Introduction

A very long tour in the most impressive area of the Gorges du Verdon is described here. In addition, we mostly walk on little-used paths. We arrive at five unforgettable viewpoints that overlook the following sections: the Clue de Carajuan, the well-known Couloir Samson and the Escalès area. The chances of seeing griffon vultures are very high as we move around the release site.

The round includes several steep sections back up, including some in the blazing sun. The summer is certainly not recommended, unless you start very early and treat yourself to a very long siesta at the hottest time. Spring and especially autumn are really advisable, you should only avoid snow and frost because the paths become very slippery.

We recommend starting at the Pont de Carajuan bridge. In the summer months, a shuttle bus runs between Riez and Castellane. In the low season, you can easily park here. We also offer a variant from and to Trigance further south. From there you can also combine the tour with that from Trigance to Rancoumas. However, you have to add over an hour to the already long tour.

The facts

24,7 km total distance

7 h walk time

1010 m total elevation

orientation average

mark 80% of the total distance

40% easy trails

35% forest roads

10% hard-to-recognize trails

10% hard-surfaced city alleys

10% cross country

<5% hard-surfaced city roads

<5% moderate trails

<5% hard-surfaced quiet side streets

<5% hard-surfaced country road

dangers duration and sun

children no

useful picnic stuff

required hiking boots, hiking equipment, snack and water

GPS coordinates (WGS84) of start and end point 43.792159,6.432594

downloads

Public transport

Buses line 51 run between Nice and Grenoble twice a day in both directions with a stop in Castellane.

From mid-April to mid-October, a hiking bus runs around five times a day in both directions between Riez and Castellane. There is a bus stop at Camping de Carajuan, but you can also ask the driver to stop directly at the bridge. Information at Zou! (only french) and at the Castellane tourist office. The distance from Castellane to the starting point is around 20 kilometres, so it can also be managed by taxi.

Access by car

We are in the north-east of the central area of the Verdon region. The quickest way to get to Castellane from Nice and Grasse is to take the N85 road. From the north you come south on the same road from Sisteron and Digne-les-Bains. Coming from Castellane, head towards Moustiers-Sainte-Marie and stop when you reach the first true bottleneck.

The journey from Marseille is longer, you have to go through Gréoux-les-Bains and Moustiers and continue north of the gorge towards Castellane. You'll pass Point Sublime and you'll be at the trailhead as you come out of the last bottleneck in an open area.

Useful parking spaces

There are large parking bays along the road between the bridge and the Carajuan campsite. In the summer, these are fully parked during the day, but we have to start quite early anyway, so finding a space shouldn't be a problem.

Hints

The only drinking water points can be found in the last third of the tour in Rougon. At ruins before the Belvédère Rancoumas, you can find small but sweet wild apples in autumn. Inns can be found at Point Sublime and in Rougon, but all are only open during the summer season.

You can do the loop at any time as long as you don't see any ice or snow in the shaded area for the first few meters after the Pont de Carajaun and in the visible pits around the starting point.

The viewpoints are mostly natural and one should watch out for children, otherwise there are no particular dangers. Orientation is a bit more challenging in the pathless area of the Crête de Casseyère ridge and after Rancoumas. All other sections are well marked.

The whole region is a zone with a high risk of forest fires. In summer, but also in other seasons when it is very dry or by strong winds, access to the forest areas can be regulated. As a result, the roads may be closed to traffic and/or the trails prohibited to hikers. Current information: Access map to the forests of Alpes de Haute Provence (only french). The map shows the colours green, yellow, orange and red which correspond to levels of danger.

The pines on the sunny sides suffer from the pine processionary caterpillars. The fine stinging hairs are particularly dangerous for humans. These hairs fall from the nests in the trees, especially when it is windy, and whirl through the air without losing their irritating effectiveness. This is especially true in spring and well into early summer. One should never touch the caterpillars or the nests. The hairs cause severe itching like nettles, but the effect comes later and lasts for several days. The caterpillars can be deadly to dogs because their tongues can become swollen.

