Not far from the Orcières (Gap) station, there is a small quiet valley which is ideal for snowshoeing in winter... A winding road will take you to the village of Prapic where the route starts from. If we arrive at the end of the day, we can spend the night in the stopover lodge Self-catering accommodation in the village. Ready to start this two-day snowshoe hike in Prapic! And if you don't already have snowshoes, I recommend you go directly buy them instead of renting them: your investment will be profitable in a few days of hiking...
From the village, follow the path which gently climbs into the Drac valley. The start is relatively flat and ideal for admiring the landscape on snowshoes. Then we cross a steeper glacial barrier to arrive at the Saulce chapel. Beware of avalanches in this passage in years when snow is abundant!
We pass next to the du Laire jump, which can be admired from a small bridge. Continue to the bottom of the valley and finally climb very steeply up to the bar hutThis is a building where the shepherd makes the upper floor available to hikers. There's no designated fire pit, but being upstairs provides good insulation from the cold. This is the spot we chose to spend the night in our sleeping bags -5 degrees.
For those who haven't had their fill of hiking, you can take a short walk on the adjoining plateau which is magnificent at sunset. The most courageous can take an extra day to attempt an ascent to Mourre Froid at 3000 m. From a distance the route seemed quite doable to me… However, there is a world of difference between seeing the route from afar and being on site, so be careful!
After a restful night at altitude (or not so restful for those who couldn't sleep because of the cold…), you can continue the hike towards the Vallon Cros hut. Once again, we completed this route without any problems as the snow conditions were minimal. But it's best to be cautious if the snow is fresh!
Then follow the bottom of the valley towards the Terce cabins. The place is panoramic and ideal for a picnic! Then go back down along a ridge to the Saut du Laire. All that remains is to follow the route in the opposite direction to return on snowshoes to Prapic. What a beautiful valley is that of the Drac!
If you enjoyed the landscape photographs on this page, feel free to visit the section Pictures. For example, you can order a mountain poster of my photos, which is a good way to support me ;).
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