Château du Diable and the Destel Gorges in Ollioules

This very challenging route takes the hiker to the site of the Château du Diable and its remarkable caves and the Destel gorges, with their astonishing giant's kettles or cauldrons.
Nice sections with chains or ropes.

Technical sheet

107276
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:

Caution, this route is Very difficult

This route requires a long and/or intense effort, either because of the difference in altitude or the distance involved, or both. In certain situations, there is also the possibility of technical and aerial sections.

  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 4.98 km
  • ◔
    Duration according to author: 2.5 hrs 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Very difficult

  • ⚐
    Return to departure point: Yes
  • ↗
    Vertical gain: + 375 m
  • ↘
    Vertical drop: - 377 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 372 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 67 m

Photos

Description of the walk

On leaving Ollioules (RN8), head in the direction of Sainte-Anne d'Evenos, through the Ollioules Gorges, for 1 km. Park at the kennel club (small car park) on your left.

(S) You have to cross the Reppe (the small river behind the parapet) and get to the other side of the river in order to start your walk. In the summer you won't have any difficulty in crossing it. In winter, the Reppe is higher, but still accessible. To help you, there is a route across the Reppe 25 km downstream which will enable you to cross over easily. On arriving on the other bank, you need to head to the left back up the Reppe for a hundred metres or so until you arrive at a lime kiln.
Pass by it, keeping it on the right. Leave towards the north and go alongside the Reppe for 500 m (small path) up to the start of the Destel. Turn right in the Destrel riverbed and climb up it.
To locate the path that goes uphill on the right (1), you need to be very vigilant because it's not very obvious. If you see scree (originally from the heights of the Château du Diable) falling down into the Reppe, it's too late - you have already gone past the path and need to retrace your steps. See the start of the path on the attached photo (18960).
The path then climbs very steeply in a mix of rock/scree slopes. There are no coloured waymarkers, but lots of cairns border the route. Halfway up the slope, with a bit of observation work, you can see a stone archway (sometimes called the "Arche d'Alliance" (Alliance Archway) or "Portique du Château du Diable" (Porch of the Château du Diable")), a magnificent natural construction above the void. See photos (18944 and 18950).
To the right of the archway, at the bottom of the huge rock face, you can see the entrances (porches) of the 5 cavities and, specifically, the 2 main ones close together, which are the only accessible ones. The lowest one has a large rock in its porch. See photos (18948 and 18951).
Stay on the contour level (2) and first of all head to the left towards the caves which you can see on the wall on the left (yellow in colour with vertical black streaks), these are the Monier caves. The path leads up to the lower one. Without too much difficulty, you will reach the higher one via a rocky ledge where you need to use your hands. See photos (18943 and 18945).
Resume the same path, (2) taking it to the left and heading towards the "stack" on the left of the Arche d'Alliance. Use a first and then a second knotted rope to cross the rocky ledge and reach the start of the top of the archway.
Cross the archway carefully and head towards the lower entrance of the cave. Another knotted rope will help you to cross another rocky ledge, before reaching the porch, then, inside, a flat area which forms the bulk of the cave's volume.
The hike in all of the caves leads, first of all, inside the 1st cave on the edge of the porch of its second entrance (the highest of the 2 main entrances seen from above), then climbing further inside, you will discover a stunning inner courtyard with flying buttresses reinforcing the rocky outcrop within which the cave (we just came through) is housed, along with several flat levels. At the back on the right-hand side, you will see the 3 levels of the Grottes d'Amour (the Caves of Love).
The hike takes up the trail again at the back of the inner courtyard on the left, following the red waymarkers.
At the end of a very steep path, you will reach a very narrow gap and a shaft equipped with 2 ropes which will take you up to the top of the rocky ledge. See photos (18953 and 18954).
Progress through the shaft is very difficult and is reserved for seasoned rock climbers.
On arriving at the summit, we soon join the GR®51 by following a series of cairns (there are no longer any coloured waymarkers).
Take the GR®51 (waymarking in Red/White) on the left.
At 370 m you will reach a crossroads (3) where the GR®51 takes a 90° turn to the right. However, don't take this turn, instead continue straight onwards for about a hundred metres.
A yellow waymarker and a small cairn indicate the direction to follow to the left, going downhill (4). See photo (18955).
The path is quite well signposted in yellow and with cairns or stones lying alongside the zigzag path. However, from time time, in the rockier sections, be careful not to lose the trail. Don't hesitate to go back on yourself if you no longer see any waymarkers for more than a minute.
A little before reaching the Destel riverbed, you will pass by the Fountain des Joncs, an old water point for livestock.
You then reach the Destel riverbed (5), which you follow down on the left, through its most amazing and fun sections. There are handrails and chains which help you to go over the biggest rocky ledges. The route goes through the giant's cauldrons over their potholes, for those filled in, and even through the bottoms of those that are empty.
The path then follows the Destel riverbed and joins the path heading to the Château du Diable(1).
Then, take the same path as the outward leg.