The sections

1. Pont de Carajuan bridge - Belvédère de Carajuan - Crête de Casseyère ridge: solitary climb that ends pathless through the karst.
2. Crest Crête de Casseyère - Encastel - Belvédère de Rancoumas: connecting path without significant gradient but with the highest point of the tour
3. Belvédère de Rancoumas - Pont du Tusset - Point Sublime: Long descent and up again vis-à-vis
4. Point Sublime - Rougon: another climb, this time in the sun
5. Rougon - Barre de l'Aigle - Pont de Carajuan: final climb, griffon vultures and final long descent

Section 1: Pont de Carajuan - Belvédère de Carajuan

➙ 3,2 km ... 45 min ➚ 425 m ➘ 20 m ↝ challenging

5% hard-surfaced country road, with marks

35% hard-to-recognize trails, without marks

60% cross country, few cairns

There is a picnic area south of the bridge on the lower left bank. Signs warn of the flood and prohibit bathing. It is seldom, however, that water is drained from the upper dams through the Verdon Gorge. As a rule, this does not take place in summer and on weekends. Unfortunately, the energy supplier EDF does not communicate the opening of the floodgates online.

We cross the pedestrian bridge and then immediately turn right, even if there is no arrow on the signpost pointing there.

This path is initially unmarked and very little used. It first follows the river, but soon climbs through a notch into the ridge and then leads steeply and progressively higher.

You really go into the forest to the right of the signpost in the picture! Markers follow later.

The beginning of the path can be overgrown, especially in autumn. There is also a way around it: from the bridge, take the bumpy forest road towards Trigance. After around 200 meters, take the forest road to the right and then right again at the other junctions. See also the dark red trail in the map at the top of this page.

Both route variants lead through a fairly dense forest to the natural Belvédère de Carajuan. It is a rock that protrudes a little into the gorge. The way there finally leads downhill. Griffon vultures can also be observed here, but hardly in the early morning due to the lack of thermals.

Below you can see the road between Castellane and La Palud and the Verdon flowing 270 meters below.

On the right you can see the Clue de Carajuan gorge section, the mountains of La Colle, Montagne de Robion, Le Beysse and Le Rouissas. Below you can also see the starting point with the bridge of Carajuan.

You leave the vantage point and return to the crossroads. You come up the path and you continue along the narrow path on the right in the direction of Crête de Cassayère. The photo shows the situation.

As the forest in the karst thins out, the trail gradually gets lost. Cairns now mark the route. However, you easily lose sight of them. The terrain is pitted and small bushes can hide an important cairn. There is no ideal way anyway. You have a good all-round view, but the karst doesn't forgive any stumbling either.

From the Belvédère you continue in the same direction for another 10 minutes.

When you come to the flatter plateau you change direction slightly to the left and go strictly west. If you're faced with a downhill slope, you swipe left and south. From here you can walk a little better on the limestone layers. There are no more signs or cairns, you stay on the ridge until you meet the marked path to Entreverges.

The photo shows the site in retrospect.

You can now also see the village of Rougon.

The white rock in the middle of the picture is the viewpoint Point Sublime.

The picture shows our route in the foreground, still in difficult terrain and without a path. In the back left is the Breis mountain. In front of this we reach the marked path and then turn right into the hilly area in front of the peaks.

Section 2: Casseyère - Encastel - Belvédère de Rancoumas

➙ 2,4 km ... 45 min ➚ 30 m ➘ 145 m ↝ average

40% easy trails, few marks

10% easy trails, cairns

10% forest roads, few marks

20% forest roads, without marks

20% hard-to-recognize trails, few cairns

We continue south along the bumpy ridge and as we descend slightly into a more densely wooded saddle we come across a yellow marked trail. We continue in the same direction, so still south and without turning left. We slowly come to the right under the ridge and continue comfortably and slightly uphill on a ledge.

Below the Sommet de Breis, the path turns in a wide arc to the right. The forest is a little denser on the shady slopes. If we finally go west, we come to a junction, but we keep going straight west (path on the right), now slightly down.

A little later you come to a forest road on which we continue downhill. We are now a few minutes on the red and white marked long-distance hiking trail GR49.

However, we remain on the downhill forest road when the GR49 path branches off to the right. The forest road now becomes steeper and there are no longer any markings.

After a left turn, we come to the upper area of former pastures, which are again taken over by the forest. Ruins lie between the trees, some trees are bearing wild apples. The forest road branches and we now go down to the right to avoid the overgrown terrain counterclockwise.

At the bottom you are standing on a flat meadow and in front of a flat rock ledge (in the west). A small cairn indicates that you have to climb the rock here. Then you come to a flat ridge of fine gravel, which leads us straight to the Belvédère de Rancoumas.

The viewpoint is slightly to the left, a natural wall forms a railing, you don't have to climb any more rocks. You can see perfectly down and over a long stretch south of the Couloir Samson.

Opposite is the massive rock face Barres de l'Escalès. Vultures circle over climbers and tightrope walkers.

