Cirque de Mourèze from Liausson

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This hike will give you a panoramic view of Lake Salagou and take you to the heart of the Cirque de Mourèze

This hike may be closed depending on the fire risk level. Be sure to check the map.

Details

n°860352
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 13.13 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Difficult
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 653 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 654 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 534 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 216 m
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Photos

panoramic view of Salagou
View of Lake Salagou

Description of the walk

Park in the Liausson hikers' car park.

(S/E) Head west on the road that leads to the Château de la Marguerite. Continue to the junction with the Col de Portes trail.

(1) Take this trail on the left and follow the forest to the pass.

(2) Turn right towards the Col de Lousses. Continue through the forest and you will reach a crossroads marked by a cairn. Stay on the left-hand path. Leave the forest briefly in the Combe de Lousses and continue left on the track to reach the Col des Lousses.

(3) Take the track on the left to descend to Mourèze, ignoring the path that crosses the descent path at the crossroads.

(4) Before arriving at Mourèze, take the track on the left and climb slightly towards the Col de Portes. Ignore the paths on the left and continue to a crossroads with a path on the right.

(5) Turn right onto the yellow marked trail (PR®) towards the Cirque de Mourèze. Continue to the entrance of the village.

(6) Turn left. Enjoy the view of the cirque and visit the village of Mourèze. Resume the route by crossing the Cirque de Mourèze between the dolomites and then reach a new intersection.

(7) Follow thePR® (marked in yellow) on the left and join the Chemin des Charbonniers.

(8) Continue right towards Montagne de Liausson.

(9) Continue climbing to the left (steep slope) to reach the summit. Once at the summit, enjoy the landscape and the view overlooking the Cirque de Mourèze on one side and the panoramic view of Lake Salagou on the other. Below, you can see the village of Liausson.

(10) Begin the descent towards Liausson and head towards the Col des Portes.

(2) Follow the same route back to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 225 m - Hiker car park in Liausson
  2. 1 : km 0.41 - alt. 222 m - Col de Portes trail, on the left
  3. 2 : km 1.58 - alt. 381 m - Col de Portes; turn right towards the Col de Lousse
  4. 3 : km 3.59 - alt. 349 m - Col des Lousses, on the left
  5. 4 : km 5.24 - alt. 239 m - Crossroads, left
  6. 5 : km 6.29 - alt. 286 m - Turn right towards Mourèze
  7. 6 : km 7.44 - alt. 228 m - Village of Mourèze
  8. 7 : km 8.02 - alt. 272 m - Follow the PR on the left - Cirque de Mourèze
  9. 8 : km 8.49 - alt. 266 m - Turn right towards the Montagne de Liausson
  10. 9 : km 9.43 - alt. 338 m - Start of the ascent of Montagne Liausson
  11. 10 : km 10.83 - alt. 534 m - Mont Liausson
  12. S/E : km 13.13 - alt. 227 m - Hiker car park in Liausson

Worth a visit

 Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

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

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Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 39 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
User 7856875

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 24, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

This route is not very busy during the week, but avoid it at weekends. It is a very beautiful route with magnificent views. Be sure to visit the church in the village of Mourèze, as it is very beautiful.

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Domicha
Domicha

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, a little challenging in the cirque with high steps and many opportunities to get lost (never far away), but magnificent views both in the cirque and on the ridge above Lake Salagou

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User 13551003

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very interesting and varied route – superb views of Lake Salagou from the summit ridge of Mount Liausson, a magnificent trail through the chaotic landscape of the Mourèze cirque. Although fairly easy overall, the route does have some more "tricky" sections where it is advisable to wear suitable footwear and use walking sticks. Best avoided in wet weather.

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User 25005764

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 28, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Quite a difficult route for inexperienced hikers, with an ascent to Liausson Mountain and descent to Portes Pass. Superb 360° panoramic views from Liausson Mountain. Very popular route on Sundays.

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Daurad
Daurad

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 03, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

Pleasant route, shame that the car parks are pay-and-display

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Fernandez Benjamin
Fernandez Benjamin

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 01, 2025
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We didn't really follow the route as described. We know the PR version well, having done it several times. So we opted for the "Mont Mars chapelle ST Scholatique" version. No regrets, just pure enjoyment. Quite easy to follow with sufficient blue and red markings. Thanks for the suggestion. It's winter and during the week we didn't meet anyone. I think that outside the tourist season, the departure point from the car park for hikers is perfect. Enjoy your walks.

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Céline-
Céline-

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 01, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful hike. Departure from the village of Liausson. The end was a bit tough when we climbed Mount Liausson, but what a beautiful view when we came back down with a view of Lake Salagou and the village of Liausson below.

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Raven 81340
Raven 81340
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Hike completed today on this beautiful day.
We did it in reverse, starting with Mount Liausson
to spice things up, we added the ascent of Mount Mars or Sainte Scholatique in stages 3 and 4, adding another 502 metres. Please note that this detour is not signposted, but the path is clearly visible and easy to follow
there are a few blue markings to help you follow the path
there are superb landscapes all along the hike.
There are a few technical sections that require good shoes and walking sticks. Avoid in wet weather as it can be slippery.. Bring plenty of water
you need to be in good physical shape
A hike not to be missed

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MariAB
MariAB

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 09, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Superb hike, stunning scenery, the last wall is quite challenging but the view at the top is superb

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darwin72
darwin72

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 21, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful route that I modified between 3 and 4 to climb Mont Mars. It's tough but you're on your own, which is nice, and the descent towards 4 is pleasant amid the rosemary. Mourèze is definitely worth a detour. Overall, a difficult hike. Bring something to drink. Between 9 and 2, it's technical due to the steepness of the climb and descent and the nature of the ground. Beautiful hike.

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Hadrien11
Hadrien11

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike completed the day after rain, be careful as some sections are slippery and muddy.

Good directions, but you need to be very careful as there are many junctions and it is easy to take the wrong path, which is what happened to us. In the end, we covered 15.5 km in 3 hours and 10 minutes with this route.

The climb to the top of Mont Liausson is very steep and steep, with an average gradient of nearly 20%, so remember to take refreshments with you.

It's all worth it though: the trail is superb, with varied landscapes ranging from forest to sand to the middle of a cirque, and when you reach Mont Liausson, the fantastic view will make you forget the terrible last kilometre of the climb.

I recommend it, but remember to download the app to help you follow the route and avoid getting lost

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Toumabena
Toumabena

In the MOUREZE cirque, it is essential to follow the PR (yellow markings) which will enable you to find the Visorando trail, otherwise you will struggle considerably.

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Phflippe
Phflippe

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 16, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Great route, magnificent views and a very pleasant path. The only tricky part is crossing the Cirque de Mourèze, where it's not easy to follow the route, or maybe we just got it wrong. In any case, we managed it in the end because we had a compass to help us.

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jean-pascal godard
jean-pascal godard

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 24, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

superb and demanding

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FrancisCougard
FrancisCougard

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Sum of two loops, each loop being parish specific to Brittany

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