Loop of Lac Blanc

10 points of interest

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  Flora

  Gentiana utriculosa

  This small deep blue flower favours the light and nutrient-poor soil. It is therefore most likely to be seen at the bends of the trail...

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  Lake

  View over Lac du Lait

  A high-altitude lake surmounted by a summit. Classic mountain landscape shaped by glaciers. To the right of the photograph is the glacier of Belle Place which left its traces as it descended from the eastern side of the Dent Parrachée. A glacier which has now reduced to a few metres in thickness. The last great ice age of the Würm covered the entire Vanoise and descended from Mont Blanc to Lyons. It is therefore difficult to establish the exact origins of Lac du Lait. But its age is certain: the lake is precisely 12,000 years old, as established by analysing the pollen taken from peat. What we have here is the only real peat bog currently known in the heart of the Vanoise National Park. It draws another part of its originality from its exceptionally high altitude for this type of environment. At more than 2,200 metres, the basin dug out by ice was filled with water after their retreat and a wetland was created. This has now closed imperceptibly, filled with vegetation that eliminates the water. It is, in some way, the last stage of this lake’s evolution, the twilight of its life.

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  Lake

  Lac Blanc

  This lake, due to the highly impermeable bedrock, is mainly fed by runoff water. It cascades in to the Doron gorges 400 metres below. As you approach the shore, you may be lucky enough to see a bearded vulture, the largest of the European birds of prey. A couple nest in these gorges, a little further upstream. Get the binoculars out!

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  Summit

  The Dent Parrachée

  The east face of the second summit of Vanoise (3,697 m in altitude) stands before you. It inspires mountaineers every year to climb it to enjoy one of the most stunning views of the Alps. Unfortunately, the ascent has also had its fair share of tragic accidents reminding us that man must remain humble in the face of nature. All paths have their difficulties in climbing, including the route classified as least difficult but it dœs follow a very beautiful, snowy and sometimes airy rocky ridge.

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  Glacier

  The Vanoise Glaciers

  Stretching to the north of the Dent Parrachée are the Vanoise glaciers, formed across 13 km by multiple domes which include Génépy, Arpont, Nants, Chasseforêt and Sonnailles. The crossing of the Vanoise glaciers is renowned for its beauty and the panoramic view it offers! Above 3,000 m, much of the precipitation is in the form of snow. The accumulating snow is packed and transformed from a light layer with a density of less than 100 g per litre, which then turns to a hard compact snow cover that, when it dœsn’t melt in summer, turns into névé which becomes five times denser. If, after years of accumulation, the névé persists, the snow hardens again, pressing out all trapped air to become bright, transparent ice with a density of 900 g per litre.

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  Pastoralism

  The flowering meadows of Lac Blanc

  These meadows, rich in biodiversity, are essential for breeders, enabling them to provide for their animals during the winter while producing high-quality fodder which directly affects the quality of milk. It is therefore vital to respect them and not deviate from the path especially before mowing around the 1st of August. Wild boar occasionally climb up to this point and damage the meadows by turning them over in search of food. If this is a cost for farmers who have to restore it to its original state, it is also the price they pay for their quality!

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  Architecture

  The hamlet of Chavière

  The hamlet of Chavière, once occupied only in summer by inhabitants of Termignon, regroups 14 buildings. The salt and cheese road passes through the hamlet, forming “an avenue” in the hamlet, which is exceptional at this altitude and for purely seasonal use.

  The heritage value of this rural architecture is remarkable. Unfortunately, the current neglect of the buildings is contributing to their state of ruin.

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  Viewpoint

  View over the mountain pasture hamlet of Glière

  The hamlet of Chavière looks out over the Arc valley. Turn your back perpendicular to the slope to protect yourself from avalanches. Against the snow, turns, ditches and embankments complement each other but there soon might be not much to protect, because the hamlet of Chavière, one of the most beautiful of the Vanoise massif and the most representative of alpine hamlets, has been abandoned for several years and is on the brink of ruin. Roofs and walls are at risk of collapse. The town of Termignon and the Vanoise National Park have been trying for several years to convince the many co-owners of this heritage of the merits of a restoration project but it has so far been in vain. Everything here testifies to the density of the past: the stones and rocks in the foreground are the remnants of the low walls that bordered the old mule track of the Col de la Vanoise, an old salt and cheese road, which links Entre-Deux-Eaux and Pralognan-la-Vanoise.

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  History

  The Chapel of Sainte-Marguerite

  This chapel dates back to the 15th century and was renovated in 1987. It is dedicated to Sainte-Marguerite d´Antioche, who protects the hamlet of Chavière and the surrounding alpine pastures. The third century saint freed herself from a dragon, the Demon himself, by piercing it from the inside with the aid of a cross and thus naturally became the holy protector… of pregnant women! She was then invoked when women were giving birth in the alpine pastures.

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  Small heritage

  The oratories of Sainte-Antoine

  Ÿou will meet 3 oratories dedicated to Saint-Antoine, a hermit and protector of donkeys and mules. The 1st oratory, dating from 1973, was the year in which the road was created. The second, dating a priori to the Italian occupation, was already known on the Sarde map in 1728, and was rebuilt in 2005. The third oratory is a rock crevice which has not been dated. Sainte-Antoine has some distinctive characteristics, a cow bell and the Tau des Antonins (T-shaped cross).