Tête de l'Enchastraye

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

Details

n°3097507
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 13.72 km
  • ◔
    Duration according to the author: 5 hrs 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Very difficult
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,194 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,200 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 2,944 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 2,071 m
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Photos

Ibex
Ibex
Ibex on the ridge
Lakes

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 sharedGR® 5 and 56 marked in red and white. Pass marker 41b and reach Col des Fourches at marker 41.

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

(2) Leave theGR® 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 theGR®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 theGR®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

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 2,268 m - Camp des Fourches car park
  2. 1 : km 0.53 - alt. 2,262 m - Col des Fourches
  3. 2 : km 1.9 - alt. 2,097 m - Crossroads of the circular loop, marker 37
  4. 3 : km 3.26 - alt. 2,218 m - Combe du Graillon
  5. 4 : km 4.88 - alt. 2,504 m - Col de Pouriac (2506m)
  6. 5 : km 7.06 - alt. 2,944 m - Tête de l'Enchastraye (2954m)
  7. 6 : km 7.57 - alt. 2,753 m - Near - Lac de L'Enchastraye
  8. 7 : km 8.43 - alt. 2,543 m - GR junction
  9. 8 : km 9.36 - alt. 2,665 m - Pas de la Cavale (Mercantour)
  10. S/E : km 13.72 - alt. 2,268 m - Camp des Fourches car park

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

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

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Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5
Based on 4 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
5 / 5
thierryeman
thierryeman

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
La Sand

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
Picson06230

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
83.phil

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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Other walks in the area

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The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.