Ecrins National Park

The Ecrins was created in 1973 around the Oisans and Valgaudemar massifs, covering high country with around a hundred and fifty glaciers and more than a hundred summits above three thousand metres, topped by the Barre des Ecrins at four thousand one hundred and two, the southernmost four-thousander in the Alps. La Meije is the mountain climbers know, a difficult peak that held out until 1877. The valleys running into it are steep and long, with villages like La Grave and Vallouise as bases; La Berarde, the historic climbing hamlet, was largely destroyed by a torrential flood in June 2024 and remains closed to visitors. Wildlife includes ibex, chamois, marmots and bearded vultures reintroduced from the 1980s. The GR54 makes a full circuit of the massif.

What you actually see

• The Barre des Ecrins - the southernmost four-thousand-metre summit in the Alps.
• La Meije - the peak that resisted climbers until 1877, seen from La Grave.
• The glacier basins - around a hundred and fifty glaciers across the massif.
• The GR54 - a demanding circuit right around the massif.

When to go

July to September, when high paths clear and refuges are staffed; snow lingers into July on cols. Valley roads are open longer but high routes are seasonal.

Honest expectations

This is serious mountain country: routes are long, steep and exposed, and weather changes fast. Refuges book out and must be reserved. Glaciers have retreated significantly and some classic routes have changed.

Nearby

Briancon lies east; Grenoble is northwest.