Mont Puget via the Mestrallet valley

On the day I did it, 8 October 2025, the route was different from today's: I never went through the Vallon du Mestrallet!
The GPS took me along the DFCI path that goes around Mont Puget and then along a fairly steep corridor (very pleasant, incidentally) to come out below Aiguille Guillermin and Mont Puget. Descent via the Treize Contours trail.
A very beautiful walk, but not the one described.
Not knowing the area, I followed the GPS, then checked afterwards and realised that it didn't match.

That said, I had a great time. Just for your information.

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Date of your route : Sep 22, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

At point 3, take the path at the foot of the cliff (do not try to follow the old GPS trail, which quickly disappears into the vegetation)
At point 5, it would be a shame not to take a short detour to the Puget cross (magnificent view of the Riou archipelago and the Bay of Marseille) and then continue towards the summit of Puget. At point 6, you can take the more technical Ste Marthe valley on the left (scree and a few small downclimbing passages to reach the hiking trail at point 8)

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Date of your route : May 12, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant short hike, very varied with magnificent views.
A few tricky sections due to rocky terrain, but nothing too difficult.
Thank you for this beautiful route.

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Date of your route : Feb 16, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike with magnificent views over Marseille and its creeks. Be careful, the passage through the scree between points 4 and 5 is not that easy to find (follow the path at the foot of the cliff carefully; an old trail that used to run right next to it has been overgrown by heath) or to negotiate (it climbs steeply over rocks). There are numerous downhill sections on stony paths, so be careful if you have weak ankles.

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

The hike was magnificent.
We did it with children aged 6 and 7, but it was perhaps a little difficult (even though they did well) and a dog (Malinois).
Between points 5 and 6, we veered off the path to climb up and see the incredible view that awaited us!
We missed the path to point 6, so we had to take a slight detour, which led us to a very steep but passable path, and we found point 7.
There are quite a few rocky paths, so be careful not to slip. Good footwear is essential for this hike!

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Date of your route : Feb 21, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very good hike. A variety of landscapes (rocks, forest, inland views, sea views, etc.). Point 2 is not easy to spot. In the heat of the moment, I went down the road. A small path on the right allows you to get back to the original path in 5 minutes rather than going back up (just in case). After that, the path is clear, but it's best to follow the GPS track for points 3, 4 and 5. From point 5, don't hesitate to stray from the path to get closer to the cliff on the sea side and admire the view! It's easy to find your way back to the route afterwards.

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Date of your route : Feb 04, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A fantastic, original and varied hike. It starts in a "canyon" with beautiful ivy and then offers magnificent views of the Mont Puget plateau. The route isn't that easy to follow. As mentioned in previous comments, point 2 is not obvious (the small, rudimentary cairn helped us identify the path); do not go all the way down the DFCI track.

For point 6, I didn't see "Vallon de l'Herbe marked on a rock", but we followed the small path that descends to the left, indicated by a green dotted "arrow" on a small rock.

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Date of your route : Mar 20, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

point 2: The start of the path is very discreet. The rocky section is easy to navigate, as is the arrival at Croix du Puget. (There, I extended the circuit by catching up with the GR towards La Candelle, then the red trail via Cap Gros). Point 6: the return route is called "le sentier de l'Herbe" (the grass path), marked on a rock with green markings 6. I preferred the Ste Marthe valley path (green dots), which is more fun with scree and two rocky outcrops.
The Mistrallet valley (= small mistral), with rock shelters converted into basic shelters and sheepfolds, is not very popular because it is not marked, but the path to the Puget cross is relatively obvious.

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Date of your route : Jan 03, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Thank you for this wonderful journey, I thoroughly enjoyed it

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Date of your route : Mar 04, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The circuit was not very busy today, and is probably even less so at weekends and during holidays.
I agree with Philippe and Valérie's previous comments.

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Date of your route : Feb 27, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A fairly strenuous hike, although relatively short.
The Centaure trail, which you reach after the Ricard pass, has been considerably widened (it is now a DFCI firebreak trail), meaning that the entrance to the Mestrallet valley is no longer clearly visible. We have rebuilt a rudimentary cairn to mark the entrance. If you reach the point where the red trail veers off to the right, leaving the DFCI track, you have gone too far (which is what happened to us!) and you will have to turn back...
The path through the Mestrallet valley is straightforward, except just after the small cirque covered in ivy. About a hundred metres after the ivy cirque and after entering the small gorge, it feels as if the path is going downhill. Do not continue straight ahead (you will soon come to an impassable rock barrier anyway), but look up to the left to see two small cairns. Climb (off the path) about ten metres, using these cairns as a guide, and you will soon find the path that leads to the summit. It is a steep climb.
At point 5, it is worth climbing to the summit of Mont Puget (a clearly visible cross guides you) as the view of the coast (with Morgiou, the Anse de la Triperie, the Bec Sormiou, the islands and the town) is magnificent. Follow the green dotted markings to leave Mont Puget and rejoin the route described a little further on. The descent follows the green markings (Vallon de l'Herbe, direction marked on a rock) and leaves the green dotted markings (Vallon de Sainte Marthe)
The route was fairly busy except in the Vallon du Mestrallet.

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Date of your route : Jan 17, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

nothing is clear – neither the description nor the map

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Date of your route : Oct 02, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Magnificent hike: the most beautiful I have done in the region, combining mountain and sea landscapes.
We did the hike in the opposite direction, returning via the Mestrallet valley on the way down.
As the hike was quite short, we continued along the ridges to Cap Gros to admire the view of Cassis, Cap Canaille and the Devenson cliffs below.
The descent through the Mestrallet valley is a small, stony path that is a little technical. I think it would have been easier to do it uphill, as indicated in the description.

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Date of your route : Jul 07, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It is a very pleasant route with an excellent gradual climb. In addition, the Mestrallet valley is off the beaten track.
The description between points 3 and 4 should be more precise. There is a small step where you have to climb two metres up on the left to cross a threshold and enter the small gorges. It would be good to specify that these are narrow, three metres wide, and only last about a hundred metres.
At point 4, it is not a circle of stones but a pile of neatly stacked stones 20 to 30 cm thick that blocks the path and invites you not to go back down but to continue on the left, climbing less than 10 metres and looking for the cairn towards the south-west, which will put you back on the path.
In fact, this is the only difficult part of the route; the rest is straightforward. So it is this small difficulty that needs to be detailed. I hike without a GPS.
It would be good to specify that the descent is via the Vallon de l'Herbe. Perhaps also indicate at point 8, at the confluence of the two valleys, the presence of a stone well in the thicket nearby.
It's a very nice hike, which I personally did starting from the University car park in Luminy, taking the Chemin du Centaure below the Falaises de Luminy on the way there and back. It's a little longer, but accessible by bus from Marseille.

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Date of your route : Apr 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful, easy walk. The Mestrallet valley is magnificent and not very busy. From Mont Puget, there are stunning views of the islands. We were lucky enough to have a picnic surrounded by irises in bloom, which is typical for this time of year. Definitely a walk worth doing.

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