massif
A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...
in the
French Alps
The French Alps are the portions of the Alps mountain range that stand within France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions. While some of the ranges of the French Alps are entirely in France, others, such a ...
located in the departments of
Savoie
Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population o ...
,
Isère
Isère ( , ; ; , ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the southeastern French Regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère (river), Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.
and
Hautes-Alpes
Hautes-Alpes (; ; ) is a Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region of Southeastern France. It is located in the heart of the French Alps, after which it is named. Hautes-Alpes had a population ...
.
Oisans
L'Oisans () is a region in the French Alps, located in the départements of l'Isère and Hautes-Alpes, and corresponding to the drainage basin of the River Romanche and its tributaries (Eau d'Olle, Lignarre, Sarenne, Vénéon and Ferrand). Betw ...
covers part of the massif.
Geography
Location
Although often considered part of the
Grandes Rousses
The Grandes Rousses () are a massif in the French Alps located in the departments of Isère and Savoie. Oisans covers part of the massif.
Geography
Location
The massif is oriented north–south. The eastern slope, although it is sometimes c ...
massif, it is distinguished from it by the valley formed by the Arvan and Ferrand rivers to the west. To the south, separated by the
Romanche river
The Romanche () is a mountain river in southeastern France. It is a right tributary of the Drac, itself a tributary of the Isère. Its drainage basin is .Écrins massif, to the east the Cerces massif, to the northeast the
Arc valley
Arc may refer to:
Mathematics
* Arc (geometry), a segment of a differentiable curve
** Circular arc, a segment of a circle
* Arc (topology), a segment of a path
* Arc length, the distance between two points along a section of a curve
* Arc (pr ...
(
Maurienne
Maurienne (; ; ) is one of the provinces of Savoy, corresponding to the arrondissement of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne in France. It is also the original name of the capital of the province, now Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne.
Location
The Maurienne val ...
) and the
Vanoise massif
The Vanoise massif (, ) is a mountain range of the Graian Alps, located in the Western Alps. After the Mont Blanc Massif and the Écrins Massif it is the third-highest massif in France, reaching a height of 3,885 m at the summit of Grande Cass ...
, and finally to the northwest the Belledonne range.
The massif is deeply incised by the Arvan River at the level of the commune of
Albiez-Montrond
Albiez-Montrond is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.
Geography Climate
Albiez-Montrond has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification ''Dfb''). The average annual t ...
, which flows from south to north, emptying into the Arc river at
Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne
Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne (; or ''Sant-Jian-de-Môrièna''; ) is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Savoie Departments of France, department, in the regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (formerly Rhône-Alpes), in south ...