From Pré Royer to the Saint-Barnabé plateau

de fr

A beautiful hike offering views from the Gorges du Loup to the Mediterranean coastline, with Théoule-sur-Mer in the background.
The karst plateau of Saint-Barnabé, shaped by erosion, is mainly covered with stony moorland.

Details

n°68422736
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 13.46 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 482 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 484 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,018 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 624 m
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Photos

Courmes Church
Village of Courmes
Dry stone walls
Viewpoint

Description of the walk

Park in the municipal car park in the village of Courmes.

(S/E) From the car park, head towards the nearby marker 250 and take the gently sloping path.

(1) At marker 256, turn left towards Pré Royer. Yellow markings.

(2) At marker 257, you will be at the edge of Pré Royer, a former sheep grazing area with dry stone walls. Continue straight ahead towards Pré Royer. The path winds between the trees.

(3) At the cairn at the crossroads, turn left onto the uphill track.

(4) Leave the track and take the path heading south, which leads to the Serre de la Madeleine.

(5) This viewpoint has a bench where you can take a well-deserved break. From here, you can see the Gorges du Loup, Théoule-sur-Mer and the Mediterranean Sea. Retrace your steps to the crossroads and the cairn.

(3) Continue straight ahead, heading due north.

(6) At marker 258, turn right towards Coursegoules.

(7) At this trail junction (vehicle track), which has no marker number, turn right towards Coursegoules. The track climbs steeply for about 200 metres.

(8) At an altitude of 936, at the junction of carriageways, where the signpost has no number, turn right towards Coursegoules.

(9) At this crossroads of tracks suitable for vehicles, turn right and follow the track.

(10) At altitude 984, turn left.

(11) At the cairn, turn right and follow the track.

(12) At this bend in the track, just after the electricity pylon, leave the track and walk due east for about 200 metres, following a karstic cave.

(13) Turn right, south-west, until you are directly below the power line.

(13) At marker 255, at the Oratoire de Saint-Jean, continue straight ahead on the GR®51 towards Courmes.

(15) At marker 254, continue straight ahead towards Courmes. The village of Courmes comes into view below.

(16) At marker 253, at this crossroads, continue straight ahead towards Courmes.

(17) At this crossroads (vehicle track), leave the GR®51 and turn right. Take care in wet weather, as the track descends steeply for 300 metres.

(18) At this crossroads, you are in a wooded area. Turn right and continue along the track, then rejoin theGR®51a little further on.

(19) At marker 252, turn left onto the old paved slanting street,GR®®51, towards Courmes.

(20) At marker 251, leave the GR®51. We are at the entrance to the village of Courmes. Turn left onto the tarmac road, go around the church on the left, then head towards the nearby town hall.

(21) Turn right in front of the town hall to reach the village's municipal car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 630 m - Town hall. Trail junction - carriage road
  2. 1 : km 2.45 - alt. 894 m - Trail junction, marker 256.
  3. 2 : km 3.21 - alt. 851 m - Trail junction, marker 257. - Pré Royer
  4. 3 : km 3.82 - alt. 880 m - Cairn. Fork in the road at the viewpoint.
  5. 4 : km 3.94 - alt. 874 m - Start of a footpath
  6. 5 : km 4.18 - alt. 902 m - Viewpoint
  7. 6 : km 4.82 - alt. 883 m - Trail junction - carriage road
  8. 7 : km 5.13 - alt. 891 m - Trail junction - carriageway
  9. 8 : km 5.48 - alt. 938 m - Trail junction - carriageway
  10. 9 : km 5.72 - alt. 965 m - Crossroads of carriageways
  11. 10 : km 7.09 - alt. 985 m - Crossroads of motorable tracks.
  12. 11 : km 7.19 - alt. 990 m - Cairn. Crossroads of motorable tracks.
  13. 12 : km 7.85 - alt. 1,014 m - Bend in the track - path
  14. 13 : km 8.02 - alt. 1,017 m - Trail junction - carriageway
  15. 14 : km 9.23 - alt. 953 m - Marker 255. Crossroads of motorable tracks. GR51
  16. 15 : km 9.75 - alt. 943 m - Trail junction, marker 254. - Clapière Rousse
  17. 16 : km 10.71 - alt. 884 m - Trail junction, marker 253.
  18. 17 : km 11.94 - alt. 833 m - Trail junction. Altitude 834
  19. 18 : km 12.18 - alt. 779 m - Crossroads of carriageways
  20. 19 : km 12.69 - alt. 718 m - Trail and track junction, marker 252.
  21. 20 : km 13.19 - alt. 639 m - Trail junction - tarmac road marker 251
  22. 21 : km 13.33 - alt. 628 m - Town hall. Trail junction - carriage road
  23. S/E : km 13.46 - alt. 627 m - Courmes municipal car park.

Notes

Hiking boots and walking sticks recommended.
Hike can be done all year round, but be careful in summer as part of the route is in the sun.
Water source along the route.

Do not move the stones from the low walls or the piles of stones known as "clapiers".

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 8 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
bernard bb
bernard bb

Thank you, dear Philippe, for this review.
Best regards, B.

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PhilippeC06
PhilippeC06

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 16, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant hike without any major difficulties. Stunning scenery.
The route is entirely passable. No private land to cross, so no worries there.

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User 2311509

Thanks Anne for this information
Best regards, B.

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Anne-So15
Anne-So15

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 11, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant hike, but be aware that the route is no longer passable between points 1 and 3. We are entering private property. The owner was tolerant and let me pass this time, but this hike should be reviewed to avoid any inconvenience for future hikers and this owner.

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bernard bb
bernard bb

Thank you GTACAILLE for your opinion, very well summarised.
Best regards, b.

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GTACAILLE
GTACAILLE

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 03, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

very pleasant spring hike, beautiful views

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bernard bb
bernard bb

Thank you, Yvonne 06, for your feedback.
Courmes - corrected
And if you enjoyed it, that's what matters
friendship rando; b.

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Yvonne 06
Yvonne 06
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 01, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful, easy hike with stunning views. I think there is a small typo in the description (data entry error). At point 16, marker 253, it says to go straight towards Coursegoules instead of Courmes.
Otherwise, everything is fine. We didn't get lost, though.

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bernard bb
bernard bb

Hello diy06, indeed, we didn't see any vineyards either
Joking aside, it was a lovely hike
Best regards, rando, b.

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bernard bb
bernard bb

Thank you, Paacaal, for this review.
It really is a beautiful, windy plateau.
Best regards, B.

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PAACAAL
PAACAAL

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

This is the ideal season for this hike, which covers a reasonable distance and elevation gain on good paths that are easy to climb (a little less so on the descent). There is NO shade on the typical limestone plateau (see Caussol, Calern, etc.), but in March, with the wind, I really enjoyed it... Of course, in summer, the rocks must be scorching hot!
Thank you for this hike.

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diy06
diy06

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It took us six hours to complete the route, having had lunch at the top and taken the shortcut during the descent of the GR51 called "Courmes direct par les Vignes" (but we didn't see any vineyards...).

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bernard bb
bernard bb

Thank you, Escapades, for your review.
Best regards, b.

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Escapades
Escapades

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 27, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike offering stunning views of the Vallée du Loup and the Bay of Cannes. However, there are no views of the Mercantour.

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bernard bb
bernard bb

Thank you, Roby06, for this review.
Have a great weekend
Best wishes, b.

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The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.