A circular walk via Coste Belle and Les Ricoux, starting from Pont du Fossé

A lovely circular route on the north-facing slope, mostly through woodland; allow 1 hour 15 minutes for the ascent and 2 hours 30 minutes for the gentle descent.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.81 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 45 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,227 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,201 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 4,701 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 3,668 ft

Description of the walk

Park near the Maison de la Vallée, which houses the tourist office.

(S/E) Walk round the Maison de la Vallée, passing between the Mille Club and the Maison de la Vallée to reach the banks of the Drac, then turn left and follow the Drac upstream to reach the bridge.

(1) Turn right, cross the Drac and turn left as you cross the road.

(2) 200 m further on, take the uphill Rue des Eymes, then the Chemin de Coste Belle.

(3) Leave the Chemin du Canal de Gap and take the path leading uphill which passes in front of the ruined hamlet of Costillon. The path continues to climb; take your time and ascend gently to the ruins of Coste Belle.

(4) The village was abandoned despite the arrival of electricity, as the lack of transport links made life too difficult for the inhabitants. Cross the hamlet and look for a fairly wide path leading to the forest track.
(This can sometimes be difficult in spring as the grass is tall, and it is the trickiest part of the route. Footpaths are often visible and should be followed, even if they do not match the GPS track).

(5) At the junction with the forest track, take this dirt track on the left; it crosses the Bois de la Sapinière and comes to a junction.

(6) Turn left onto the descending track, fording the various small streams as well as the Torrent de Pelissier. Junction.

(7) Turn left twice. You are now on the Chemin du Canal de Gap, which you should follow for about 2.5 km. It is a gently sloping, very pleasant path with, once again, four fords to cross. You will reach a junction.

(8) Leave the canal and head down a small path on the right. This is a lovely, picturesque path along the banks of the Drac which will take you back to a junction you passed on the way there.

(2) Follow the outward route in the opposite direction: go straight on along the path leading downhill to reach the Maison de la Vallée (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 3,675 ft - Maison de la Vallée
  2. 1 : mi 0.07 - alt. 3,668 ft - Bridge over the - Drac (rivière) - Drac Noir-Drac
  3. 2 : mi 0.16 - alt. 3,698 ft - Crossroads on the circular loop
  4. 3 : mi 0.34 - alt. 3,858 ft - Crossing the - Canal de Gap
  5. 4 : mi 0.91 - alt. 4,528 ft - Coste Belle
  6. 5 : mi 1.26 - alt. 4,685 ft - Forest track
  7. 6 : mi 2.03 - alt. 4,419 ft - Junction
  8. 7 : mi 3.77 - alt. 3,848 ft - Junction
  9. 8 : mi 5.14 - alt. 3,829 ft - Junction
  10. S/E : mi 5.81 - alt. 3,675 ft - Maison de la Vallée

Notes

In spring, when it’s raining and the snow is melting, crossing certain fords can be tricky.

Worth a visit

All the shops can be found in Pont du Fossé.

Places to visit.
The Maison de la Vallée: exhibitions, tourist information, books and maps.
The Mill Museum.
Placesto see.
‘L’écho des mots’ from 8 to 12 August for children and adults.
Places to visit in the area.
The old-fashioned school in Saint Jean.
The Shepherd’s Cottage at Les Borels in the Champoléon Valley.
The animal shelter in Saint Léger-les-Mélèzes.

Reviews and comments

4.2 / 5
Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4 / 5
Route interest
4.3 / 5
myrpon
myrpon

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 12, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely walk with some beautiful views over the valley
Don’t do this when it’s too hot! There’s a very steep climb at the start

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Le Dex
Le Dex

Yes, at the village, the path no longer exists. We headed due east and found the path that heads north towards the 1435 contour line and joins the forest track.

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Babeth34
Babeth34

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk, but we’d like to point out that, when you reach the hamlet of Coste Belle, you need to go round the hamlet on the left to find the (unmarked) path that joins the forest track. It’s not easy to find.

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Achca
Achca

Yes, it’s a good option; the path is very scenic, but the descent is quite steep for ageing knees. In this area, there are plenty of paths like the one that leads directly from point 6 to point 8 if you want to shorten the route.

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Le Dex
Le Dex

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 16, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The walk is very pleasant up to point 5; after that, the forest track becomes a bit monotonous.
At that point, we didn’t turn left. We carried on for about 1 km before turning left onto an old path that winds down through the woodland and is quite picturesque. It leads to point 7.

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JCPR05
JCPR05

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 29, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

It’s true that the climb is a bit steep. You’ll need a good pair of shoes, as some sections are stony.
Not ideal after a heavy downpour.
If time allows, you could include the other walk , ‘La Forêt profonde’, near Pelissier.

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