Circular route starting from Vaison via Benivay and Maneyrole

Start from the Villasse car park in the centre of Vaison-la-Romaine.

(S/E) Pass the Post Office on your left and follow Rue Jean Jaurès to the end, then turn left onto Quai Paul Gontard and head towards the Roman Bridge.

(1) Do not cross the bridge, but walk alongside the River Ouvèze, keeping it on your right. Continue to the traffic lights.

(2) Head up the main road to the left for a few hundred metres until you reach the start of Rue des Planchettes on your right.

(3) Follow this road, then continue straight on along the Chemin de Roche Double.

(4) At the junction with the road running at right angles, turn left onto Combe Frigaoule and carry on until you reach the Route de Vaison-la-Romaine (D 71).

(5) Turn right and head towards Saint-Romain-en-Viennois.

(6) At the entrance to the village, turn right, pass the local school and, a little further on, take Chemin d’Entrechaux on the right. Continue along this road for almost 2 km until you reach the D 205.

(7) Take a sharp left and head uphill to Faucon.

(8) Cross the D 46 and take the D 205 opposite, towards Mérindol-les-Oliviers. Continue along Avenue de Verdun and then on the D 205.

(9) Drive through Mérindol-les-Oliviers, continue on the D 530 and you’ll soon reach a multi-way junction at a place called La Gloriette.

(10) Turn right onto the D 147 and follow the road to Propiac.

(11) Propiac Pass. Carry on to the village.

(12) On leaving the village, just before a bridge, turn left onto the D 347 towards Benivay. Pass through the village and, at the bridge, carry on straight ahead towards Col de Vote. Pass two farm buildings on your left and you’ll soon reach a three-way junction by a small bridge.

(13) As the road climbs, turn left onto Chemin de Velouze. Pass the cemetery on your right, then ignore a turn-off to the right and continue uphill. After four hairpin bends, the road levels out and continues along the hillside. Pass two houses on the left-hand side of the road (Ferme de Font Jaisse) and you’ll soon come to a forest track on the right signposted ‘La Bergerie’,

(14) Take a hairpin bend to the right, then immediately to the left, and follow this forest track. After a long climb, you’ll reach a fork on a small plateau with orchards (Saint-Sosier).

(15) Turn left and begin the descent towards the valley at Pas de Maneyrole. The slope is very steep, so take care. Continue along this wide, stony forest track until you reach a fork about a hundred metres further on.

(16) Follow the grassy track to the right and head down until you rejoin the forest road. Follow it to the right for about fifty metres until you reach the next fork.

(17) Take a sharp left and head downhill, staying on the Route de la Forêt, then rejoin the Chemin de Piégon. Take this wide track, which generally follows the ridge through the forest. The gradient is gentle. You’ll come to a Fork in the road just after a house on the left.

(18) Carry on straight ahead, quickly passing another house, then take a sharp left-hand bend. Carry on straight ahead until you reach a three-way junction with a wayside shrine.

(19) Turn slightly left, pass in front of Le Clot and carry on along the tarmac road.

(20) At the multi-way junction, keep right onto the small road, Chemin Sainte-Jalle, and head towards Puymeras.

(21) At the crossroads, turn right, continue for about 150 metres and, at the junction by the house with a semi-circular wall, turn left just before it.

(22) At the roundabout, take the second exit (D 71), towards Saint-Romain-de-Viennois and Vaison-la-Romaine. In Saint-Romain-de-Viennois, drive through the village centre until you reach the traffic lights.

(6) Carry on straight ahead along the road you took at the start, but in the opposite direction.

(5) Turn left, towards Saint-Marcellin-lès-Vaison.

(4) Turn right onto Chemin de Roche Double.

(3) Join the main road on the left and follow it for 300 metres.

(2) Turn left at the traffic lights towards the Roman Bridge and you’ll see the River Ouvèze on your left.

(1) When you reach the Pont Romain, continue to the right along the main shopping street and, at the end of the street, you’ll find the Parking de la Villasse (S/E).