From La Garde-Adhémar, explore the Val des Nymphes. You'll see stone grape crushers: in the 19th century, they were considered sacrificial stones for Druid cults.
Description
Take the Chemin des Rochettes to the right, below the calvary, and stay on this carriage road, first on a balcony overlooking the Rhône valley, then heading east. You'll come to Les Rouvières (see IGN map), with the calvary on your left. The restored mas provençal "La Rouvière" offers bed and breakfast. Continue along the carriage road for approx. 800 m, leaving a number of footpaths on your left. At an area used as a motocross track, leave the main road and turn right onto a path flanked by telephone poles. Turn left after approx. 150 m. Numerous paths to the right and left, follow the signs. Reach a small tarmac road at the 162 m mark (see IGN map). Marker: signpost marked Romany.
(Short alternative: turn right or take the path that climbs to the south-east and join the Val des Nymphes parking lot).
Alternatively:
Take the small tarmac road heading north (left), pass the Centre Aéré and continue on the gravel path for approx. 800 m. At the fork, turn right and continue north. You will pass over a tapped spring with a small pool. Continue on the path around the Chabrelet plateau (see IGN map). Leave a forest track which turns right at the 210 m mark (see IGN map). The track heads south-east then south to reach the D 472 road. Cross the road. At the "Bella Cortis" sign, take the left-hand path heading south to the signpost marked BORIAS. The marker is 117 m (see IGN map). Take the path to
right, passing the signpost marked Val des Nymphes sud, before reaching the parking lot above the Val des Nymphes site. At the Val des Nymphes signpost, turn left onto the D 472, and pause to admire the façade of the chapel and the spring that has been tapped and venerated since antiquity. Go back up to the road, and on the other side see three lapidary vats (grape crushers whose origins could date from the Roman Empire to the early Middle Ages). On the D 472, pass a large building (a former silk spinning mill, now partly converted into an art gallery) and after 400 m, take a footpath rising to the right. Leaving 2 footpaths to your left, continue straight on northwards until you reach a wider path (177 m on the IGN map). Turn left on this track, heading west and back to the village. Bypass the Les Buissières housing estate and turn right onto a
path that joins the ridge path. You will come to the "château d'eau" (reservoir, 217 m side point, see IGN map) and continue on the partly tarmacked carriageway back to the village parking lot.
Spoken languages
- French
Labels and ranking
- Open air
Activities
- Pedestrian sports
- Hiking itinerary
Opening
Visit
Individual tour
- Average Duration of the individual tour: 225 minutes
Rate
Amenities and Services
- Pets welcome
- Car park