towards the starting point. Pass by Lac Claret and then Lac Punay. After the latter, theGR®® rejoins the tarmac for about a hundred metres before cutting across the road’s hairpin bend and reaching Lac du Poursollet. Just before this lake, leave theGR®® and follow the direction of a yellow signpost to take a path on the left leading back to the car park in under 100 m (S/E).
Visorando Member
Moderate 
Difficult 
