The Louyre Canyon, from Échelette to Évent des Grenouillettes

With its wild and exotic appearance, the Louyre Canyon is a classic destination for all hikers in the region. This circuit takes you from one end to the other, then back up the top with beautiful views. As a bonus, since this year, you can once again see traces of beaver activity.
The climb up the canyon is not very easy, and in one or two places you have to use your hands, but it is quite doable, even with children.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.91 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Difficult

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 177 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 174 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 380 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 203 m

Photos

Description of the walk

The car park at the start of the walk is located at the bottom of the Échelette hill, on the D259 between Saint-Privat and Lussas, just before the first hairpin bend. Park carefully as there are few spaces and it is often busy.

(S/E) Cross the road and take the path that descends opposite the car park.

(1) Cross the Louyre stream over the dam and take the path on the right.
Ford the stream three times and you will arrive at a slightly elevated clearing opposite the Font Merle stream. Continue straight ahead, leaving a track on your left, and you will arrive back at the stream.

Turn right and walk up the Louyre stream, following the left bank. When you reach a small tributary, do not cross it, but take a track on the right that leads to the entrance to the Baume de Chabannes cave. Do not go too far into this cave to avoid disturbing the bats.

(2) Leave the cave and follow the right bank of the tributary stream. At the first junction, turn right.
Pass under a ruin and you will reach an area of flat rocks at the water's edge.
On the opposite right bank, you will see an area of green vegetation. This is the location of a spring that feeds the lower part of the Louyre Stream. In the upper part, there is generally very little water.
Further along the route, there is no real path, but you can walk most of the way on flat rocks, on the right or left bank, or at the bottom of the stream bed.

(3) One or two passages may seem difficult to cross, notably a "gour" (water hole) surrounded by overhanging rocks. In this case, you will need to backtrack a little and look for a steep track climbing up the left bank. At a fork, leave the path on the right that continues to climb and arrives on the plateau. Take the almost horizontal path on the left that rejoins the valley after the difficult section.

(4) Cross a path with white-yellow markings leading to Sévenier (possible shortcut). Continue along the stream bed.
When you reach the confluence of the Ruisseau de Louyre and the Ruisseau de l'Eyrolle, continue straight ahead to the Évent des Grenouillettes, a water hole surrounded by cliffs.

(5) Turn back to the confluence and take a path on the left bank that climbs towards the plateau.
Ignore a path on the left and join the white-and-yellow marked trail that you crossed at the bottom of the valley.

(6) Climb left on this path and join a road in the hamlet of Sévenier. When the road turns left, continue straight ahead on a path, following the markings. You will rejoin the road at the bottom of this path

(7) Leave the marked trail and take the road on the right. At the first crossroads, opposite a cross, turn right. Continue along this dirt road, ignoring the paths on the right and left. Pass in front of the climbing site car park.

(8) After a bend in the path, look for a trail on the right marked with a sign saying "Accès falaise" (cliff access). A return trip on this trail gives access to a viewpoint over the gorges. Then return to the path.

(9) Still following the white-yellow markings, leave the path and take a slightly uphill trail on the left.

(10) At the hiking information post, under the high-voltage line, turn right towards Lavilledieu. Continue to the next hiking information post. On the way, you can see the ruins of the Jastres Nord oppidum on a hill on the right.

(11) Turn right towards Saint-Privat. After a bend, don't worry about an old white-and-yellow signpost. Continue to the next crossroads.
Turn left, arrive at a wider path and turn right. Continue downhill to the D259.

Cross this road with caution and continue below on the old Échelette road.
Rejoin the D259. From there, there is no other option but to descend this road to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 228 m - Car park on Route de l'Échelette
  2. 1 : km 0.21 - alt. 203 m - Cross the dam
  3. 2 : km 1.07 - alt. 223 m - Chabannes Cave
  4. 3 : km 2.53 - alt. 250 m - Path on the left
  5. 4 : km 4.18 - alt. 319 m - Marked trail junction
  6. 5 : km 4.82 - alt. 336 m - Évent des Grenouillettes
  7. 6 : km 5.27 - alt. 361 m - Marked trail, on the left
  8. 7 : km 5.93 - alt. 363 m - Leave the marked trail and take the road on the right
  9. 8 : km 7.52 - alt. 336 m - Cliff access. Viewpoint
  10. 9 : km 8.39 - alt. 318 m - Path climbing to the left
  11. 10 : km 9.11 - alt. 327 m - Hiking post, on the right
  12. 11 : km 9.54 - alt. 320 m - Hiking post, on the right
  13. S/E : km 10.91 - alt. 228 m - Car park on Route de l'Échelette

Notes

Avoid this hike if it has rained recently or if it is damp in the morning. Wet limestone rocks are extremely slippery.

To avoid doing the entire route, there are several paths that allow you to leave the ravine along the way:

  • After the Chabannes cave (2), a trail climbs up right next to the ruins.
  • At the point (3), another trail leads to the upper path, just after the point (8).
  • At the confluence of the Lauze ravine, look for a series of boulders on a rocky ledge. A path passes there and climbs up the right bank of this ravine. Then cut through the woods to reach the road.
  • (6) At the junction with the marked trail, you can climb directly back up to Sévenier without making the detour to Évent des Grenouillettes.