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 70 m - Club canin des Gorges d'Ollioules - Reppe (fleuve)
  2. 1 : km 0.77 - alt. 85 m - Gorges du Destel - Turn right on the outward journey
  3. 2 : km 1.33 - alt. 317 m - Grottes du Château du Diable
  4. 3 : km 2.31 - alt. 372 m - Crossroads GR51 Croupatier - Go straight on
  5. 4 : km 2.59 - alt. 343 m - Carrf GR51-Sentier Font des Joncs - Go left
  6. 5 : km 3.1 - alt. 155 m - Junction with the bed of the Destel - Turn left - Gorges du Destel
  7. S/E : km 4.98 - alt. 70 m - Club canin des Gorges d'Ollioules

Practical information

This hike is classified as "Very difficult" for two reasons:
- Firstly, the existence of "very steep passages"reserved for experienced hikers with climbing experience.
- Secondly, in many sections, you have to continue on when "finding the route is often hazardous on very steep slopes".

Knotted ropes are used at fixed positions for ascending the archway, the rocky ledge for reaching the lower porch of the caves of the Château du Diable and for inside the cave.
Ascending the shaft from the bottom of the caves must be done with belay equipment or at least 1 or 2 20cm straps for attaching on to the climbing pegs which can be used as additional grips. The 2 knotted ropes which are also on the fixed post are not sufficient.
"Note: If you want to avoid the shaft, you can either 1) leave the caves and take the steep path which climbs to the left, to the north (visible on the IGN map), crossing a rocky ledge with the help of a knotted rope at a fixed position, or 2) climb up another, easier, shaft outside on the right, to the south, which is also equipped with a knotted rope at a fixed position. Add 20 minutes to the hike time for these 2 alternatives".

Do not start the hike if it's raining, or even if it has rained recently (wet rocks make the Destel riverbed almost inaccessible because it becomes dangerous).
The time indicated includes several breaks for taking photos and detours via all the caves described, but also going down several sections in "running" mode.

There are no water points on this route, therefore you need to take a large quantity of water.
Hiking shoes are obligatory.
All the caves mentioned could act as shelter in the case of severe weather.

Please, as any respectable hiker, do not leave any waste either in the caves or on the paths. Or you may as well forget about this hike and this website! Yet again, I've returned with pockets full of rubbish!

In the nearby area

The cavities mentioned are described perfectly on the technical website of the Var Departmental Caving Committee (Comité Départemental de Spéléologie du Var (CDSV)): http://www.fichiertopo.fr/. I encourage you to look at the information sheets on the cavities before going on the hike - it is for this reason that they are not described here.

Close by:
The villages of Evenos, Ollioules, the heritage site of Courtine, the Oppidum, the Ollioules Gorges, Châteauvallon, etc.

 Always stay careful and alert while following a route. Visorando and the author of this walk cannot be held responsible in the event of an accident during this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 35 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.2 / 5
Clarity of route map
4.2 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
Cryp
Cryp

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of walk : May 11, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Clarity of route map : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Superb itinerary! Thank you MCTOUL for suggesting it!
On the other hand, I've got one little problem with the description of the route, as we had to do it twice (and again).
When you pass the V-shaped tree in Destel, you have to take the yellow route 5 m after passing it. Leave it just as it reaches an area of scree where a slightly downhill path leads off to the left towards the grotto of the Natural Theatre, clearly visible in the distance. This path leads around a spur. It is only after rounding this spur that the Arche can be seen. It is impossible to see it from the yellow path. This detail is missing from the description, but it is essential if you are to follow the route through the caves correctly.
The exit chimney is worth at least 5c on free climbing and is rather awkward (I did everything on free climbing for the estimate). In any case, it's harder than the Kapadokya route I climbed the day before in the Destel gorges (5b max). The reference to 4a in the practical information is therefore a joke. There are still a few straps and a rope that can be used as aid points, but even with that it's no picnic.
We didn't find any cairns or yellow markers to guide us back down to the Fontaine des Joncs. But there are many paths down to Destel, some of which lead to abseils. So we continued on our way, following the waymarked path to the Destel (far upstream) to descend the riverbed. It's great fun (two short abseils to pass two pools) until you reach the resolutely canyoning area. A blue path climbs up the left bank and then descends again shortly afterwards to bypass the obstacle (a few chains). You then reach the Dauphin section and all that remains is to descend along the Destel to its exit. This clearly lengthens the exit, but as long as you already have a rope, you won't regret this mistake.

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Cyril Guigues
Cyril Guigues

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : May 12, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Very nice, very wild hike
The only difficulty for me was finding the alternative route after the cave, as the chimney is at the bottom of the cliff opposite the cave.

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pp34
pp34

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Feb 05, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

A very beautiful route.
It's best to have some climbing experience and safety equipment.

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Yodada
Yodada

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Nov 02, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Super discovery, thank you very much!
hike done yesterday with climbing gear (rope, harness, helmet, 7 quickdraws), time 3h30 including lunch break. Please note that, contrary to the guidebook, the chimney is not (any more) equipped with 2 ropes. There's just an old piece of knotted webbing hanging down that helps with the second "hard" move. You absolutely must be insured and equipped. The climbing isn't easy, there's little protection and you use everything you can! (pads, quickdraws, etc).
Have a good trip!

