Le Pavé, Mountain summit in Isère, France

Le Pavé is a 3,823 m summit in the Écrins massif, a topographic node where the long southern ridge meets the Meije arête coming from Pic Gaspard. Its 400 m south face, steep and dolomite-like, holds high-difficulty routes on good-quality gneiss. The west face drops over the upper Glacier des Étançons, the north face over the upper Glacier Supérieur du Lautaret, and the Glacier Supérieur des Cavales lies below the south face.

The first ascent was made on 19 July 1879 by William Auguste Coolidge with the guides Christian Almer senior and junior, via the west face. The south face, 400 m high and dolomitic in character, was climbed on 25 June 1944 by Gaston Rébuffat and Michel Chevalier; the route Voyage au pays de l'oxygène rare followed in 1997-1998. On 28 April 1933 the Polish climber Jerzy Golcz made the first winter ascent alone, surviving a 620-metre fall onto the Étançons glacier.

The south face, 400 m high and dolomite-like in its steepness, carries the Rébuffat route, opened on 25 June 1944 by Gaston Rébuffat and Michel Chevalier. In 1997-1998 Jean-Michel Cambon, Gilles Crespi, Alain Dupaquis, Hervé Guigliarelli, Greg Sauget and Eric Desrayaud added "Voyage au pays de l'oxygène rare". The rock is good-quality gneiss.

The climb requires alpine experience and proper gear for rock and snow conditions. Visitors should plan early starts and monitor weather closely, as conditions can change quickly at this elevation.

On 28 April 1933 the Polish climber Jerzy Golcz made the first winter ascent alone; a rock block gave way and he fell 620 metres onto the Glacier des Étançons and survived. The Col du Pavé (about 3535 m) below the summit is often used to cross from the Clot des Cavales valley to the Étançons valley.