Balmettes lake

At Lac des Balmettes, time slows down. A natural setting in Saint-Colomban-des-Villards, perfect for recharging your batteries in front of the mountains.

Philippe

Born and bred in the Maurienne, I've been walking the trails of Explore Maurienne for as long as I can remember.

9am Departure from St-Colomban-des-Villards

We arrived in the village of Saint-Colomban-des-Villards at around 9am. The village was still quiet and the summer heat had not yet set in. From there, we took a small mountain road that winds its way up through the forest.

After about twenty minutes on the road, we arrived at “Frumezan”, at around 1800 metres altitude. This is where the hike really begins. We parked the car near a small chalet and put our rucksacks on our backs, filled with our snacks, water bottles, sun cream and other necessities.

At 9.30am, we set off for Lac des Balmettes, which is announced as a 1.5-hour walk with a 450m climb.

Mountain pastures

As we left the forest, the landscape changed completely. We reached the mountain pastures.

The grass covered the slopes and the wind blew gently. In the distance, we could see the ewes grazing on the mountain, watched over by their faithful guard dogs.

The path was a little less steep and it was easier to move forward. At one point, we even heard a marmot whistle before disappearing into the rocks. It made us laugh because we weren’t expecting it.

We really felt like we were far away from everything.

A little more effort

The higher we climbed, the rockier the landscape became. The grass gradually disappeared and there were more and more stones.

The path climbed a little higher and we wondered when we’d finally see the lake. At every bend, we thought it would appear… but it remained hidden.

Then, at around 11:15, as we passed a small flat spot, we finally saw it.

Arrival at the lake

Lac des Balmettes was there, right in front of us.

The water was very calm and reflected the mountains around it. The lake lies at an altitude of 2193 metres and is surrounded by rocks and large slopes.

We sat down by the water to have a bite to eat and enjoy the scenery. There was a light wind and hardly any noise. It was a really peaceful moment.

After about an hour and a half’s walk, we were very happy to have arrived.

After a picnic and a few photos, we took the same route, in the opposite direction, back to the car.