The Dauphiné Alps are a group of mountain ranges in southeastern France, west of the main chain of the Alps. Mountain ranges within the Dauphiné Alps include the Massif des Écrins (in the Parc national des Écrins), Belledonne, the Taillefer range and the mountains of Matheysine.EtymologyThe Dauphiné is a former French province whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of :Isère, :Drôme, and :Hautes-Alpes.GeographyThey 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 Massif) 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.