Mont Guillaume, Seyères chapel

Description

Following in Widmar's footsteps, climb to the summit of Mont Guillaume after a refreshing stop at the bucolic Seyères chapel. Mont Guillaume is the most southerly of the Ecrins peaks at over 2500m! - Ascend via the forest road closed to traffic, to the north. At the fork, continue uphill to the left (Mont Guillaume arrow). The forest road passes the Fontaniers refuge and turns left at the Fontaniers chalet. Reach an intersection with a path coming from the left (post). - Continue along the main track for 250m. - Turn right (arrow pointing to "Mont Guillaume par Pré Clos” - Mont Guillaume by Pré Clos) and, at a bend (1809m), climb the path on the left into the larch grove (arrow pointing to "Mont Guillaume par le sentier Widmar" - Mont Guillaume by the Widmar path). Reach a fork in the road. - Continue along the path at the top, then follow the track on the left to the Seyères chapel (2,056m). - Pass the fountain, continue along the path, then go right (arrow pointing to "Mont Guillaume") until you reach a fork (2,233 m). Go up the left-hand path. It climbs up in long hairpins until it reaches a spine. Climb to the summit of Mont Guillaume, topped by the tiny, recently restored chapel of Saint-Guillaume (2,542m; panoramic view). - Head back down to point 4 on the same route. Take the Pépinières path on the right. Follow the forest track to the left as far as point 3. Follow the forest road from the outset for 250m. At point two, descend the path on the right and continue along a track to emerge above the car park.

Difficulty

Official rating: difficult, by Parc national des Écrins.

Getting there

Start: Parking de la forêt, Embrun, Embrun (05).

Sources

• Track: Parc national des Écrins, Licence Ouverte 2.0, Licence Ouverte 2.0 (Etalab) (destination.ecrins-parcnational.fr/trek/995396-Mont-Guillaume%2C-chapelle-des-Seyeres). Time estimated by GPX Path with the Mac app rule, breaks not included.
• Official elevation gain: 936 m, Parc national des Écrins