Fire hazard and hunting: risk of fines! Make sure you are familiar with the local regulations in the practical information section.
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Access: the start is in the small village of Lafare. Coming from Beaumes-de-Venise, continue on the D90. Park in the small car park on the right, at the entrance to the village opposite the village hall.
(S/E) From the car park, walk back up into the village. Pass in front of the Place de la Fontaine. At the "Lafare" sign, turn left towards the Col du Cayron. Continue along the small tarmac road, Chemin des Dentelles. Yellow markings.
(1) After crossing the bridge over the Salette and reaching the house on the right called "La Lavanche et le Grès", take the path on the left that goes uphill. Orange markings, mountain bike trail.
Pass in front of a villa and continue climbing alongside the vineyard. Go around the vineyard, continuing to the right. You will come out onto the tarmac road. Continue straight ahead for 350 metres until you reach the small car park (4/5 spaces) before the hairpin bend.
(2) Once you reach the hairpin bend, turn left and follow the river (Salette) upstream. Blue markings. Cross the river to reach the other bank at the small waterfall.
Continue climbing up the large boulders. A steel bar provides support, and a handrail has been installed to assist with the climb.
It is possible to follow the path on the left without holding onto the handrail (not necessarily useful). Reach the Sainte-Christophe basin and its beautiful waterfall. Take the path on the left using the natural steps rather than the rope on the smooth slab (your feet may get wet).
Descend carefully, then go around the large rock at the foot of the waterfall. There is a blue marker. Cross the river.
On the left is a fault that you need to climb for about ten metres. There is a blue marker at the start. A steel footrest helps you to support yourself on the lower part and there is then a handrail on the right along the wall. There are numerous easy handholds.
Note: a small ledge can be traversed on the right. There is a steel cable. The passage is more exposed and aerial. It is necessary to secure yourself. In addition, the passage is subject to rock falls from the cliff.
At the top of the fault, you will arrive in front of the climbing wall (routes on the right). Continue climbing by following the blue markings that go up (there are blue markings that go down to the river, do not follow them) and you will come out onto the tarmac road.
(3) On the tarmac road, at the "Chapelle Saint-Christophe" sign, turn right towards Le Collet, following the yellow markings. Walk about 100m along the small tarmac road.
At the next left-hand bend, take the path that climbs up to the chapel. Walk along the left-hand side of the chapel and take the small path that climbs up to the orientation table, which offers a beautiful view.
Behind the orientation table, a small path leads into the vegetation. Follow this path. Walk along the cliff in a north-easterly direction.
At a small crossroads of paths (at this point the path descends), look for the passage that climbs somewhat steeply towards a gap in the cliff. There is a blue mark on the small ledge to be crossed. Climb this to reach the path on the north side of the cliff, near the climbing routes. Continue right on this path, heading north. Blue markings are rare and partly faded. You will reach a track suitable for vehicles after about 400m.
(4) At the junction of the tracks, turn right onto the track that goes uphill. Yellow and orange markings. You will also rejoin the mountain bike trail (yellow markings, triangle and 2 dots). Continue straight ahead on this track, heading north, ignoring all the other trails you come across.
(5) Just before reaching the hamlet of Château Neuf Redortier (small farm visible), take the path on the left (marked with two yellow and orange crosses). Walk along the fields for about 350 metres, then turn right onto the rough path (eroded by storms) which climbs steeply. No markings.
(6) At the crossroads of the tracks, continue straight ahead on the path. No markings.
(7) At the "Les Pradas" sign, turn left towards Suzette on the gravel track that climbs uphill. Yellow markings. Pass the "Les Clapas" sign and continue left towards Crête Saint-Amand.
(8) After 60 metres in the bend, take the small path on the left. Yellow and blue markings. Reach the summit of Crête Saint-Amand, marked by a cross. The viewpoint offers a beautiful view of the Dentelles de Montmirail massif. Then take the track on the left, passing close to the relays and antennas. Blue markings.
(9) After 400 metres, turn left onto the small path. Blue markings. The path winds along the ridge and through boxwood for almost 1 kilometre, heading north-east.
(10) Join a wider path, continue straight ahead (heading east) and you will soon see a cairn on the left with a yellow line and a blue line. Take the path on the left to cross over to the northern slope of the Crête Saint-Amand.
Walk along the cliffs for about a hundred metres.
(11) At a barely marked fork, take the path on the left through the box trees, which descends very quickly. The entrance is overgrown for 1 metre and hides the start of the path. Blue markings.
(12) On a flat section after about 300 metres of rapid descent, take a path on the left. No markings. At the bottom of the descent, you will come out onto a track suitable for vehicles.
(13) At the sign for "Les Cyprès des Évêques", turn left onto the track towards Les Pradas. Yellow markings. Stay on this boring track for about 2.3 km. It crosses mostly private land (there is fencing on the left and right in the forest).
(14) Leave the track by turning right onto the path. Then turn left and take the second path on the left which descends. The ground is rutted in places. No markings.
(6) Take the track on the right, which climbs slightly, then after 75 metres, take the path on the left at the wooden sign. Yellow markings. Walk along the ridges of the Grande Montagne (or Grand Travers), crossing in a south-westerly direction.
(15) On the descent, ignore the path on the left and continue to the right, taking the path that leads into the undergrowth. Yellow markings. The end of the descent is steeper. Pass in front of the climbing wall (on the right as you descend) and you will come to a small car park where there is also a picnic table.
(16) At the bottom of the descent on the car park, turn left and take the track heading east. No markings. After 1.4 km on this track, take a 90° left turn downhill.
