La Vanige and the Clavelière ridges

A superb hike with magnificent panoramic views: the peaks of the Baronnies, Ventoux, Dévoluy, Écrins, Queyras and Southern Alps on a clear day.
La Vanige, at an altitude of 1,391 metres, overlooks a number of nearby peaks. La Clavelière, the "border of Provence", shows its two opposite slopes.

Details

403097
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 12.64 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 6h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Difficult

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 951 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 951 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,370 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 828 m

Photos

Description of the walk

(S/E) From the small Viarrands car park, located above the Chèvre Verte lodge, head south-east and follow the path uphill towards the Croix de Roussieux for about 200 metres.

(1) At the Auches crossroads, turn right and follow theGR®91trail up to the Col de Corbières.

(2) Col de Corbières signpost: for the return trip, take the yellow-marked trail on the right, which climbs to the summit of La Vanige. Follow the markings carefully, as the climb to the summit is very steep but not particularly difficult.

(3) The descent is via the same route*.

(2) From the Corbières mast, take the yellow-marked path heading south-east, leading to the Col de Haute-Huche and Croix de Roussieux. Stay on this path, which climbs to the Clavelière ridge.

(4) At the Col de Haute-Huche mast, continue along the ridge path on the left, leading to Croix de Roussieux.

(5) At Croix Roussieux, descend through the woods, taking the yellow-marked path on the left (former route 97, which runs concurrently with 98). Stay on this marked path, which will cross a track further down.

(6) Follow it to the right for a few metres, then take the path continuing to the left.

(7) Reach the Sous le Rocher Blanc mast. Turn left and continue along this track marked in yellow and 97, keeping westwards. There will then be a series of descents over approximately 2.5 km, followed by a fairly steep but short climb and an easy passage over a collapsed ravine to the hamlet of Les Turcs.

(8) At the Turcs mast, continue slightly to the left along the track passing under the hamlet. The route is no longer marked, so follow this track to the Auches crossroads.

(1) Continue straight ahead and take the same path you took on the way there to reach the Viarrands car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 829 m - Viarrands car park
  2. 1 : km 0.39 - alt. 854 m - Mât croisement des Auches
  3. 2 : km 2.19 - alt. 1,145 m - Mast of the - Col de Corbière (1149m)
  4. 3 : km 2.95 - alt. 1,370 m - Summit of La Vanige
  5. 4 : km 4.53 - alt. 1,229 m - On the left, Mât du - Col de Haute Huche (1233m)
  6. 5 : km 7.53 - alt. 1,271 m - Croix Roussieux, descend to the left.
  7. 6 : km 8.31 - alt. 1,101 m - At the track junction, continue straight ahead, slightly to the right.
  8. 7 : km 8.54 - alt. 1,040 m - Mast at Sous le Rocher Blanc, on the left
  9. 8 : km 10.98 - alt. 1,000 m - Hameau des Turcs, opposite, track
  10. S/E : km 12.64 - alt. 829 m - Car park above the Chèvre Verte lodge

Notes

  • Slightly longer alternative: to avoid a return trip to La Vanige, between points (2) and (3), you can continue on the marked trail from the summit of La Vanige to the Col du Rocher Percé. Then follow the track to the left. Leave it further on for a marked trail to the left. At the nextPR® crossroads, turn left onto theGR® 91 and head for point (2). The rest of the route is as described.

Halfway along the Clavelière ridge, there is a flock of sheep. A non-aggressive Patou and Border Collie come up to us to identify us. The Patou accompanies us for a few dozen metres, then returns to "his sheep".

Worth a visit

Springs are listed on IGN maps (Font Froide, in particular), but we did not look for them as we had everything we needed in our rucksacks.

Hameau des Turcs: isolation was a necessary condition for the survival of the once-persecuted Protestants.

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.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 9 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
sylviane henner
sylviane henner

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 23, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely hike. A 360° panoramic view from the summit. The descent down La Vanige requires caution, especially if it has rained. The section along the ridges is more or less marked (the yellow markings are faded). You should stay towards the top of the ridges.

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Bubud
Bubud
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 27, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello, this is the second time I've done this hike with my son. It's perfect, with varied terrain and a 360° view from the summit of Vanige, etc. Highly recommended.
Best regards
Bubud

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Jacky Anx
Jacky Anx

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Wonderful hike! Quite difficult, especially the first 4 kilometres.

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gillesjeanpierre98
gillesjeanpierre98

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 12, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, superb flora, magnificent ridge landscapes, and a stunning descent through the forest. Highly recommended for botanists at this time of year! It is best to carpool to Lemps as the Viarrands car park is small, but at least it exists! At the end of the hike, the person at the lodge welcomed us and gave us a tour even though we weren't guests: a little paradise of calm, tastefully decorated.
Thank you for this beautiful hike.

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DanielANDRE
DanielANDRE

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 11, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

From the summit of Vanige, the route via the Rocher Percé pass is pleasant and does not add too much to the length of the walk.
From point 6, you can take a shortcut by taking the track on the left.
A very beautiful hike.

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pacaro
pacaro

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 27, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful route between the climb through a forest ablaze with autumn colours and the arrival on the ridge with a panoramic view of almost 360°.
The hike along the ridge is very pleasant, but be sure to follow the yellow trail, which is old and not very visible.
The return trip is also very nice, through the undergrowth and meadows (we didn't see any sheepdogs because the flock was no longer grazing at that time of year).

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Isa84100
Isa84100
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 24, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Good evening,

We had a wonderful hike today in superb autumn weather with magnificent colours.

The climb to La Vanige is very easy and the yellow trail is clearly marked, you just have to follow it. The ridge is really nice.

The return trip via the Clavelière ridges is superb, with truly magnificent 360° views.

One small downside between points 7 and 8. We followed the trail with the GPS and found ourselves in the undergrowth, slightly off track. Nothing serious, just follow the right path to find the actual trail. A bit of fun scrambling, which also adds a little spice.

On rereading, it's possible that since the creation (2016) and the latest comments, the paths have changed, and I think you just need to follow the path downhill rather than the GPS track to reach the Mât du Turc.

We found this hike superb, not difficult because we took our time and took photos. We had a wonderful day! Thank you very much!

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henri57
henri57 ★

Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to give your opinion.

For your information, "Map route" refers to assessing the accuracy of the route as it appears on the map in relation to the actual terrain.

See you soon!

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Thierry07
Thierry07

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 30, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very interesting hike, but beware, the snow has caused damage... I didn't count the broken or uprooted trees littering the trail. Sometimes you have to crawl under the trunks or go around them, so allow an extra hour.
From the summit of La Vanige, I preferred to descend via the Col du Rocher Percé, which is only slightly longer and avoids having to make a return trip.
The path through the woods towards point 8 is not very well marked in places, so you have to be careful not to lose it.
Beautiful panoramic views from the ridge, to be enjoyed again on a sunny day.

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kakie
kakie

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 01, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

The markings for climbing up to La Vanige are very faint, and it is easy to get lost in passages that are somewhat exposed and not very reassuring. On the descent, you can see a few yellow dots.
The round trip to La Vanige is a bit tedious.

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