Sainte-Croix Chapel in Auriol

de fr

This short walk on the heights of Auriol was discovered by chance while trying to get as close as possible to the chapel, which stands out immaculately against the blue sky. It's a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon with the family, climbing just 37 metres. From the top, there is a remarkable view of the village and the entire surrounding area, from the northern slopes of the Sainte-Baume mountain range to the east to the Étoile mountain range to the west.

Details

n°112444
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 0.79 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 0h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 217 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 217 ft
  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,201 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 984 ft
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Photos

Sainte-Croix Chapel, Auriol
Landscape
Sainte-Croix Chapel
Auriol

Description of the walk

In the village of Auriol, leave the village via the north, taking Rue Cluée (D45B), which leads towards Avenue de la Sainte-Baume (D45A) in the village of La Bouilladisse, via the St-Barthélémy district.
Follow this small road up, then take the narrow, winding road until you reach the heart of the pine forest.
At the first junction, take the road on the right, Chemin de la Source de Vincennes, signposted towards Chemin de la Chapelle.
Drive for 500m.
Park in a small dirt car park (fire hydrant) under the trees, on the left as you come from Auriol.

(S) Cross the small road known as "de la Source de Vincennes" and take the path blocked by a chain.
This path climbs gently through the oak and pine woods. Stay on the path, taking care not to stray onto the side tracks leading to the few houses and fields. After about 20 minutes, the path narrows into a track and you reach the chapel after a short, very stony climb, lined with wayside shrines from an old Way of the Cross.

The exterior of the chapel has been beautifully restored since April 2015. A huge wooden cross explains the chapel’s name. A 360° panorama despite the modest altitude. An orientation table helps you identify all the notable natural landmarks: Le Garlaban, the Pic de Bertagne, Roque Fourcade, the Signal des Béguines, the Infernets and Coutronne ravines,

(1) The return journey follows the same route in the opposite direction back to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 984 ft
  2. 1 : mi 0.39 - alt. 1,201 ft - Chapelle Sainte-Croix
  3. S/E : mi 0.79 - alt. 984 ft

Notes

Take some water with you; the sun is always very strong in this region...
Simple trainers or walking shoes are sufficient.
There is no shelter in case of bad weather, except for the 50 cm of the chapel porch in front of the gate.

Please note that during the summer, by prefectural decree, access to the mountains is restricted from 1 July to the second Saturday in September and may be prohibited depending on the weather. There may therefore be traffic restrictions, both for cars on the road to the car park and on the path leading to the chapel.

Worth a visit

During the walk
Depending on the date: a tour of the chapel interior
History of the chapel
In the municipal archives, within the minutes of the municipal council meetings, there is a document from 1554 mentioning the sale of four loads of wheat for the construction of the said chapel.
This does not mean that it was built that year, but that it was on the agenda.

Finally, another document dated 23 April 1559 mentions the completion of the chapel.
Mathieu Blanc, Barnabé Barthélémy, Guillaume Grassin and Antoine Gautier were appointed administrators of the “Fabrique Sainte Croix”.
They were laymen and were to be appointed “priors of Sainte Croix”, a position conferred annually during the municipal elections.
Source: http://suzanne.francoise.free.fr/
In the two oratories standing in front of the chapel (the only ones on the Way of the Cross still in good condition), two paintings by Mady Jond are enshrined.
Source: http://www.ladestrousse.fr/

Don’t forget to admire all the flowers and various plant species you come across throughout the walk.

Alternatives to this route
There are several routes to climb up to the chapel from Auriol or La Destrousse:
- walk up the country lane described at the start of the walk (a very narrow, quiet road with plenty of places for pedestrians to take shelter, after parking in the village centre. 4km and 200m of elevation gain more than this route (i.e. 1 to 1½ hours longer).
- Walk up via the Ste-Croix district and the Ste-Croix 2 housing estate (heading towards the drinking water reservoir). 1.7km with a total elevation gain of 160m, taking about half an hour. Less picturesque than this route, as it passes through residential areas.
- Walk up from La Destrousse via the D45C. 2.6 km with a total elevation gain of 120 m, taking about half an hour. Less picturesque than this route, as it is on a smaller, busier road.

Nearby

The church of Auriol with its Republican pediment.
Les Encavaux: the ravines and rivers of Les Infernets, La Coutronne and Les Encavaux. The caves.
The ruins of the medieval castle of Auriol
The village of Auriol and its heritage.
The Garlaban
La Sainte-Baume

Reviews and comments

4.3 / 5
Based on 14 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
3.9 / 5
MCTOUL
MCTOUL

Thank you, Noémie!

Enjoy your hikes.
I have quite a few others, mostly around Toulon, but also in the Hautes-Pyrénées where I now live!
https://www.visorando.com/page-mctoul/

Kind regards

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Noémie83
Noémie83

Indeed, but it doesn't look like that from where you're standing, because I believe it's a firebreak road.
I hope that answers your question.

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MCTOUL
MCTOUL

Noémie,
My pleasure!🤗

Let me clarify my question:
When you open the theoretical route of my hike, zooming in to the maximum in map mode, you see this

And when I zoom in on your actual route, I see this

So, you have "cut across" plot 00079.
But perhaps on the ground, Chemin de la Chapelle continues without offering any other solution.

What do you think?

Kind regards

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Noémie83
Noémie83
• Edited:

Hello,
I didn't come across any plots of land, I just followed the path that gradually climbs up to the chapel.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you require any further information!
I think it's great that you're tracking the routes, and I'm delighted to be able to contribute in some way.

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MCTOUL
MCTOUL

Hello Noemie83,
Thank you for your feedback!

Quick question: you cross plot 00079 (without going around it).
Is the path blocked to go around it?
Kind regards

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Noémie83
Noémie83
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant and enjoyable hike. Lovely view from the chapel.

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sdurand
sdurand

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : May 15, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Short walk suitable for children. Lovely view from the chapel.

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Mireille Maïre
Mireille Maïre

Overall rating : 2.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 18, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Very busy route : No

I was disappointed with this route, not very interesting, lots of tarmac.

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cissou13
cissou13
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 26, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely little afternoon stroll. We also set off from the centre of Auriol and returned via the hills above Auriol.

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LaMichelle
LaMichelle

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 30, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very short but pleasant walk. We extended it by starting from Auriol (following the road as suggested). But we turned it into a circular one by coming back down the other side (when you come down from the chapel, instead of turning left at the crossroads, you turn right), which leads directly back to Auriol! So it's a short 2 to 2.5-hour hike with a beautiful view of the surrounding hills and the village. The chapel, up close, is rather ugly. That's what attracted us, and since it was a rainy day, it made for a nice little outing. We didn't meet many people, just one person coming from La Destrousse and two people coming from Auriol in the other direction.

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picoleto83
picoleto83
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 01, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Nice little walk

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jojocheche
jojocheche

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 14, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A lovely little hike that is fairly easy despite the stony uphill path at the end. Superb views of Auriol and the neighbouring villages.

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Freeflyer
Freeflyer

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 06, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very good for an easy family walk for children. Is there a starting point that allows you to extend the walk?

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begru
begru

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 04, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Thank you for this lovely Sunday morning walk through such amazing biodiversity – with ripe blackberries as an appetiser! However, it was difficult to find the right start to the little road in Auriol; unfortunately, we couldn't find the link mentioned by gazok54 in February 2016.

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JLC13
JLC13

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 11, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A nice little stroll to aid digestion. Judging by the number of walkers, we weren't the only ones wanting to walk it off.
Magnificent views, despite the uncertain weather. We even got a brief ray of sunshine.

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