You can also find out more about the following: first learned about the Écrins national park in relation to a specific nature reserve within it. The réserve intégrale du Lauvitel The area was created in 1995 for the purpose of “monitoring the natural dynamics” of ecosystems, without any human interference. This was the first wilderness area in Europe.
You can also find out more about the A-Team here. video showed an ecologist rowing I was stunned to see a teal-hued, dazzling lake surrounded with pine-covered peaks. I was instantly fascinated. A forbidden zone may appeal to childhood fantasies of adventure, but this bold move is a far cry from the modest environmental experiments we have in Britain. Fortress conservation raises the question: Are humans part of nature or separate from it?
It was impossible to enter the forbidden area, but it was possible to get very close. The Grand Tour des Écrins The GR54 is one of Europe’s best long-distance hiking trails. It runs through one of France’s largest national parks and celebrated its 50th birthday in 2023. Only second to Grand Randonnée 20 On Corsica, in terms of difficulty and popularity, the GR54 has a much lower level of activity.
The Hautes-Alpes is a 120km (112 mile) route that takes 12 days. It weaves through ancient mixed forest, wind-strafed cols, and beneath the sun-splashed seracs. There are over 12,000 metres worth of cliffs, moraines and screes that can be walked up, scrambled or stumbled.
The Tour des Écrins is a real adventure – far from easy, yet still manageable for mere mortals. The Tour des Ecrins begins east of Le Bourg-d’Oisans in the south-east part of Grenoble. We climb up 1,000 meters of switchbacks in the woods on day one to reach a series medieval hamlets perched on the cliffs. Each has its own water feature. We stop to eat plums blown by wind and smile at our new reality. We spend our first afternoon on a hot, crowded ski run. That’s all. While the Écrins is not a backwater, neither has it succumbed to the commercialism of the central Alps.
Orchards, allotments and gardens are in full bloom. On the edges of the villages, cattle graze on open pasture. The variety and abundance of trees between cols and settlements was a pleasant surprise. We had expected to be on a high-alpine hike. Massive aspen stands shimmer along the hillsides. Alder, sycamore and beech line the rivers, while pine, birch, pine, and sycamore are also present. France has at least twice as much forest cover as the UK and, unlike the UK, it’s a broadleaf. The GR54 has adopted paths that have linked settlements for centuries, and to travel through these venerable glades adds real cadence to our journey – likewise, the sleepy village pitstops every day or three that offer good coffee or a génépi Fruit, liqueur and fresh bread.
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(Clockwise from top) dusky evening light above the Village of La Grave, Tour des Écrins signage in the south of the park, and a cross at the Col Saint-George, with La Meije behind
The Tour des Écrins is more than just a challenging walking holiday; it’s a chance to reflect on scale and proportion, on how to live better alongside nature. The grassland of Emparis gives us the opportunity to see the first high mountain ranges and their seasonal grazing. Both Mongolia and the Lake District are reminiscent of me. Do we treat all cultures of transhumance equally or have some been lost to industrial capitalism? Could we do something different?
Beyond the protected Lauvitel Reserve, park access has been divided into different zones. Grazing, fires and pets are prohibited in certain areas. The compromise seems to have helped wildlife find sanctuary. Ibex were successfully reintroduced while beavers, otters and bearded-vultures have returned. Invertebrates, wildflowers and lizards are flourishing. As we walk, dragonflies the size of a hand, lizards, and beetles with blinged out jackets in red, blue, and green keep us company. Marmots keep a watchful eye on eagles as they ride thermals. Powder-blue butterflies are fed minerals by the glacier-fed aquamarine headwaters. The abundance you are missing is something you will only realize when you experience it.
The presence of wolves is evident by the temporary electric fences and the odd shepherd. patou Working dogs in the valleys. Both people I talk to are philosophic about the balance that must be struck. Aline Robert enjoys the bond she has formed with her sheep. Justine Carpentier recalls losing 150 of her flock to wolf attacks, but says: “The wolf is not good or bad – it’s just like the weather. We don’t like rain but we have to learn to accept it. She says that the relationship between France and the United States is not without friction, but they do provide grants for equipment and training, as well compensation for losses.
Slowly, my friend and I circle the Écrins massif clockwise. The walk becomes more challenging in the south as the mountains surround us and close in on us. Each valley is more beautiful and primitive than the previous one. We hike from Vallouise to a hidden mill, traverse a glacial riverbed, and trek through a canyon adorned with berries before ascending into a layer-cake of oxidised, shattered metamorphic rocks. The next morning, we arrive at the highest point of our trip, the Col de l’Aup Martin.
West of this point, the land becomes even wilder. The path is often unstable and crumbling under our weight, so villages are lost along with any chance of resupply. After nine days, my stinking t-shirt and I no longer speak, but the dreamlike feeling that comes along with moving constantly on our terms and under our steam is a great compensation. We bivouac in quiet places to the sound of cicadas or an owl, the wind and the water – always water. There is no pain or ache, only beauty. As the heatwave breaks in its final days, it suddenly becomes autumn, with all the swirling clouds, rain, and falling leaves on the valleys.
Our final day brings us to Lac du Lauvitel. Hundreds of people crowd the shore, and electrical pylons cut through the exclusion area. The reserve provides important climate and biodiversity data, but is an unsettling experience. We scramble past the extensive ruins and descend an ancient staircase down to the valley’s floor. After a few hours, we limp into Le Bourg-d’Oisans for pizza, beer and a shower.
The Tour des Écrins is the hike of a lifetime. The tour is also an opportunity to learn about another way of conserving nature. It’s all too easy to assume pastoral harmony when one is only passing through, but at the very least, the Écrins shows there’s more than one way to look after our wild places.
Where to Stay
David Enjoy a homely stay Bo Lodge (from €103) and the grand Hotel de Milan (from €112) Le Bourg-d’Oisans is located in the region of Le Vallois (from €94) in Vallouise. The remaining days he bivouacked in the mountains. The entire route can be covered by hotels and refuges, but these must be booked well in advance.
How to go
Resupply is possible every two or four days for backpackers. There are shops at Le Bourg-d’Oisans, La Grave, Le Monêtier-les-Bains, Vallouise and La Chapelle-en-Valgaudémar, but they may operate seasonal closing. You can buy food and drinks at refuges and villages along the way. They are usually of a high quality.
When to go
Late June to early October is the best time for high cols. The summer months of July and august are very hot. June is the month with the most beautiful flowers. September brings cooler weather.
David Lintern A Scottish Highlands based writer and photographer
