1. From the Col du Lautaret to L'Alpe du Villar-d'Arène via Pied du Col
EasyDescription
- Turn right after the Café de la Ferme. Take the GR®50 (signs) which runs downhill to Le Pied du Col.
- Once past the hamlet, carry on along the GR® track until you come to a paved road.
- Go left and follow the GR®54 waymarks. Follow the road until you come to a gîte. Pass Pont d'Arsine (1,667m), leave the lake on your right and carry on until you reach the summer car park.
- The valley narrows and after the Le Colombié stream the footpath starts to rise uphill towards the alpine pasture.
- Ignore the Les Crevasses footpath, which leads from the Col du Lauteret, on your left, go past a meteorological station and on to the shelter of L’Alpe de Villar d’Arène (2,079m) via the right-hand footpath.
- Towns crossed : Le Monêtier-les-Bains and Villar-d'Arêne
2 points of interest
Vallée de la Romanche, Charles Bertier - © Musée de Grenoble 
HistoryRomanche valley, Charles Bertier
The Romanche was a source of inspiration for many mountain artists and it have been painted repeatedly. Charles Bertier (1860-1924) was inspired to paint Vallée de la Romanche au Pied-du-Col and Les Fréaux près de la Grave, two oil paintings that were painted in 1894. The artist from Grenoble learnt to paint landscapes with Jean Achard, and mountains with the abbot Guétal and did not hesitate to set up his easel on the high summits of the Dauphiné Alps. More to the point, his mission was to make his contemporaries 'understand the mountains'!
Marmotte au printemps - PNE - Papet Rodolphe 
FaunaThe marmots’ "bosse"
The alpine marmot is naturally present on grass at altitude. Here, it occupies a singular place which we call the marmots’ "bosse». This hibernating rodent is only visible between April and October. The marmot lives in a family and respects a hierarchy. Games, grooming, fighting and biting ensure the dominance of a couple as well as the cohesion of the group. Each animal participates in the delimitation of the territory by rubbing its cheeks on rocks and also by urinating and defecating there. When there is danger, the marmot emits a high and powerful whistle in order to warn the others.
Altimetric profile
Sensitive areas
Golden eagle
- Impacted practices:
- Aerial, , Vertical
- Sensitivity periods:
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAug
- Contact:
- Parc National des Écrins
Julien Charron
julien.charron@ecrins-parcnational.fr
Golden eagle
- Impacted practices:
- Aerial, , Vertical
- Sensitivity periods:
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAug
- Contact:
- Parc National des Écrins
Julien Charron
julien.charron@ecrins-parcnational.fr
Golden eagle
- Impacted practices:
- Aerial, , Vertical
- Sensitivity periods:
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAug
- Contact:
- Parc National des Écrins
Julien Charron
julien.charron@ecrins-parcnational.fr
Information desks
Information center "Col du Lautaret" (summer only)
Col du Lautaret, 05220 Le Monêtier-les-bains
Under the gaze of the Meije (3983 m) and surrounded by beautiful meadows celebrated in the great names of botany, the former hospice of the Lautaret called "refuge Napoleon" houses the reception and information Park center - Projections, documentation, books of the Park. Accessible to people with reduced mobility. Free admission.
Access and parking
Parking :
Source
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