Tour of Lac de la Plagne

The Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) has a wingspan of 2.80 m and feeds mainly on bones! Falsely attributed with demonic powers, the bearded vulture was completely exterminated from the Alps at the beginning of the 20th century. Its return is the result of an international reintroduction programme supported by Europe. The bearded vulture has been established in the valley since 2004. It is highly sensitive to disturbances, information is therefore provided on site with guidelines on how to ensure its eyrie remains a peaceful place in case of reproduction.

"Upon departing, on your right, you follow the Dôme de Bellecôte (3,417 m in altitude). In winter, several of the paths facing you are used for off-piste skiing from the area of La Plagne. At the eastern end, you can see the summit of Aliet (3,109 m in altitude). Its name came from ""alye"", meaning needle in Savoyard patois. From this point of view, it appears in the form of a pyramid of rock. It requires special climbing techniques to scale. It is rated as difficult."

The golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is a rare and protected species, although in recent years its numbers have been increasing in the Alps. At Peisey-Nancroix, it appears on the town’s coat of arms. The hike crosses through the territory of a pair of golden eagles. Monitored since 1973, it has already occupied 11 different eyries (term used to designate a bird of prey’s nests) and guided 35 young birds to take flight. It feeds mainly on marmots in summer and is content with carrion in winter.

The Rosuel valley is particular for also welcoming the plains ungulates such as deer, rœ deer and occasionally wild boars on the low zones and those more specific to the mountain on the upper parts such as the chamois and ibex. However, the latter do not occupy the same areas according to the seasons and they leave the bottom of valley in the summer in favour of areas that are higher in altitude and cooler.

Le Cystopteris des montagnes fait partie de ces fougères rares et difficiles à observer. Elle se distingue par sa feuille très découpée qui s'inscrit parfaitement dans un triangle équilatéral. Elle est présente en France uniquement dans les Pyrénées et les Alpes. Elle bénéficie d'un statut de protection nationale. Cette station a failli disparaître naturellement suite à un glissement de terrain en 2009.

On the ascent to your left, you will see the Mont-Pourri which culminates at 3,779 m, making it the second highest peak of Vanoise after the Grande Casse. It was scaled for the first time by Michel Croz in 1861. Today the route passes conventionally through the Geay glacier that can be seen under the summit. At the foot of its moraine, the former refuge, where mountaineers slept until the 1970s, has been converted into a museographic space dedicated to the history of this summit.

More than 250 cows come from neighbouring villages or from further afield (Isère in particular) to summer in this mountain pasture. Here, different races co-exist: Montbéliarde, Charolais, Limousine, Tarentaise… These are cows that do not produce milk and instead are bred for heifers, breeding or meat cows. They arrive at the bottom of the valley, then climb at altitude as the grass grows, before gradually descending again. They are watched over by a herdsman, who will occupy different alpine chalets according to the progression of the herd.

The Lac de la Plagne is a particularly deep natural lake (19 m). It is currently privately managed and depends on the association of the Lacs de Montagne de Landry-Peisey which regularly stocks it. Brown trout, brook trout and lake trout populate its waters. The lake trout originated in northern America, in the area between the Great Lakes and Alaska and was introduced here in 1964. This species is monitored by tagging the young fish.

Le Caricion incurvae désigne un milieu exceptionnel, rare et menacé.  Il inclut des espèces végétales arctico-alpines protégées, dont la présence remonte aux dernières grandes glaciations. Citons par exemple la Laîche à petite arête (Carex microglochin), la Tofieldie naine (Tofieldia pusilla) ou le Souchet des Alpes (Trichophorum pumilum). La Vanoise a un rôle majeur en France dans la préservation de ce Caricion, encore bien représenté dans le Parc national.

At 2,145 m in altitude, on the shores of Lac de la Plagne, an old sheep pen, owned by the town of Landry, was renovated as a refuge in 1980. Since then, the shepherd who farms the alpine pastures still stops there, but it is also guarded throughout the summer period, providing overnight and catering services for about 40 guests. Thanks to the two dairy cows on site, the refuge caretakers offer fresh dairy products daily.

En été, un troupeau de 300 génisses, élevées pour la production de viande, pâture la haute vallée du Ponturin. Il n'y a pas de vaches laitières car l'absence de piste pastorale ne permet pas le déplacement d'une machine à traire ni le transport du lait pour la fabrication du fromage. Le berger suit le troupeau et utilise les 4 chalets mis à sa disposition pour son logement (chalets du Varchet, de la Plagne, de la Sache et de la Grassaz).

Détruit par une avalanche en février 1999, le chalet des gardes du Berthoud a été remplacée par la cabane des Mindières, en 2002. Installé à proximité du rocher des Mindières à 2224 m d'altitude, il domine le Lac de la Plagne au nord-est. 

"The hamlet of La Plagne includes a sheep pen, 2 stables, 2 covered market ruins, several dry stone walls and enclosures, a vaulted cellar and an old ruin to the south, evidence of an alpine pasture that has long been farmed. The cellar includes several engraved stones, one of which dates from 1772. The main buildings have been built on the slope, which protects them from avalanches. They still have, at least in part, a traditional mortar made of ""visible stones""."

Le Tarier des prés est un passereau insectivore qui prend ses quartiers d'été en Vanoise de mai à septembre. Il hiverne en Afrique et c'est un migrateur transsaharien dont l'aire de prédilection est la zone tropicale (Congo, Sénégal, Zambie…). Chez le mâle, qui chante joliment de manière sonore et variée, souvent perché sur un piquet, un rocher ou une tige sèche de rhubarbe des moines, c'est le large plastron roux orangé et le sourcil blanc sur fond noir qui attirent l'oeil et le distingue du Tarier pâtre

Le sentier que l'on suit en descendant du refuge du Mont Pourri rejoint le GR5 sur le plan de la Plagne. Il faut suivre ce sentier quelques centaines de mètres pour rejoindre celui qui monte au refuge d'Entre-le-Lac. Après avoir traversé un éboulis, on peut remarquer une bosse à gauche, avec un mélèze, sur laquelle se tenait la cabane des gardes du Berthoud. Celle-ci a été rasée par une avalanche de neige poudreuse venant du dôme des Platières, au cours du mois de février 1999. Depuis, le Parc national de la Vanoise a fait construire une cabane sur le rocher des Mindières qui domine le lac de la Plagne

On your way back, before reaching the initial trail, you will cross a bridge over the Ponturin that you follow from the start. This watercourse flows from the Lac de la Plagne before it flows into the Isère at Landry. At this point, the stream reaches the torrent, tunnelling under the boulders in dry periods before resurging lower down, and this is what has earned this place its name “Pertes du Ponturin”.