Le Grand Défens

A short loop above Villes-sur-Auzon offering beautiful views of the Monts de Vaucluse.

Details

86767
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.63 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 272 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 272 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 574 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 302 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the car park between the tennis courts and the football stadium in Villes-sur-Auzon.

(S/E) With the stadium on your right, take Chemin des Pierres and follow it up to the left until you reach the Réganéou crossroads, located on a tarmac esplanade.

(1) Continue straight ahead towards Les Escampeaux on a path that runs along the D942 on the right. Follow the red and white markings for the BG91 and, 300 m further on, turn left at a fork. Go through the tunnel that allows the path to pass under the D942 and climb up the Combe de l'Ermitage. Stay on theGR® markings and ignore the other paths until you reach the Les Escampeaux junction.

(2) Take the small path on the far right just behind the sign, towards Le Grand Défens marked in yellow. It climbs up through the heath until it joins a stony path at a crossroads 400m higher up.

(3) Turn right to continue climbing. Be careful, at this point the trail is marked on the map but not on the ground. About 800m further on, it comes out onto a path.

(4) Keep right to continue on a flat section and arrive at the Le Grand Défens crossroads.
Turn right onto the yellow-marked trail towards Balavard, passing cistern no. 201 on your right and all the trailheads to stay on this ridge trail.
After a long straight stretch, go through a gate and continue on the left-hand path to reach the Balavard junction on the D942

(5). Turn right onto this road towards Le Plateau. Be careful as this road can be quite busy in high season.
Once in the bend, do not take the path opposite but continue right along the road for about ten metres. Follow a sign marked Sentier de Découverte, turn left for 10 metres to reach the sign for Le Plateau/

(6). Turn right onto the path that descends towards Réganéou, marked in red and white (GR®), ignoring all the other paths and staying on the main path.
After almost 2 km of a more or less stony descent, the trail ends at a road at the Réganéou crossroads.

(1) Turn left onto Chemin des Pierres and return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 302 m - Car park at the sports grounds in Villes-sur-Auzon
  2. 1 : km 0.49 - alt. 319 m - Réganéou
  3. 2 : km 2.33 - alt. 399 m - Les Escampeaux
  4. 3 : km 2.77 - alt. 455 m - Crossroads at elevation 455
  5. 4 : km 3.64 - alt. 572 m - Crossroads at elevation 574
  6. 5 : km 5.97 - alt. 429 m - Balavard, on the D942
  7. 6 : km 6.5 - alt. 429 m - The Plateau
  8. S/E : km 8.63 - alt. 302 m - Car park at the sports grounds in Villes-sur-Auzon

Notes

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

4.5 / 5
Based on 28 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.2 / 5
ramatuelle83
ramatuelle83

Always good for Visorando hikes
Have a nice day, thank you

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Rainaud jm
Rainaud jm
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 28, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely hike with beautiful views, although the return journey was a little monotonous.

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annecollongues
annecollongues

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 29, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Another beautiful walk from Slinky. Everything is perfectly signposted and it's a treat to be able to follow the printed directions without having to touch your phone. It took me about 2½ hours, walking at a leisurely pace, without any long breaks.

The "climb" up to the Défens plateau takes about an hour to an hour and a quarter, and you can picnic up there with a view of the Vaucluse mountains before starting the descent and return.

Apart from the very beginning, which is shaded, the rest of the route is in the sun. Keep this in mind during the summer.

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metaxian
metaxian

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 04, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very well-balanced circuit thanks to its diversity, with an ascent in the morning, a lunch break in a cedar forest, and a descent in the afternoon. We thoroughly enjoyed it on this September Sunday.
Easy to find parking, highly recommended

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visosousou
visosousou

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 12, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

hike without any major difficulties, pleasant route with very little road walking. Route well explained on paper, even if you don't have the app on your phone

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pimpampel
pimpampel

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 21, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Autumn walk with beautiful colours. Beautiful view of the valley, hills, lace-like peaks and Mont Ventoux
The last part of the descent is quite rocky, but it's easy going. Duration: 2.5 hours

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N-A.R
N-A.R

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 28, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An easy hike with beautiful views of Mont Ventoux, the Dentelles, the valley and, finally, the village of Villes sur Auzon, which can be seen during a slightly boring stretch on a stony path during the descent. This is a family-friendly hike where you can often walk side by side.
Thanks Slinky for sharing!

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lodavi
lodavi

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 22, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely short walk, shorter than indicated and fairly uncrowded. Not very difficult either. The descent is not great and quite stony.

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randojcv
randojcv

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 21, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

First part: beautiful view of Mont Ventoux, second part: a little less interesting, section on the plateau a little long
3 hours and 15 minutes of walking with two stops of about 15 minutes each. Section on the roadOeil = motorcyclists but very short
In short, nice and peaceful for getting back into it

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chrisbleue84
chrisbleue84

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 18, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Very easy hike, extremely well described, beautiful views of Mont Ventoux, 2 hours max

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Canard
Canard

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 02, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very pleasant family hike on the beautiful Defens plateau with a stunning view of Mont Ventoux and the Dentelles.

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oliviers
oliviers

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 08, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A pleasant walk, although it is very cold and damp in the Combe de l'Ermitage.
It would be good to indicate the distance to be covered on the road before taking the discovery trail.
I will do it again in the opposite direction in spring to better enjoy the view of Mont Ventoux.
thank you for this route

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NOUVENE
NOUVENE

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 11, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A pleasant hike for an autumn afternoon. Follow Visorando's instructions to the letter and you'll have no problems.

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trailer84
trailer84

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 24, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Diverse landscapes, beautiful summer colours. I went for a walk on my own, but I'll be back with my family. Easy route.

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Ginyboo
Ginyboo

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 15, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

For my first solo hike, it was perfect. The description was spot on and the map helped me with any little doubts I had. The hike took me two and a half hours and I enjoyed the beautiful autumn colours.

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