Tour of the Queyras. Alan Castle

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      The sheer rock face of Pic d’Asti from the summit of Le Pain de Sucre (excursion from Refuge Agnel)

      2 IGN 1:60 000

      Sheet 06. Queyras – Ubaye. This map covers the whole of the Tour du Queyras and also includes the Tour of Monte Viso.

      These maps can be bought from specialist map shops in the UK as well as local and main city outlets in France (see Appendix 3).

      Each stage in this guidebook is illustrated by a diagrammatic map of the route.

Waymarking and Navigation

      Mountain trails in Europe are generally waymarked more thoroughly than the mountain paths of Britain. Most of the footpaths used in this Tour are part of the GR network, and as such are waymarked with a system of red and white painted stripes. These occur, usually in a horizontal position with white above red, on rocks, boulders, trees, posts, fences, telegraph poles, etc. The standard of waymarking in the Queyras is generally very good, and most of the paths are distinct and easy to follow. The walker should not continue too far without seeing another red and white waymark. If a waymark is not encountered for some time, it is likely that the wrong path has been taken.

      In a few areas the waymarking is not particularly easy to follow. The section between the Col des Thures and Col du Malrif, north of Abriès on the alternative route of Stage 8, requires some care to avoid losing the waymarks. Also, the waymarking on the Italian side of the border tends at times to be inferior to that in France. In this guidebook the route description is particularly detailed in areas where there may be difficulty in following the route.

      Remember too that paint waymarking fades with time, and so a route that was once easy to follow may be less so if the waymarking has not been renewed for several years. Conversely, at the time of your visit an area that was once poorly waymarked may be much easier to navigate if the waymarking has since been refreshed.

      In the GR waymarking system various arrangements of red and white lines are used to signify different instructions. When two sets of red/white marks appear together, this signifies that a change in direction is imminent. This instruction is also sometimes indicated by the use of curved red and white markings, pointing towards the new direction to be taken. The painted cross, usually of one red and one white line, is an important one to remember – it signals that the route is not in that direction; go back to pick up the correct trail. Very occasionally a red and white mark bisected by another white line may be seen. This does not necessary mean that a mistake has been made, but rather that the route is a variant of the main GR trail.