Glacier Blanc

The glacier is bounded on its orographically left-hand side by, inter alia, the summits of the Roche Faurio (3,730 m), Pic de Neige Cordier (3,614 m) and the Montagne des Agneaux (3,664 m).

This primitive hut, that today is an exhibit, was built immediately next to a large stone slab that had hitherto acted as a camping place from which the area could be explored.

Two hours by foot further on the Refuge des Écrins is situated high above the Glacier Blanc on a prominent rocky 'pulpit', at a height of 3,170 m, with expansive views of the area.

The hut trail runs for the most part immediately above the glacier and should only be attempted by fully equipped high-altitude alpinists because of the danger of falling into a crevasse.

From La Bérarde (1,713 m), the alpinist centre in the Haut Vénéon, the Glacier Blanc may be reached over the Col des Écrins (3,367 m) at the end of the Val de Bonne Pierre.

In earlier times, most recently in 1866,[8] it formed a single glacial system with its southern neighbour, the moraine-covered Glacier Noir, whose streams joined one another above the Pré de Madame Carle.

[2][10] As of 2010, the tongue of the Glacier Blanc lies at a height of about 2,400 m. In the 20th century, it is estimated that it retreated by about 1 km, accompanied by a reduction in area of some 2 km2.