Park in the Grottes car park opposite Soyons cemetery.
Yellow-and-white signposting
(Out and back) From the car park, opposite the cemetery, walk up the small road on the right until you reach the junction. Turn right onto Chemin du Vivier (signposted ‘Musée archéologique’) and head towards the D86. Cross the road (take care – it’s a very busy road), then head for a small underpass opposite which, after a few steps, allows you to cross the railway line.
Immediately afterwards, cross the canal and turn right to follow its left bank. At the junction with a tarmac road, turn right for a few metres, then let that road branch off to the right whilst you continue straight ahead along a dirt track to reach the mouth of a branch of the Rhône (Lône de l’Ove).
(1) The path turns right, following this waterway until it reaches a junction with a bridge.
No signposts
Continue along the track straight ahead (slightly to the right at the start), leaving the bridge on your left and a path on your right. Carry on along the Lône until it ends on a compacted track. After a short climb, the track curves to the right, joining another track coming from the left. 100 metres further on, at a stretch of large boulders, continue along the track on the right. Shortly afterwards, go over a very small hillock and join another track.
(2) Turn sharply to the right to quickly reach a new junction (signposted ‘Via Rhôna’).
Yellow-white markings
Carry on to the left along a small tarmac road. Cross the railway line (take care at the level crossing!) and then immediately take a small road running parallel to it. Carry on straight ahead and, 150 metres further on, cross the D86 (be careful here too – it’s a very busy road!). Keep going in the same direction along the small road until you come to a marker near a beautiful stone house.
(3) First turn right then left to pass between two houses and find a path that climbs into the forest. At the Jonchère signpost, continue straight on towards Toulaud. Shortly afterwards, a path is marked on the left on the IGN map, but it is no longer visible on the ground. A little further on, join the Chemin de Turlet.
(4) Turn right and follow the path, which runs flat for a while before climbing quite steeply to reach a small tarmac road (Chemin de Jonchère). Follow the road to the left for 100 metres, then at the ‘Chemin de Jonchère’ signpost, leave the tarmac and turn right towards Les Grottes on the Chemin de Pierrette. Ignore a grassy path on the right just after the signpost, which is not shown on the map anyway.
(5) After 100 metres on the Chemin de Pierrette, at the signpost of the same name, leave the path and head up to the right towards Soyons. 50 metres further up, at the junction, turn left towards La Tour Penchée. The path runs along the hillside and offers unobstructed views of the upper districts of Soyons. Join a path coming from the right, then continue up a short, steep slope leading to the Plateau du Serre de Guercy.
At the marker, continue straight ahead towards Les Grottes along a narrow, steep path. 30 metres further down, turn left towards La Tour Penchée, ignoring the path on the right leading to the caves (that’s for later). After a short but steep descent, reach the bottom of the valley and the ‘Bas de la Tour’ signpost. First turn right then left to follow the path which climbs steeply; do not follow the flat path branching off to the left. Reach the Leaning Tower and enjoy its stunning views over the Rhône Valley and the Vercors.
(6) Turn back and head down again to the ‘Le Bas de la Tour’ signpost. Continue left along the well-maintained path. At the next junction, turn right onto the path – also well-maintained and dotted with botanical information boards. It continues more or less along a balcony-like path and leads to the Grottes de Néron.
(7) Turn back to the previous junction, then turn right to head downhill, making use of the facilities. Join the Chemin du Vivier and, after a few metres, reach the car park (start/end).