Worth a visit

In the lower part of the canyon, you will see that the beavers have returned. Of course, you won't see them during the day, but you can admire the freshly cut trees, which haven't been seen for several decades.
In this section, if you look closely, you can also see traces of levees (dams) and irrigation channels, some of which appear to be fairly recent.

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5
Based on 24 reviews

Reliability of the description
4 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.6 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
User 27458849

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 06, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The first 5 kilometres are very interesting; this is the type of hike I'm looking for. Follow the riverbed, climb over rocks, cross streams... I would not recommend this part with children under the age of ten. After that, it becomes much less interesting in my opinion, with long stretches on tarmac roads, ending with the very dangerous Échelette road. I would not do it again.

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Claude R3.
Claude R3.

OK overall

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User 26563322

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Magnificent hike... Only to be done in summer and in dry weather...
A real change of scenery, very beautiful...

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Coiron
Coiron

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 01, 2024
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Depart from Les Séveniers, go around the farmhouse, follow the sign for "Vesseaux", go down to the river, turn left and stay in the stream bed.
There are no markings, which is fine
Exit onto the concrete dyke, take the road and at the third bend turn left to climb up to the Ganel cross.
Avoid doing this hike in the middle of summer (it gets hot in the canyon) and just after rain.
a leisurely 5 hours. By the way, I abandoned my "Never Happy" on the side of the road to go and fetch the car, heatstroke and bad timing... :-)

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Claude R3.
Claude R3.

Quite agreeable!

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mancusoagnes
mancusoagnes

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 20, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

a very beautiful and easy parish-specific to Brittany hike from 1 to 3 and from 5 to the arrival point... but difficult yet magnificent from 3 to 5! We were lucky enough to be able to climb the waterfall, but then it gets tough...there are no markings, so you have to go by feel, as there aren't many other options than to move forward along the riverbed from rock to rock, but it's not dangerous. Allow more time than indicated, as it's not really possible to run! It's also unlikely that you'll get lost if you follow the course of the river. Completed in 5 hours, including breaks

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Claude R3.
Claude R3.

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 31, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

No markings, no maintenance, paths cluttered with branches, difficult passages, definitely do not take children, contrary to the description. The exit vent is not easy to find because the passage is so cluttered. Allow more time than expected. From the start, the first hiker to pass through gets wet from the leaves and branches that brush against them on both sides. The circuit is particularly interesting in its upper part if the passage is maintained and markings are added to save time searching for the route.

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matthieu stephan
matthieu stephan

Overall rating : 2.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 09, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

I don't know if it was because it was the beginning of the season, but there were many places where it was necessary to wade through water. With no markings and very dense vegetation (watch out for splinters), progress was very slow and it was extremely difficult to find your way on this hike, despite the GPS track. Visorando would be well advised to revise the description of this hike: it is very difficult, unless you get your feet wet a lot, and NOT recommended for children. We did it in 5 hours, including breaks.

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marseille2
marseille2

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 20, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Superb hike, unspoilt nature, beautiful entrance to the Baume de Chabannes cave, beautiful natural pools and basins at this time of year, crystal clear water. There are no markings in the canyon, so in the absence of a trail, follow the riverbed to the end. Depending on the water level, there are certain passages in the canyon where you have to climb rocks, but nothing insurmountable. Children aged 10 and above are recommended. It took 4½ hours to complete this route (not counting stops).

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5zoreil
5zoreil

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 20, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It is a magnificent but difficult, even very difficult hike. The natural environment is very well preserved and beautiful. Be prepared to walk barefoot (yesterday the water was cold). The limestone is slippery, so bring pruning shears for the brambles. Progress is slow.

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Alain Perino
Alain Perino

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The path to follow is not always obvious: read the map carefully to determine your position in relation to the stream

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Xav26D
Xav26D

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A superb hike where nature remains unspoilt. In the canyon, as there is no path, follow the riverbed to the end. There are some sections in the canyon where you have to climb over rocks, but nothing insurmountable. However, I find that the duration of the hike is underestimated. I did it in 4 hours and 15 minutes.

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David et Lou
David et Lou

Thank you for your feedback, we will be delighted to return!

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pb07
pb07

Sorry for this misdirection. We can never be too precise in our descriptions. The bypass trail is indeed on the left bank, but you shouldn't have followed it all the way to the top (8); you should have turned left at some point to get back to the bottom of the ravine. I've tried to improve the text to avoid this mistake in the future. Feel free to come back and explore the canyon to the end, as there are still some surprising places to discover.

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David et Lou
David et Lou

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 13, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A magnificent hike through unspoilt countryside, with some wonderful birdwatching surprises thrown in.
Unfortunately, at point 3, faced with an impassable gully, we climbed up a steep track from the left bank (as indicated), when it seems that the crossing track is on the right bank. But the slope was so steep and gravelly that we decided not to go back down. Fortunately, we were able to continue climbing up to the plateau where we found the trail again just before point 8. So we missed a large part of the hike.
Please note: the end of the circuit passes through the area that was burned in July 2022.
We will return to discover the end of this magnificent route!

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