The entire Ravin des Encanaux, return via Les Infernets

The Encanaux and Infernets ravines are two remarkable valleys near Auriol. This route will take you up the entire length of the wild Encanaux ravine, which is very quiet and shaded in hot weather. The return journey will take you through the more classic Coutronne and Infernets ravines with their beautiful landscapes.

Details

8573396
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.54 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 494 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 496 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 673 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 242 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Start at the Encanaux car park on the Sainte-Baume road (see also § Practical Information).

(S/E) From the car park, head down Chemin des Encanaux on the left.

(1) After the barrier, take the path on the right which climbs up a staircase and quickly leads to the Glacière des Encanaux: the panels recounting the history of ice harvesting are informative and worth a quick stop. Continue along the marked path and ignore a turn-off on the right. You will come out onto the track you left earlier.

(2) Head right and ignore the side paths.

(3) Cross the Pont des Encanaux bridge and leave the track to take the path on the right that goes up the stream.

(4) At a small ford at the edge of the path, leave this well-marked path to cross the ford and continue uphill on the opposite bank.

(5) At this Y-junction, turn right and climb uphill: the path on the left leads to the source of the Encanaux, which is worth a visit (allow 10-15 minutes for the detour). From this point, there is only one path, with no crossroads. It crosses a small ford and continues to the right on the other bank (beautiful wild scenery on this section) and eventually leads to the bed of the stream, which is usually dry.

(6) Follow it up to the left for a few metres, then turn right (cairn) onto the ascending path. The climb is sometimes steep, but it is the only way to get around the waterfalls that close off the valley.

(7) At the Y-junction, turn left. The path descends towards the bottom of the valley and then continues uphill on the same bank. On the way, there are two short sections along the edge of the cliff where you need to be careful with children or dogs. At the end of the valley, the path crosses a dry ford and continues opposite with an uphill climb over scree (don't forget to turn around to enjoy the beautiful view overlooking the Encanaux ravine and its cliffs). On the plateau, continue straight ahead through the forest and ignore the side paths.

(8) At the T-junction, turn right and join a track that you will follow to the right.

(9) After two bends in the track, leave it on the right and take a wide path, which you will follow for 2 km, ignoring any side paths.

(10) At the crossroads, turn right. You will then come to yellow markings, which you should follow for the entire return journey. Depending on the season or after heavy rain, two fords require a little caution in the beautiful Infernets ravine.

(3) At the junction with the track you took on the way there, turn left and follow it to the car park, avoiding the Glacière circular (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 244 m - Encanaux car park
  2. 1 : km 0.14 - alt. 242 m - Barrier, on the right
  3. 2 : km 0.64 - alt. 265 m - Track, on the right
  4. 3 : km 0.92 - alt. 265 m - Pont des Encanaux
  5. 4 : km 1.18 - alt. 271 m - Ford to cross
  6. 5 : km 1.37 - alt. 292 m - Y-junction, to the right
  7. 6 : km 2.09 - alt. 355 m - Stream bed, left then right
  8. 7 : km 2.64 - alt. 480 m - Y-junction, left
  9. 8 : km 4.66 - alt. 668 m - T-junction, turn right
  10. 9 : km 4.86 - alt. 666 m - Fork to the right
  11. 10 : km 6.89 - alt. 615 m - Crossroads, on the right
  12. S/E : km 10.54 - alt. 244 m - Encanaux car park

Notes

At the start, select the OpenStreetMap hiking map on the Visorando app, as the entire first section after the Pont des Encanaux is not shown on the IGN map.
Allow 4 hours with a lunch break.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 11 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
LesDeuxLoulous
LesDeuxLoulous

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 19, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, the arrival on the plateau is magical between the view and the flora. We met a shepherd with his herd of goats and his Patou dog (always step aside and let them pass). There were quite a few people at the start because there is a fitness trail, making it a popular spot for families. But the crowds thin out after the first kilometre. An easy hike despite a steady climb. Done with two dogs weighing 10 and 20 kg.

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Daniel Ganem
Daniel Ganem

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 21, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful hikes with beautiful climbs offering stunning views of the region's mountains. Very shady, ideal at this time of year. Suitable footwear recommended.

