Around the salt marshes of Peyriac-de-Mer

A pleasant little family hike around a restored salt marsh for everyone to enjoy and discover.

Details

146092
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 3.14 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 1h 40 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 223 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 210 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 194 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 0 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

Yellow markings throughout.

(1) Start at the end of the car park (information board). Take the boardwalk straight away, heading north-east, which takes you along the bottom of the lake.
Caution: no gates or guardrails; uneven planks.
Information boards are located along the route at points of interest. At the end, return to dry land to a customs officer’s hut currently being restored.

(2) Head off again east-southeast for a walk along the boardwalk across the salt marsh quays. Once on the other side, the boardwalk curves to the left around a small rise.

(3) At this point on the walk:
- either cut across to your right to climb to the top of the hill for a 360° view, then descend back to the edge of the salt marsh and continue south-south-west to La Passière (this is the option shown on the map).
- or continue along the edge of the pond on the main path to reach the edge of the Doul pond.
- or head to the edge of the salt marsh on your right; N.B. To protect wildlife, this third option is not available at certain times of the year.

(4) Turn left (east) onto the path that climbs towards Le Mour. The path is marked with wires and posts to prevent walkers from trampling the vegetation. Caution: from the signpost, the path climbs steeply. The path skirts the Mour on the left to avoid excessive erosion caused by both walkers and rainfall (repair works in progress), before finally veering right to the summit.
(5) Retrace your steps, then head down to the right along a path that winds through the vegetation towards the small marina and fishing harbour.

(6) Turn right (north-west) to return to La Passière.

(4) Turn left, passing between the saltworks (on the right) and Peyriac Pond (on the left). Then turn right to reach Peyriac along the roadside (which has been improved).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 3 ft - Start
  2. 1 : mi 0.24 - alt. 3 ft - House
  3. 2 : mi 0.55 - alt. 3 ft - Variations: hills, lake, salt marsh
  4. 3 : mi 1.09 - alt. 3 ft - La Passière
  5. 4 : mi 1.66 - alt. 194 ft - Pech du Mour
  6. 5 : mi 2.01 - alt. 3 ft - Port
  7. S/E : mi 3.14 - alt. 7 ft

Notes

Remember to bring water, a hat and sun cream depending on the time of year and the weather. The constant wind masks the sun’s effects!

No major difficulties, no special equipment required. Take care on the narrow sections of the paths on the rocky outcrops: they’re sharp!

Several possible alternatives:
- From point (3), you can follow the edge of the Doul pond to go all the way round it.
- From Pech du Mour, you can head back down towards the Étang du Doul.
- From the small harbour (6), you can reach the Étang du Doul via a track along the edge of the Étang de Bages/Sigean
- To extend the walk considerably, from the Étang du Doul you can take a marked path (yellow) which loops back towards Peyriac, climbing above the lake and skirting it at a wide arc.

Worth a visit

Customs officer’s hut (2): exhibition on the saltworks.

From the top of Pech du Mour (5): a 360° panorama offering views of the Peyriac saltworks and its surroundings on one side, and the entire coastline from Port-la-Nouvelle to Gruissan (Vieille-Nouvelle beach, Chalet beach) on the other, with the islands of La Planasse, L’Aute, Sainte-Lucie and Saint-Martin in the foreground.

Accommodation and dining options available in Peyriac.
More info:

The village is also well worth a visit.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 50 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
User 18890154

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 20, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A wonderful hike!! We were lucky to have warm weather for March, after all the rain; it was a bit windy, but that’s normal here. There weren’t many people around as it was a weekday and outside the school holidays. Just a word of advice: make sure you bring plenty of mosquito repellent!

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PMOURET
PMOURET

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 07, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A route taken on a sunny Sunday morning in December.
The start on the pontoons is truly unusual, set in surprising surroundings. We encountered several families out for a stroll along the route, such is the appeal of this site.
The 360-degree view from the top of Le Mour is splendid!
The walk takes about 50 minutes and ends in the village square with a quick coffee. The shopkeepers are lovely.
We highly recommend it for clearing your head.

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PMOURET
PMOURET

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 07, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A route taken on a sunny Sunday morning in December.
The start on the pontoons is truly unique, set in surprising surroundings. We encountered several families out for a stroll along the route, such is the appeal of this pleasant site.
The route takes about 50 minutes to complete and ends in the village square with a quick coffee. The shopkeepers are lovely.
We highly recommend it as a way to clear your head.

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josbaud
josbaud

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 07, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The route is beautiful, with a footbridge crossing the pond. With a bit of luck, you may see flamingos. Crossing the woods is very pleasant in warm weather. A very enjoyable family hike.

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Addelix
Addelix

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 30, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful hike, starting on a pontoon, then inland and finally between the two lagoons. We chose a windless, sunny day and it was magnificent. We had a little trouble finding our way between points 4 and 5 because the trail split, so we turned back twice before finding the trail again. The yellow markings are not very visible, so we used the app a lot to find our way.
DON'T FORGET YOUR INSECT REPELLENT. We did the hike at the end of April and were eaten alive. At times there were swarms of mosquitoes, but only when we were on the hilltops; there were few mosquitoes at the water's edge. Despite this, the hike is well worth doing because the landscape is beautiful.
The part on the water is busy, but each group kept a good distance from each other, so it wasn't really a problem.

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Patou63
Patou63

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 20, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely discovery. Best done early in the morning or, like us, at the end of September to avoid the summer crowds.

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VINCEVF67
VINCEVF67

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 28, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely short hike with beautiful scenery, unfortunately there weren't many birds that day

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nathaliem66
nathaliem66

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

beautiful, easy hike
great for birdwatchers
but not to be done when there is a tramontane wind or sea breeze!
no problems with signposting

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Phane2
Phane2

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike with lovely views on this sunny day. Be careful on one section where it is better to wear trousers. Don't forget to bring water and a good hat.
I'd like to do this again at another time of year.

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Véro81
Véro81

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 28, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Great hike. A feast for the eyes. Hike done after a rainy morning. So the ground was very sticky. And it was a windy, cold day. Despite everything, I really enjoyed it

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michelyog
michelyog

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 11, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

a really easy family hike with lots of options to extend the walk in all directions.

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ChristelleR
ChristelleR

A really nice, easy walk. Thank you for introducing us to this

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jpvls
jpvls

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A picturesque stroll to aid digestion

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Orfeo
Orfeo

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 20, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An essential loop to enjoy all the beautiful views of Peyriac, the salt marshes and the Doul lake.
Perfect at this time of year: we were almost alone and there were lots of flamingos close to the shore.
The route is generally easy to follow, but the yellow markings are almost non-existent and, despite using the app, we couldn't find the suggested path down from Le Mour (we took another one, which was unfortunately quite steep).

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larsen Detdl
larsen Detdl

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 08, 2022
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A departure around 12:30 p.m. is ideal for enjoying the footbridges (almost) without anyone else around. It's perfect for this spot, which offers great photo opportunities. The route is intuitive; climbing the 21-metre hill is (in my opinion) a must, as after just a few minutes you realise how vast the site is. The climb up Le Mour is along a lovely trail (hmm, the scents of the South, wild herbs). The 360° view from the summit (74 m) is worth the effort, especially when you're there alone. For the descent, we followed our instincts while staying on what appeared to be the main path (we put our smartphones away).
Highly recommended.
We followed the hike with the app and the IGN map in cache (so without mobile data), using only GPS location.
However, there were no wading birds on the salt flats in May, but there was a lot of bird chirping on Le Mour (identified using Birdnet)

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