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Facing page (clockwise from top left): Alpine anemone (Pulsatilla alpina); St Bruno's lily (Paradisea liliastrum); poppies in Les Gauchoirs on Stage 10; the stemless carline thistle; the great yellow gentian (Gentiana lutea); alpenroses add a vibrant splash of colour to summer hillside.

On the Col du Lautaret at 2058m the University of Grenoble has a Jardin Alpin which has a good representation of local plants, but since this col is not included in the Tour of the Oisans it might be worth mentioning a few of the alpine flowers that may be seen along the way. In the early summer, or in higher regions where the snow is melting, the tassle-headed alpine snowbell, Soldanella alpina, is one of the first to exploit the damp meadows, and is closely followed by the spring anemone, Pulsatilla vernalis and its almost purple-flowering cousin P. montana. Various gentians are seen in summer, with the great yellow variety (Gentiana lutea) growing to a metre or more in height, its clusters of flowers arranged at intervals down the stem, appearing towards the end of summer.