Tours des Lacs

Peaks: La Petit Tour (2693m), La Grande Tour (2745m)
Area: Les Tours du Lac, Mercantour Alps, France
This was the last weekend of our holiday, so a family trip to the Alps seemed appropriate. We drove up via Castellane and lunch in wonderful Colmars, stopping at the highest car park above Allos. I've wanted to visit this area for years, and it was fantastic to be able to take the family with me for their first night in an Alpine refuge. This region is very different in character to the core region of the Mercantour that I know so well: much more open, less dramatic, but exquisitely beautiful. We ambled up through the trees, and it was refreshing to be relaxed and unhurried for once. After a short, steeper climb we had our first view of the stunning Lac d'Allos: deep blue water, framed by pine trees and the Tours de Lac. The Tours are a group of mini-dolomitic peaks that circle the lake, and I immediately thought it would be nice to go up them. So after dumping sacs in the refuge, we all walked up on the path towards the Col de l'Encombrette. The children were tired and not particularly happy, so they rested with Kate in a meadow east of Tete de Monier. The spectacular views of Mont Pelat did not improve their moods! So my time was limited again, and I set off running for the col. This was tremendous, nicely runnable (past several marmots) and I gained the col quickly, setting out immediately up the ridge due east towards the Petit Tour. This gave an enjoyable ascent, clearly quite popular (although it was mid-afternoon and I was entirely alone), and gave superb views north over Lac d'Allos and Pelat, and south over unfamiliar territory to the Tete de l'Encombrette. The eroded summit tower, which looks sheer, had an obvious weakness which led via a short scramble to the small summit. From here, the Grande Tour looked great and bore an uncanny resemblance to Torridonian mountains like Beinn Alligin. I had time to do it if I rushed, so scampered down the ridge - tremendous views on all sides - contouring up and beneath the peak until I found a weakness in the rockband which encircled the summit tower. A family of chamois gave me a clue, and I quickly located a hidden sandy gully which led easily to the upper scree slopes and the top. I could have continued in this vein, bagging all the peaks in a giant loop of the lake, but I had to get back to the meadow. I reversed my footsteps, contouring the Petit Tour lower down, and running almost flat out from the Col. Just over an hour for both peaks from the meadow. We all ambled down to the hut where we spent a highly enjoyable evening just enjoying the scenery and ambience.