You could enjoy this view for hours. But we have to realize that we are only at a third of the way through!

Section 3: Rancoumas - Pont du Tusset - Point Sublime

➙ 3,7 km ... 1 h 45 min ➚ 150 m ➘ 320 m ↝ average

25% hard-to-recognize trails, without marks

75% easy trails, with marks

From the vantage point, we go back along the flat ridge to the sages and from here to the north-west, i.e. to the left.

This section starts out fairly flat and easy, but the trail is barely visible. A small field is sometimes ploughed up, then the path has completely disappeared.

We stay about 50 meters to the right of the rock edge and when it rises again we turn right. At the same time we cross a flat valley and thus we come to its eastern slope.

The river bed is dry, but it can still be wet on these northern slopes. In the off-season and after rain, the downhill can be quite slippery.

In the higher forest the path is more visible again and it becomes steeper, now it descends progressively. It's quite cool here even in summer, and the beech forest has a northern European feel to it.

At about 900 meters above sea level, we rejoin the GR49 path which, for some inexplicable reason, bypasses the Rancoumas viewpoint. The forest becomes even darker and the path even steeper.

At times you can see a white and pyramid-shaped rock face on the left. This is the Point Sublime, to which we must climb later. However, our path turns progressively to the right.

Later we see down to the Verdon, which flows very leisurely here between the Clue de Carajuan and Couloir Samson.

Along the Verdon, the path is very wide and in front we see the Pont du Tusset bridge. Here we cross the stream again. The location of the bridge is a good example of old routes that no longer match the current road network.

Opposite, our path leads up with a constant incline.

In the past, the path was also used to cultivate small fields away from the settlements. The stone walls bear witness to this. With the ascent we come back into drier areas, pine trees now replace the deciduous trees.

The path becomes uncomfortably steep when we cross the road that leads down to Sentier Martel. The forest is getting lighter and lets more and more sun through. Usually you are here in the early afternoon and it can be quite hot.

After crossing the road, the trail remains steep. At the first crossroads we stay left without going onto the road. We come to a valley that is a little less steep and the path turns to the left. At the crossroads of the GR49 and GR4 paths, we turn right to Point Sublime and shortly afterwards turn left, leaving the road.

We're not at the viewpoint yet, but we're already looking back at the first part of the tour.

You go slightly downhill on a bare area with fine limestone gravel until you reach the lookout point. Here you can see directly into the water that flows through the Couloir Samson. The view is better if you descend before the viewpoint from the trail to the right and pass before under the viewpoint or right of it.

Section 4: Point Sublime - Rougon

➙ 1,7 km ... 30 min ➚ 210 m ➘ 5 m ↝ easy

20% easy trails, few marks

10% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, faulty marks

60% easy trails, few marks

10% moderate trails, without marks

The Point Sublime was completely renovated in 2021. A new wide path leads from the parking lot to the viewpoint. Anyway, we have to go up the road, to the Auberge du Point Sublime and turn here left first on the road towards Rougon. In the wall under the terrace is a tap with drinking water.

After the first left-hand bend in the road, our path branches off to the right before the next bend. A signpost marks this point. Here we come back to an old connecting path with a fairly constant gradient. There is now little shade and the fatigue of the legs is slowly becoming noticeable.

As soon as you are above the inn, you should turn around. Now you can see the Point Sublime and the view from there.

We walk along fields, only rarely do old trees offer some shade.

But the village with its rock is already in sight. We come up on a dirt road, at the top we turn left up to a parking lot.

In the picture you can see the rock and the viewing point on it.

At the parking lot we turn right and are then directly at the old wash house with several water basins that are connected to each other. This washhouse has existed since 1864, before that you had to descend much further to other springs. For us hikers, the toilet and drinking water tap on the left are probably more important at the moment.

But there is still more to come. From the wash house we go up to the village center.

We take the second narrow street on the right, this is after the triangular square above the wash house. Through the Rue Riganel, that's the first right, we come to the rock with the castle ruins.

At the last house, the path turns left and winds its way under the rock face up to the old walls and the viewpoint. We now have an ideal view into the Samson couloir.

Section 5: Rougon - Barre de l'Aigle - Carajuan

➙ 4,8 km ... 1 h 15 min ➚ 55 m ➘ 380 m ↝ easy

5% moderate trails, without marks

5% hard-surfaced city roads, few marks

30% forest roads, few marks

60% easy trails, few marks

We go back from the rock to the main road in the village and then turn right. This is how you get to the central square with the municipal office and we continue in the direction that is to the Barre de l'Aigle ridge and the Pont de Carajuan bridge.