(17) Turn right and walk along the vineyard. Walk around it to descend. You will then arrive at a track. Turn right and continue downhill. There are no markings. Walk along the various vineyards. You will arrive at a tarmac road (track leading to the Col du Cayron).
(18) Turn left onto this road. Yellow, orange and blue markings. Walk along this road for about 500 metres until you reach the entrance to the Cassan estate.
(19) At the ford, turn right onto the path that runs alongside a vineyard. Pass behind the second vineyard after crossing La Salette, then take the path that climbs uphill.
There are some old blue markings in places. The path climbs quite steeply at times. On the climb, at the cairn, turn left then right behind the rock. You will then come out on the side of the cliff on a path with small scree. Climb back up to the top of the ridge.
(20) You will reach the top of the ridge, which marks the eastern end of the Dentelles Sarrasines. Turn right, then quickly left to cross the boxwood trees. There are no markings. At the next fork, turn right. Then, following the ridge, veer left to cross over to the southern slope.
The access is partially hidden by boxwood. There is a small cairn at the bottom and a blue marker on the rock. Head west, following the south-facing cliffs of the Dentelles Sarrasines and the various climbing routes. Blue markings. Some passages require the use of your hands in places.
(21) At Brèche Pousterle, continue westwards along the south-facing cliffs. Blue markings. You will arrive at Brèche Florets-Turc. This is less obvious.
(22) Here you will find a slightly wider area with a few small shrubs where you can rest. On the right is a small fault. Red markings are partially faded. Follow the markings to make a round trip to the Chambre du Turc and reach the summit of the Dentelles. Access requires using your hands for much of the way.
Resume the route by starting to descend along the cliff. Blue markings.
(23) On the descent, at the rocky outcrop, turn right and follow the blue markings. The path climbs a little at the start and then descends steeply. The terrain is quite uneven in places (small ledges, roots). At the bottom of the descent, join the wide track at Col d'Alsau.
(24) At the track, continue to the right to go around the Dentelles Sarrasines. Yellow markings. Ignore the two paths on the left that go downhill. After about 1 km, you will arrive at Rocher du Midi and the picnic area.
(25) Turn left towards the tables and climb up to the viewpoint, which offers a beautiful view of the Dentelles Sarrasines and the surrounding plain.
Descend back down to the picnic area. Turn left onto the track and after a few metres take the path on the right at the wooden sign indicating the Dentelles Sarrasines. Blue markings. This path takes you close to the cliffs on the north face. The first part is quite steep, but in the second part the slope becomes gentler, although the terrain remains uneven.
(26) After 1.2 km from the carriageway, look for a breach in the cliff, which is the foot of the Florets-Turcs breach. Take the path along the rock and then cross some tall box trees. There is an old red marker, which is partially faded. The breach consists of a fault and a small ledge that must be crossed. The exit requires you to swing over to the other side of the void.
(22) You will find yourself back on the access route to the Chambre du Turc (the passage is now on the left). Turn right to follow the cliff again on its south side. Blue markings.
(23) At the rock, turn left at the blue cross. The descent is very steep. The few rocks are slippery, and numerous roots and holes make the descent tricky. No markings.
At the bottom of the descent, you will come out onto a vineyard. Turn right to follow it, then continue straight ahead to continue down the access path to the field ahead. Continue downhill until you reach the entrance to the field and arrive at the track.
(24) At the "Col d'Alsau" sign, turn right towards Le Sourias on the carriage track that descends. There are no markings. Continue on this track for about 1.5 km after passing the ruins of the Tour Sarrasine (located to the right of the track in a long left-hand bend).
(27) Leave the track by taking the access track to the vineyards on the left. Walk along the edge of the field and then climb steeply up several hairpin bends. At the eighth hairpin bend, ignore the turn-off on the right and continue climbing to the left.
You will come out at the top of the field. Walk along the left-hand side of the field. The slope is steep with scree and rubble. At the top, walk along the right-hand side of the field to reach the edge of the cliff.
(28) After 150m, look for the gap in the cliff. To access it, you will need to venture into the vegetation, which obstructs the passage somewhat. The ledge to be crossed is about 3m high with good handholds.
The passage leads to a scree slope on the side of Grand Montmirail.
Descend via the visible tracks through the scree until you come across a more clearly marked path running east-west. Turn right onto this path towards the Clapis ridge. Several tracks are visible, but in all cases head east.
(29) At the entrance to the Clapis chain, turn right to head towards the south face. Do not continue all the way down the path, but instead take a trail that brings you as close as possible to the cliff (climbing access route).
A trail runs along the south side of the cliff, at the foot of the numerous climbing routes. Blue markings. Some sections require you to use your hands to overcome small obstacles. The traverse is about 1.5 km long, with a series of ascents and descents.
You will arrive at the end of the Clapis chain. You will find yourself in front of the Sainte-Christophe chapel. Take the path on the right (2 cairns are visible). After a short, easy descent, the path then descends very steeply on slippery ground (loose stones). At the bottom of the descent, you will arrive at a vineyard; turn left.
Take the path that descends very steeply again to reach the car park at the entrance to the Lafare waterfall.
(2) Then turn right onto the tarmac road and follow the path in reverse to return to Lafare. Walk along the vineyards again to reach the house and take the path that descends to the villa "La Lavanche et le Grès".
(1) Turn right onto the tarmac road, cross the bridge and return to the village of Lafare to reach the car park (S/E).
It wasn't easy at times, but overall we did pretty well.
Visorando member
Very difficult 
Difficult 
Moderate 
