Forests and woodworking
The most beautiful are here, in the Écrins
No need for a ticket to Canada: the most beautiful larch forest in France is in the Pays des Écrins, between 1,400 and 2,400 meters above sea level. Here, these extraordinary conifers – the only ones to lose their needles in autumn – transform the mountain into a golden landscape and crunching under your feet. Do you see the light filtering through the branches? It’s magical.
The larch is robust. It stands up to the cold, the wind, the drought. It stabilizes slopes, enriches soils, filters light. At its base, it grows: blueberries, rhododendrons, orchids. And in its branches? Grouse, rare butterflies, squirrels. Discreet but vital.
On the cultural side, it is also a precious resource. Noble wood, rot-proof, it has long been used to build chalets, tavaillons, sculpted balconies… At the time, the trunks were lowered in rafts on the Durance. Today, it is transformed into syrups, candies or souvenir objects.
In L’Argentière-la-Bessée, the association Les Amis de l’Arbre à l’Ouvrage is reviving this know-how: exhibitions, workshops, forest walks and old tools on the programme. And in Freissinières, you can admire a giant larch 1.80 m in diameter. Soon, a wood museum will be created.
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Where to walk under the most beautiful larch forests of the Écrins?
- Vallouise, Pelvoux, Freissinières, Dormillouse: trails in full light
- Guided nature outings: understanding regeneration and biodiversity
- Wood workshops and exhibitions in L’Argentière-la-Bessée
- In autumn: the forests are ablaze, it’s enchanting
And you, what are you waiting for to come and breathe under the larches of the Écrins