Tour of the Crozet, Loup and Grande Sitre lakes

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Circular of the three lakes of Crozet, Loup and Grande Sitre from Saint-Mury-Monteymond on the north-western balcony of the Grande Lance de Domène in the Belledonne Massif.

Details

n°2481647
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 12.76 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 6h 40 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Difficult
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,047 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,049 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 2,363 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,422 m
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Photos

Col du Loup
Col du Loup
Cabane des Sabottes
Lac de la Grande Sitre

Description of the walk

Park in the Clos car park located before the Pré du Molard pass.

(S/E) Head south on theGR® 549A along the ridge towards Pré Raymond and Les Granges Freydière. Reach the intersection with the trail coming from the Col de Pré Long.

(1) Continue straight ahead on theGR®, making a large circular loop to the right. Cross the Ruisseau de Mercier. Continue west and return to the crossroads of the path leading up from Pré Raymond.

(2) Turn left and begin the winding climb to Lac du Crozet. Reach the dam at theGR®549junction.

(3) Turn left on the east side and you will soon reach Lac du Loup.
.
(4) Continue on theGR® to reach the pass between the Crête de la Petite Lance du Crozet and the Grande Lance de Domène, to the right of the Col du Loup.

(5) Descend the northern slope of the former Glacier de la Sitre, located below the Grande Lance de Domène. Reach the Grande Sitre scree slope.

(6) Head north to go around Lac de la Grande Sitre before reaching Col de la Sitre.

(7) Leave theGR® on your right and continue to the left, ignoring the crossroads leading to the lake to reach Mont Saint-Mury.

(8) Continue north downhill to Habert des Sabottes.

(9) Head due west to reach the Pré du Molard refuge.

(10) Take the downhill path to return to the Clos car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,482 m - Clos car park. Near - Col du Pré du Molard (1485m)
  2. 1 : km 0.88 - alt. 1,432 m - GR549A balcony trail
  3. 2 : km 3.24 - alt. 1,508 m - Path below the Grand Colon
  4. 3 : km 6.13 - alt. 1,982 m - Lac du Crozet
  5. 4 : km 7.12 - alt. 2,253 m - Lac du Loup
  6. 5 : km 7.42 - alt. 2,362 m - Crête de la Petite Lance du Crozet
  7. 6 : km 8.08 - alt. 2,227 m - Pierrier de la Sitre
  8. 7 : km 8.78 - alt. 2,116 m - Col de la Sitre (1988m)
  9. 8 : km 9.56 - alt. 2,009 m - Mont Saint-Mury (2038m)
  10. 9 : km 10.43 - alt. 1,806 m - Habert les Sabottes
  11. 10 : km 11.24 - alt. 1,737 m - Refuge du Pré du Molard (1740m)
  12. S/E : km 12.76 - alt. 1,479 m - Clos car park

Notes

Water source at Cabane des Sabottes
Pré du Mollard refuge (food and accommodation)
(9) Habert des Sabottes: take a few moments to visit the cabin, which can be used as a refuge as it is freely accessible.

Worth a visit

Pick raspberries, blackberries and blueberries in September.

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 12 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
Jeepers38
Jeepers38

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 12, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : Not used / Not applicable
Very busy route : No

When we arrived at Lake Crozet, we changed tack and headed for the two Doménon lakes.

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User 1105492

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 03, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike, varied from forest to lakes, even in very cloudy and cool weather at high altitude.
As a bonus, we saw chamois and mouflons in the less frequented area after Lake Crozet.

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Stefdu38
Stefdu38

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 25, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Nice hike.
Very pleasant in this hot season.
Very few people after Lake Crozet.
No major difficulties.
The Pré Mollard refuge is a very pleasant place to stop for a cold drink.

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Bepimaco
Bepimaco

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 29, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Apart from the climb up to Lac du Crozet, the trail is not very busy and fairly well marked.

The only downside is that the paved road ends well before the start of the trail. I started walking at the end of the paved road, which added about 300 metres of elevation gain.

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bertrandrame
bertrandrame

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 10, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful day hike, undertaken on a scorching Sunday in the valley.
80% of the route was uncrowded, except for the "Grenoble motorway" on the section shared with the climb to Lac du Crozet.
As soon as you start the (strenuous) climb to Lac du Loup, it clears up considerably.
Bring cash to have a drink at the Mollard meadow refuge on the way down.
The only downside: after the tarmac, the access road is long and rather tricky. But it's doable.

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file indienne
file indienne

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 24, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A magnificent hike under beautiful sunshine with stunning autumn colours. The track leading to the start is dotted with gullies but is accessible if you drive slowly, even in a city car. We did the route in reverse. In this direction, you climb the first part of the hike, whereas in the other direction, you start the ascent more gently, which only really begins after point 2. Very beautiful and varied landscapes, forest, mountain pastures, then rocky terrain when you reach the high point, where we also found a little snow. The route was not very busy until we reached Lac du Crozet, where there were crowds, as well as on the descent between points 3 and 2.
It is also worth noting that the route in the opposite direction allows you to picnic by Lac Crozet (the most beautiful of the three lakes) after completing the ascent.

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Deuxpattes
Deuxpattes

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 21, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

We loved it! Well, despite this year's rains, Lac du Loup is nothing more than a "big puddle"... But the whole hike is magnificent!

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Didric
Didric

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 06, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We did this route in reverse, starting from the Pialou car park (towards Pré Raymond).
There were no problems with signposting until we reached the Pré du Molard refuge. After that, the lack of signs and the fog caused us some difficulty. Fortunately, we had a map and a compass! Once we had passed the Col de la Sytre, the snow forced us to turn back.
It was a shame, as the route looked very pleasant.

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JCD38200
JCD38200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Yesterday, 6 September 2020, we did this route mostly in fog, with just a half-hour break at the Col du Loup, which allowed us to see Lake Loup (the only lake we could see that day) and the walls of the Grande Lance de Domène.
There were lots of people around Lac du Crozet, but far fewer further on.
In good weather, the hike must be beautiful.

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Astrid3842
Astrid3842

Parking de la SOUILLE, not Douille, thank you auto-correct 😠

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Astrid3842
Astrid3842

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 26, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The "driveable" track that runs from the Col du Pré Long to the Clos car park is in poor condition and full of ruts. Take care if you have a low-clearance car... To avoid the last part of the track, you can park at the Douille car park, from where a path leads to the Clos car park (yellow sign).
The first part up to Pré Raymond is not particularly interesting as it is in the forest with no real views, but it allows you to warm up before tackling the climb to Lac du Crozet.
There are lots of people from Pré Raymond to Lac du Crozet, but from the fork towards Lac du Loup, there are far fewer people!
Be careful at point 8 not to miss the path to Habert des Sabottes. I found myself at the Pré du Molard refuge without having passed through Les Sabottes, without even having seen the path!

In short, this is a magnificent hike that offers all the best that Belledonne has to offer. A must-do.

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Bisserain73
Bisserain73

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 28, 2020
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We did the opposite and went back and forth to (5); crossing the forest to reach Lake Crozet did not seem very exciting to us.
On the way back, take a short detour via the pass and Pointe de la Sitre and follow the dotted line on the IGN map between (8) and (10); the path is marked with cairns.
There are snowfields between (6) and (5)
Ibex at (5)
Superb panoramic views.
Extension work in progress on the refuge terrace.

Average attendance for a Sunday, with a fairly young and friendly crowd.

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Claude D1.
Claude D1.

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 17, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Excellent hike.

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