The Gleysette circular path

Park near the hiking information board, located in the Ramiers car park

(S/E) At the Lacroix-Falgarde hiking information board, turn right to follow the banks of the Ariège and reach a bend; at the end of this path, turn left.

(1) Cross Rue des Pyrénées. Take the street opposite, then, further on, Chemin Carriérette, and continue until you reach a T-junction.

(2) Turn left into the housing estate. Pass a road on your left and, at the next junction, turn right to reach another crossroads with a viewpoint on the left: the old mill, the hamlet and the Gleysette chapel.

(3) At this junction, continue to the right. Pass to the left of a house and reach the T-junction.

(4) Turn left. At the next junction, continue straight on to reach the Le Cossignol stream and cross it. Caution: fording point.

(5) Cross very carefully – sections on the D24 are dangerous – and continue straight on towards the Gleysette chapel. At the chapel, turn left onto the D24e to join the D24. Then turn right onto the D24.

(6) At this junction, continue straight on and take the Chemin de Ladevan. Continue straight on until you reach a signpost near a bridge and cross the Cossignol again.
You will then reach another signpost, just before the Ariège. Turn left onto Chemin de Bertherole to reach the Ramiers car park (S/E).

• Take care at junctions with roads
• Recommended equipment: footwear suitable for walking in all seasons, water bottle and hat
• Fording: avoid in wet weather and during high water
• Dangerous junctions with the D24 and D4 roads
• Water points: La Gleysette cemetery and Ramiers de Lacroix-Falgarde

• Panoramic view of the Cossignol valley and the Gleysette chapel.

• La Gleysette Chapel (12th century): The village’s first church was Sainte-Christine, likely built in the 10th century. In the 12th century, a second church dedicated to Notre-Dame du Ciel was built in Falgarde. Both were destroyed during the Wars of Religion. Closed in 1802 and threatened with demolition from 1810 onwards, the church was partially demolished in 1830. Its materials were used to extend the church at Lacroix. In Falgarde, the work completed in 1835 left a small chapel roughly corresponding to the polygonal chancel of the old church. Known by the Languedoc name of Gleysette or Gleysette ‘little church’, it served as a funeral chapel, with the cemetery situated right next to it.

• Lacroix-Falgarde Castle (16th–17th centuries): François Delpuech, a member of the Capitoul, lived in Toulouse and traded notably with the Indies. Born into a prominent family, he made his fortune in the pastel trade. In 1569, he purchased the seigneury of Lacroix-Falgarde together with the Castelviel family. In 1574, he decided to build a new château. The Castelviel was gradually demolished and its materials reused. This château is listed as a historic monument, particularly for its remarkable internal staircase and the fireplace room.