After the last houses, the asphalt stops and we follow the chalk-white gravel road. It rises only slightly, but now you can feel every step in your legs. However, we are already in the last third of the tour.

In the foreground are meadows and behind them the rock face of the Clue de Carajuan towers. On the left you can see the Barre de l'Aigle ridge behind which we will then descend. On the right is the Crête de Casseyère wall, where we climbed at the beginning.

Looking back, one might think that Rougon is hidden behind its rock.

Further ahead we see a wooded hill and you can just make out a metal construction. This is the griffon vulture release site, which has been reintroduced here since 1999. You are not allowed to approach the area, the forest road leads us around to the north. But the vultures come here almost every day in the late afternoon. You can see them from the east side of the hill.

At the highest point of the forest road, it branches off. The left branch leads to the vulture release site, the area is fenced off several times. The road on the right continues across the slope. Our path leads right in between downhill to the first hairpin bends of the descent path.

However, it makes more sense to go to the edge of the rock because here you can see the griffon vultures up close.

You're about at the height of their flight trajectory here.

After admiring the flying skills of the vultures, we can go down the cliff edge or further back. In all cases, further down you will find the descent path. Endless hairpin bends lead us slowly downhill. You don't need to look for shortcuts, the prickly maquis prevents any detour. The path leads downhill with a constant gradient, one can console oneself with the fact that at least one protects one's knees.

Half an hour after the sight of the vultures, we look back down to the Pont de Carajuan. A few minutes later we are already at the starting point.

Appendix: Trigance - Belvédère de Carajuan

➙ 4,5 km ... 1 h ➚ 115 m ➘ 0 m ↝ average

20% hard-surfaced city alleys, few marks

55% forest roads, old marks

20% easy trails, old marks

There are two car parks in Trigance, one to the south and a second to the north. The description and the route distance refer to the start in the south. You climb up from the parking lot to the village and you always stay on this street without turning off and without going down. This is first the Rue du Four and then the Rue de l'Horloge. Via the latter we also leave the village to the north and thus pass above the northern parking lot. The asphalt road now leads downhill. You come to a bend where it goes up to the castle, but we go straight down. In the hairpin bend that follows, we take the marked path in the direction of Pont de Carajuan. The photo shows this last bend and the path behind it.

At the junction with the signpost Le Sablier, we take the forest road on the left, even if there is no arrow pointing in this direction. The gravel road later leads into the forest where it becomes more earthy, after rain it can be quite muddy there. In places you will find some yellow markings.

So you climb to the ruins of the Granges de Breis and further ahead, at 800 meters above sea level, there is another fork. The forest road leads downhill to the right, but we continue straight ahead in the original direction. A small cairn marks the spot. The path is now narrower and much less frequented. It takes us straight to the Belvédère de Carajuan viewpoint, which is part of section 1 of the main route.

Appendix: Pont de Carajuan - Trigance

➙ 4,5 km ... 1 h ➚ 145 m ➘ 20 m ↝ easy

80% forest roads, few marks

20% hard-surfaced city alleys, few marks

South of the Pont de Carajuan bridge, we now turn left, i.e. to Trigance and quite strictly to the south. The forest road is initially quite coarse gravel, but later it is easier to walk on. It rises steadily towards the Trigance. Finally you come back to the asphalt road, which takes you straight ahead to the village.

In the photo you can also see a path to the bottom left, it leads to the old stone bridge Pont de Sautet. If you still have time, daylight and enough energy, you can make this detour to the Jabron stream. After that, however, you have to climb the 40 metres up to the forest road again.

Sources and additional information

A good topographical hiking map is a better guide: this tour is on the IGN "Gorges du Verdon, Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, Lac de Sainte-Croix" map, scale 1:25000, 3442OT.

If you don't want to bother with a paper map, you can also use mapping apps on your cell phone. On the one hand, it is the Géoportail app from the official map service IGN. However, it requires access to the data network and this is sometimes difficult in canyons or remote locations.

Alternatively, you can use apps that store data directly on the device. They're generally not free, but they don't cost much. We mainly use OSMAnd, here it is possible to add contour lines, relief shading, markings and others. To store this data on your phone you need a lot of space.

Of course, one needs access to satellites for the GPS signal with any app. In some canyons this is not the case. Therefore, do not rely on the position shown, but read the map on your phone as you would read it on paper. Most apps are available for Android and iPhone. The applications usually allow us to record the route travelled and also view the GPS files offered for each of our hikes.

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