Country:
District:
Park in the square in front of Ispagnac church.
(S/E) Walk up Rue de la Ville to the fountain, then take the street on the left that joins the departmental road. Follow this road to the right until you reach the bridge over the Tarn and turn right to cross it.
After the bridge, you will come to a crossroads.
(1) Take the small road on the left, Route des Bieisses, leaving the two paths that lead to it on your right. Follow this road, which makes a large bend to the right, until you reach the outskirts of the hamlet of Bieissette.
(2) Just before reaching the first house, take the dirt track that climbs to the right. After passing a few meadows where horses graze, it enters the chestnut woods and, after a sharp left turn, leads to a forest track.
At the crossroads, turn right and head for a pass that opens up to a view of the Ispagnac valley.
According to recent information from hikers, gates control access to this part of the route, between (2) and (3). Be sure to close them after use.
(3) While the limestone plateaus block the horizon and overlook the pass, the chestnut grove flourishes on the schistose outcrop that occupies the entire interior of the Tarn curve. Leave the forest track descending to the right and take the path that descends straight down the western slope. A few dozen metres further down, ignore the markings (GR® 670 and Yellow) that turn left, and continue straight ahead. Given its configuration and the large stone embankments that border it, this path must have been the old mule track between Ispagnac and Florac, before the Gorges road existed.
Head straight into the woods, following this well-marked path. The descent is quite steep and stony in places. So watch where you put your feet, especially when the leaves have fallen.
Note: if this section is impassable, the forest road that branches off to the right at the pass also leads to the bridge over the Tarn.
(4) Cross the forest road and continue straight ahead on the old path. After 200 metres, it curves to the left. Continue downhill along the remains of the embankment and go around a property on the right before returning to the forest road. Turn right and you will come to the crossroads with the Route des Bieisses.
(1) Turn left onto the path that follows the banks of the Tarn. After a few metres, you will reach the river. Follow it and then cross it via the footbridge.
(5) On the other bank, take the path on the left that follows the right bank. This path winds along the minor course of the river and may be impassable when the water level is too high. Otherwise, it allows you to walk along the large curve formed by the Tarn and contemplate the cliffs that the river has carved into the limestone plateau. Pass the shared gardens.
(6) Turn right to climb back up to the flat area where various market gardens and orchards flourish. The compact mass of the village, which is clearly planted above the floodplain, is a reminder that Ispagnac was once fortified. When you reach the path that goes around the village, turn left, then just before the garden car park, turn right into Ruelle des Rivières, which leads back to Rue des Barrys.
Reach this street via a porch, go up it on the right until you reach the central square, the church and the car park (S/E).
Visorando member
Difficult 
Moderate 
