What number should I call after a mountain accident?

112, the European emergency number, reachable from any phone. You can also dial 15 (medical emergencies) or 18 (fire brigade).

Do I need an avalanche transceiver for snowshoeing?

On marked and groomed routes, generally not. As soon as you leave secured routes, the transceiver, shovel and probe trio is essential, as is checking the avalanche bulletin.

Figure making their way up a snowy slope

PRACTICAL GUIDE

Mountain safety

Q: Can I bivouac in the Écrins National Park?

Yes, under conditions: pitch after 7pm, leave before 9am, one night only in the same place, more than an hour's walk from roads, car parks and the core boundaries. Camping is prohibited.

Weather, storms, guiding: the reflexes to adopt before every outing.

Last updated: 19 October 2026

The Hautes-Alpes mountains are generous, but they require preparation. The advice below draws on guidance from the gendarmes of the Briançon high-mountain gendarmerie unit (PGHM), Météo-France and the Écrins National Park. It does not replace a qualified professional, whom we recommend for any activity you have not mastered.

Emergency numbers

112: European emergency number, reachable from any phone.
15: medical emergencies (SAMU). 18: fire brigade. 17: police and gendarmerie.

In the mountains, rescues in the département are carried out by the Briançon PGHM, in rotation with the CRS police mountain units. Before setting off, note your route and tell someone when you expect to be back.

Before you go

Check Météo-France's mountain forecast the day before and on the morning itself.
Choose a route suited to the whole group: distance, ascent, ground conditions, weather.
Keep a margin: be ready to turn back, and assess your ability to get down before climbing higher.
Use professionals to discover an activity: high-mountain guides, mountain leaders, instructors. The département's guides' offices are listed in our Directory.

Summer: hiking, mountaineering and huts

In high summer, storms often break in the afternoon: set off early. Book huts: it is often mandatory when they are wardened. Beyond the trails, glaciers require specific equipment and skills: access to the Refuge des Écrins, for example, crosses the Glacier Blanc and requires crampons, harness and rope.

Also check access conditions. Since the floods of 27 and 28 August 2026, the road from Ailefroide to the Pré de Madame Carle has been cut indefinitely, and the Glacier Blanc and Écrins huts are reached by modified routes: contact the wardens before setting off. In the Champoléon valley, the left-bank track to the Refuge de Pré la Chaumette has been impassable since rockfalls: use the right-bank path.

Winter: snow and avalanches

Check Météo-France's avalanche risk bulletin (BRA) every day. It rates the risk from 1 to 5, by massif and slope aspect.
Off marked runs, carry the safety trio: avalanche transceiver, shovel and probe, and know how to use them. An airbag pack is a useful addition.
Watch for warning signs: recent avalanche debris, muffled "whumpf" sounds under your skis, a sign of a weak snowpack.
Wear a helmet, on the slopes as when touring, and follow the skier's code of conduct.

To try ski touring, off-piste or snowshoeing, go with a guide, mountain leader or instructor.

In the Écrins National Park

The core of the National Park has its own rules. Prohibited there are: dogs, even on a lead; fires; picking and collecting (plants, animals, minerals); drones; mountain biking, except where signposted; camping.

Bivouacking is still allowed under an order of 16 June 2026: pitch after 7pm and strike before 9am, one night only in the same place, more than an hour's walk from the boundaries of the core and from roads and car parks, with a small tent you cannot stand up in. Only gas stoves are allowed for cooking.

On the water: rafting, canyoning and the lake

Choose a base run by qualified professionals. Being able to swim is generally required, and each activity has a minimum age (often 6 to 8 for rafting, older for canoe-raft or air-boat). Follow the instructor's instructions and keep the buoyancy aid and helmet on for the whole run.