Dauphine Alps

Near the west end of the Alps in France lies the Dauphiné and the Ecrins National Park. This region, epitomized by the 12,800 foot La Meije, the last major summit of the Alps to be climbed, was for centuries one of the poorest areas of the Alps, and it was one of the last to be developed for tourism.
French Alpes Du Dauphiné, western spur of the Cottian Alps (q.v.) in southeastern France, lying between the Arc and Isère river valleys (north) and the upper Durance River valley (south). Many peaks rise to more than 10,000 feet (3,050 m), with Barre des Écrins (13,459 feet [4,102 m]) the highest. The mountains include the Massif du Pelvoux (Massif des Écrins) and the Belledonne and Grandes Rousses ranges. They are separated from the Cottian Alps in the east by the Col du Galibier and the upper Durance valley; from the western Graian Alps (Vanoise) in the north-east by the river Arc; from the lower ranges Vercors Plateau and Chartreuse Mountains in the west by the rivers Drac and Isère. Many peaks rise to more than 10,000 feet (3,050 m), with Barre des Écrins (4,102 m) the highest.
Mountain ranges within the Dauphiné Alps include the Massif des Écrins (in the Parc national des Écrins) and Belledonne.