Park in the small square by the church in Pradelles-en-Val, where there are four to five parking spaces available.
There are no signposts along the entire route
(Outward/Return) Head back down to the D3 via Rue du Château. Cross the road with care and continue straight on along a wide, partly tarmac-surfaced path lined with plane trees. Continue to the cemetery.
(1) Head straight on along the path that winds its way through the broom and vineyards. Ignore the turn-offs to the left and right. The slope gradually becomes steeper and then levels out as the path runs alongside a vineyard on the left, curving slightly to the right.
(2) Look out for the path—half grass, half stones—which starts on the right at the beginning of a hedge, and do not continue alongside the vineyard (take care at this junction, as it is not obvious in the absence of signposting).
The path soon becomes much narrower. Further on, it passes through a section obstructed by overhanging shrub branches, then turns sharply left at a 90° angle. The walk along the hillside offers lovely views of the village of Pradelles-en-Val and the vineyards that carpet the valley. You’ll reach a Y-junction marked by the ruins of a stone hut and an old, rusty sign whose inscription has almost completely faded.
(3) Turn left onto a narrower path that begins the ascent to Cabano Naouto, through a landscape of flowering bushes and dead, gnarled shrubs, bleached by the elements. Enjoy the views to the left and right as you walk along the cliff edge, pass a solitary pine tree marking the highest point of the ridge, then turn right at a right angle. You will then begin a gentle descent where the path is lost in places. Keep heading south-south-west, aiming for a solitary tree 3 to 4 metres high, which is easily spot.
Ignore a narrow path branching off to the left that does not appear on the IGN map and carry on straight ahead (south), passing just to the right of the tree in question. Follow the track, which is barely visible at first but becomes clearer about fifty metres further on, until it joins a wide grassy path.
(4) Turn left and carry on straight ahead until you reach a vast, flat, grassy area where you’ll cross another wide path coming from the right. Carry on straight ahead for about 30 metres, skirting a cultivated field on your right-hand side, until you reach the start of a slight uphill bend to the right.
(5) Turn left to follow a path with multiple tracks for the first hundred metres, which then becomes clearer. Walk alongside the Mourel des Garouilles, a series of small peaks on your right. Pass in front of a wooden hunters’ hut with a corrugated iron roof and begin the descent leading to the D18.
(6) Cross the road (take care) and turn right to walk alongside it. Cross a small bridge and, about twenty metres further on, turn left onto a wide stony path. Turn immediately right at the Fork in the road, ignore a path branching off to the left, then pass a building on your left which serves, amongst other things, as a hay store. Keep left at the next Fork in the road.
(7) At the right-hand bend that follows, do not miss the start of this path leading uphill to the left (marked by a single small stone when I passed through), as it is very tempting to continue to the right on the wide path you have been following up to this point.
The route takes you through a landscape of heath. Stay on this wide, stony path, which alternates between gentle ascents and short descents, ignoring all the tracks – whether wide or narrow – on either side. A few vineyards on the right add a pleasant touch to the landscape before you reach a partially tarmacked road.
(8) Turn left, ignoring a small road on the right (a sign for Château de Roquenegade was lying on the ground when I passed by) and carry on straight ahead until you reach a T-junction.
(9) Ignore the tracks on the left and head straight on along the road, using either the grassy verges or the paths running alongside the vineyards if you wish to avoid the tarmac. Carry on to the entrance to the village.
At the point where the road turns left to join the D18, near a shed, take the grassy path on the right which starts at the foot of the concrete electricity pylon. You’ll reach a road 100 metres further on.
Turn left, then immediately right to return to the church and the starting point (S/E).
