Le refuge et le lac du Pavé
A hike to immerse yourself in remarkable alpine landscapes whose goal is the discovery of the Pavé lake. Life, zooplankton and phytoplankton, is already present in this recent lake, perched at 2800 m.
From the car park at the bottom of the gravel pit, beyond the Arsine bridge, the Pavé refuge path first takes the very busy path of the Alpe de Villar d'Arène refuge (GR 54).
He leaves it at the top of the glacial lock that the locals call “Les voûtes”. He then follows the Romanche on its right bank for 2 km of the Plan de l’Alpe, coveted in the past to build a hydroelectric dam there.
At the Valfourche bridge, which marks the entrance to the heart of the Ecrins National Park, the route then passes to the left bank. It leaves the Romanche valley to go up the Cavales valley, first on the edge of the torrent of the same name to Pichettes, a place that marks the end of the alpine lawn. The valley then becomes entirely mineral. The path follows the crest of the remarkable moraine up to below the Clot des Cavales pass to go around a system of rocky bars and arrives at the refuge and the Pavé lake.
The return takes the same route.
He leaves it at the top of the glacial lock that the locals call “Les voûtes”. He then follows the Romanche on its right bank for 2 km of the Plan de l’Alpe, coveted in the past to build a hydroelectric dam there.
At the Valfourche bridge, which marks the entrance to the heart of the Ecrins National Park, the route then passes to the left bank. It leaves the Romanche valley to go up the Cavales valley, first on the edge of the torrent of the same name to Pichettes, a place that marks the end of the alpine lawn. The valley then becomes entirely mineral. The path follows the crest of the remarkable moraine up to below the Clot des Cavales pass to go around a system of rocky bars and arrives at the refuge and the Pavé lake.
The return takes the same route.
