Tête de l'Enchastraye

A summit off the beaten track.
This is a challenging hike with a significant elevation gain and difficult terrain.

Details

n°3097507

Creation:
21 Mar 2020

Last update:
11 Nov 2020

Last review:
20 Sep 2026

Activity: Walking
Distance: 8.53 mi
Duration according to the author: 5 hrs
Difficulty: Very difficult
Back to start: Yes
Ascent: + 3,917 ft
Descent: - 3,937 ft
Highest point: 9,659 ft
Lowest point: 6,795 ft

Country: France
Areas: Alps, Mercantour
City: Saint-Dalmas-le-Selvage (06660)
Start/End: N 44.333917° / E 6.865017°
IGN map(s): Ref. 3639OT
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Description of the walk

Park on the Col de la Bonette road, on the Tinée side at Camp des Fourches, a former military camp now used as a car park. It is marked by signpost 41a.

(S/E) Follow the road towards Col des Fourches, taking the shared^GR® 5 and 56 marked in red and white. Pass marker 41b and reach Col des Fourches at marker 41.

(1) Keep left on the^GR® to descend into the Salse Moréne valley. Reach a shelter and then begin the climb to reach the junction at marker 37.

(2) Leave the^GR® here, which heads off to your left, and stay on the path straight ahead towards the Col de Pouriac border pass.

(3) Continue along the path to reach the Col de Pouriac at marker 39.

(4) Take the path on the left. Walk along the border for a while, then slightly into Italy. This path is signposted. Take care here as the slope is steep; after a hairpin bend to the left, reach the summit of the Tête de l'Enchastraye.

(5) Head right, off the path, towards the small Lac de l'Enchastraye below.
Take care here: off the trail, the descent is very tricky as it crosses sections of sometimes unstable rock.

(6) Follow the natural path on the left leading towards Lac de Derrière la Croix. From there, you can easily spot the^GR®5-56to join.

(7) Take it to the left and continue the climb to reach the Pas de la Cavale, marked by signpost 38.

(8) Stay on the^GR®5-GR®56to descend to the junction marked by signpost 37, which you passed on the way up.

(2) Follow the route back in the opposite direction to the outward journey; a final climb takes you back to the Camp des Fourches car park (S/E).

Waypoints

S/E : mi 0 - alt. 7,441 ft - Camp des Fourches car park
1 : mi 0.33 - alt. 7,421 ft - Col des Fourches
2 : mi 1.18 - alt. 6,880 ft - Crossroads of the circular loop, marker 37
3 : mi 2.03 - alt. 7,277 ft - Combe du Graillon
4 : mi 3.03 - alt. 8,215 ft - Col de Pouriac (2506m)
5 : mi 4.39 - alt. 9,659 ft - Tête de l'Enchastraye (2954m)
6 : mi 4.7 - alt. 9,032 ft - Near - Lac de L'Enchastraye
7 : mi 5.24 - alt. 8,343 ft - GR junction
8 : mi 5.82 - alt. 8,743 ft - Pas de la Cavale (Mercantour)
S/E : mi 8.53 - alt. 7,441 ft - Camp des Fourches car park

This route passes through a protected area, which may be subject to special regulations:

Coeur du Parc national du Mercantour - more information

Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5

Based on 5 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5

Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5

Route interest
5 / 5

polax

20 Sep 2026 at 20:29 • Edited: 20 Sep 2026 at 20:32

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 19, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

One of the most beautiful day hikes I’ve ever done – interesting all the way, with few other people about. We set off at 10.30 am and returned at 5.30 pm (with good breaks before, during and after reaching the summit). We saw it all: chamois, ibex, marmots, and even… bearded vultures – a dream come true ! A succession of small lakes still full of water (mid-September). There was a significant elevation gain, with some fairly challenging sections, particularly the first part of the descent after the summit between points 5 and 6. Once you’ve reached the summit, you have to retrace your steps for several tens of metres. Do not take the first slope on the left between the cross and the small cairn on the summit ridge; carry on, and leave the large boulders on your left – even though they might tempt you to climb down them – so that you descend in a wide arc to the right as the route suggests (even if it means taking a slightly wider detour to the right). Head for this small, unnamed ‘pass’. The descent that follows towards the lake behind the cross below becomes more slippery but no more difficult (the terrain changes from large, unstable boulders to gravel and small rocks); stop descending just below the boundary between the grass and the scree. You will have spotted the path that climbs back up to the summit earlier, so aim for that.

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thierryeman

13 Oct 2025 at 10:05

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

nothing to say, perfect

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La Sand

16 Aug 2024 at 10:29

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

On has a route that is circular and goes via the Pas de la Cavale on the way there.
From Pas de la Cavale, follow the path towards Lac de Derrière la Croix for about 700m until you reach a grassy clearing and a junction marked by a cairn (altitude 2575m).
Then head off-trail towards the north-east, staying almost level (a few cairns) until, 600m further on, you reach the path climbing up from the valley towards the Pas du lac de l'Enchastraye (between the Tête des Barres and the Tête de l'Enchastraye). This is the clearly visible 300-metre-high couloir that you must climb, sometimes on a path, sometimes through grassy terrain, up to the Pas du lac de l'Enchastraye.
From there, you can see Lac de l’Enchastraye below (Magnificent! And… a wolf!! running past; otherwise we wouldn’t have noticed it. A fleeting moment I couldn’t capture on my camera. A few ibexes on the ridges).
From the Pas du lac, there’s still a 200m climb to the right up to the Tête de l’Enchastraye via the broad ridge and its cairn-marked path.
Return towards the Col de Pouriac. But we quickly leave the path at the junction for the Rocher des 3 Evêques, which is too tempting (very close by and frequented by ibex). A short round trip along a fairly steep path that’s a bit exposed towards the end – BE CAREFUL on the descent.
On the descent, but further down where there is no real danger, we treat ourselves – and another hiker ahead of us at the same spot – to a slide on our backsides!
With the addition of the Rocher des 3 Evêques, my watch shows an elevation gain of 1,421m and a distance of 14.93km.

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Picson06230

15 Jul 2022 at 20:50

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 15, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk that takes you through some geologically unique landscapes (sinkholes, etc.) in the Salso Moreno valley.
If the weather looks uncertain or you have second thoughts after the Tête de l'Enchastraye, don’t hesitate to return the way you came. The water levels in the various streams can rise rapidly in the event of a violent storm, and the descent from the Pas de la Cavale is not the most pleasant experience in the wind and rain whilst wearing a poncho.

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83.phil

03 Jul 2022 at 16:59

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 01, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

From WP2 (marker 37), heading towards the Col de Pouriac, the PR trail has been reclassified as a GTM® (GR of the Grande Traversée du Mercantour).
From the Pas de l'Enchastraye, access to the Tête de l'Enchastraye is via the rocky ridge: either on the Italian side to the south, via a well-marked and signposted but exposed path, or on the French side to the north, walking across scree but with much less of a vertigo-inducing climb.

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