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Chfu
Chfu

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 20, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

We have done only part of the walk since it was raining in the morning. We went from Ollioules to Grotte Theatre(Minion) and scrambled up to Chateau de Diables and Grotte d Amour. Was great, but could be very for nonclimber. While arch is mentally hard but easy, chateau de diables requires also some climbing techniques and experience.
On the way back we hiked up above(jaune after Grotte Beate du Destel) Ollioule to enjoy views.
Very rewarding

Giel83
Giel83

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : May 30, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

A very fine sporting route. The exit from the caves is very difficult, even for a climber. Patinated rock and the same holds. The panorama over the plateau is sumptuous.

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Caactuus83
Caactuus83

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of walk : Jan 15, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Clarity of route map : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Very nice hike!
We just got lost at one point and it's not very well signposted. Just as we reached the first chimney at the level of the caves, there was mention of another path along the cave, but this one descended towards the cliff opposite... it's a shame. We had to wait for someone to tell us, otherwise we'd have had to turn back because we couldn't find this famous path. Otherwise it's a very nice walk which is quite difficult but well worth it.

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MCTOUL
MCTOUL

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grandin
grandin ★
MCTOUL
MCTOUL

Hi GA, it would be better to post your request on the visorando forum, to make sure it's read by an administrator.
You're now on the message board for exchanges about the Château du Diable hike.
Best regards

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GA01
GA01

Hello
Well done for what you do, and especially for the excellent reliability and wide range of routes you offer!
I have one small problem with your site: if I find a route I like in your suggestions by email, I log on to retrieve the .gpx track and ... I lose the route! When I do a keyword search for the route on your site, most of the time I can't find it....It's safer to search on Google to find a route! Can you make it so that, after logging in, we find the page of the site that was previously opened or can you improve your internal search engine?
GA

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viso120144
viso120144

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Sep 02, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A sporty hike that's easy on the eyes.

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MCTOUL
MCTOUL
• Last modified:

Thank you Angelstar83470, simonelbaz, Surfou, Papy_cigale, GrardCroce, fredosifredi!
Sincerely

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fredosifredi
fredosifredi
• Last modified:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of walk : Jan 19, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Hello and thank you to MCTOUL for introducing us to this sporting route, which is aimed more at fans of caving, canyoning and adventure climbing who are familiar with abseiling, roping, carabiners and jumar ascents.

However, classic hikers who don't necessarily have a 20m rope, a harness, quickdraws, a lanyard, a figure eight, a shunt, a gri-gri, straps, etc. in their bag can enjoy this lovely route without putting themselves in danger once.

In fact, when you reach the termite-ridden tree on the left side of the Destel stream (a tributary of the Reppe), 10 minutes after starting the hike from the start(D), simply follow (without ever leaving it) the yellow markings on the path that descends from the left, crosses the stream and then immediately climbs up theDevil's Scree to the summit.

At the top, a handrail (white static rope with knots) attached to a large anchor makes it easy to climb the last few metres to the summit plateau. From here, you have the choice of returning directly to the GR51 or following a series of cairns on the left as you climb up, leading 100 m further to the exit of the famous chimney on the original MCTOUL route. The normal route resumes at this point.

Note: From this exit, you can even assess the difficulty of the"devil's chimney" that you have just avoided if you have a harness and a lanyard to abseil safely (chain and large rusty piton). But promise not to"tempt the devil"!

Advantages of this variant:

  • It only took you 35/40 minutes to reach the summit (groups included!)
  • You've avoided the pointless round trip to the Monnier caves.
  • You've avoided the tricky crossing of the Ark of the Covenant, for those prone to vertigo.
  • Finally, you've avoided taking unnecessary risks in the difficult ascent of a poorly protected chimney, where climbing without equipment (reserved exclusively for free soloists) could easily end in tragedy.

The rest of the route is bucolic if you don't miss the large stone (30 minutes after the start of the ridge) marked with a big arrow and a cross(X <--), the famous landmark of Toulon excursionists(ET) and which indicates where the descent to the potholes begins (allow a good half hour from this junction).

Before continuing on the classic downhill route, you can walk up the vats to the plaque in tribute to Florent, who tragically died on 21 January 2018 in the Destel gorges. You are in the dolphin sector, symbolised by a blue painting of the mammal on the rock.

Note: Exploration of the upper basins is reserved for good climbers with the appropriate equipment (harness, rope, quickdraws, jumar, lanyards, straps, etc.). It's well worth the diversions if you're going with at least two people. Spits, anchors, abseils and handrails make it possible to climb up and down.

I'll post a few photos to make it easier to understand.

Fredo

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GrardCroce
GrardCroce

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Dec 03, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

In fact, we adapted the proposed route, but the Destel gorges and caves are well worth the effort. We'll certainly do it again in spring when the rocks at the bottom of the gorges are drier and less slippery.

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