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Gijean
Gijean
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 15, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Great hike at Les Encanaux with water in the lower section. The scree slope is tough towards the end, but when you turn around, the view is superb.
Hike completed in 3 hours and 25 minutes, not including breaks for photos and water.
Next time, I'll try to go beyond the spring (which is worth seeing) and climb up the dry stream bed, which has a tricky section. If anyone has any information...

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POLHRI
POLHRI

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 18, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A superb hike that is easy to follow if you pay attention to the signs. A little training is necessary to complete the entire route. Much of it is shaded, making it pleasant in mid-May and certainly even more so when the weather is warmer. But be sure to bring enough water. We saw almost no one else on the trail, which we completed in 5 hours and 15 minutes, including a picnic and breaks to admire the view. The rocky views are magnificent, as is the spring vegetation. Only the somewhat steep slope of the scree is challenging and requires you to use your hands at times.
Knowing Les Infernets well, on the way back we finally chose to end the route via the path to the Cave of the Dead (a short climb to visit it) then the Cave of Les Infernets (at the edge of the path), which ends at the fig tree shelter, then the steep descent back to the finish.
I'll repeat a comment already made by a fellow hiker: shortly before point 10, the main path is diverted by a line of stones and branches towards another trail. Ignore this, as the main path is not private and there is no reason to change the route to the place known as l'Adret.

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cigalelc
cigalelc

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 30, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant hike. The only downside was that I expected more water after all the recent rain. Only the first ford had water in it. I would happily do it again.

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Aquariel
Aquariel

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 26, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, a bit challenging, which suited us perfectly.
Interesting visit to the ice house with detailed explanations.
We had a little trouble finding the ford after the bridge, as nothing was dry due to the previous day's rain! The only dry ford was the one before the scree slope.
The climb up the scree slope is challenging if you don't have walking poles.
Crossing the Infernets ravine is relatively easy, with magnificent views of the rock formations.
The final stretch with the stream and its gours (a little busier) is very pleasant.

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Zephir
Zephir

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

The path can be technical and quite difficult to follow during the first half of the hike.
An interesting hike during which we hardly encountered anyone.
Be careful in case of heavy rain, as the path may be impassable due to flooding.

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gfeller
gfeller

Important note: before point 10, the main path is diverted by a line of stones and branches towards another track. Ignore this; the main path is not private and there is no reason to change the route to the place known as l'Adret.

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debersee alain
debersee alain

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 19, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike. It's true that at point 6, the climb is tough, especially towards the end, but it's very shady.

I took a different route from point 10 of this hike. I followed the route of hike "sur le haut du ravin des infernets et de la coutronne les encanaux" (route no. 176923) from point 5 of this hike and went back up
up to point 1. This allowed me to visit the two caves (Mort and Infernets) and avoid the detour to visit the ice house at points 1 to 2 of the initial hike.

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Jago
Jago

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

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

In my opinion, this part of the Sainte Baume massif is very wild and has probably not changed much over the last few hundred years... Access is quite difficult in places... (for experienced hikers).

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Pat Patroff
Pat Patroff

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

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

A very beautiful hike, mostly in the shade.
Ideal for the warmer months. It goes up and down, and the location is magnificent.
There's a ski lift to help you up the scree slope, and I go there every day.

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lemarcheur65
lemarcheur65 ★

Good morning, gfeller
Thank you for your comment.
But I can't delete it:
Interest of the hiking route: ★★★★★ Very good

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gfeller
gfeller

Hello, the full Ravin des Encanaux hike does not pass through these caves at all. Clearly, svcricri's comment refers to another route, probably No. 6333610, La Tête de Chien aux Encanaux.
Happy hiking!

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svcricri
svcricri
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Difficulty finding the caves: for the Chouans cave, follow the cairns as indicated in marioign's comments dated 10/05/24.
We couldn't find the Grotte des Morts!
A very wild and sometimes difficult route, with lots of undergrowth: don't wear shorts and, if possible, wear long sleeves!
A very beautiful hike with magnificent views of our Provençal peaks ! The vegetation is varied and very beautiful after this rainy winter and spring. However, there is no water in the ravines, but you can cool off when you arrive near the car park!
We only encountered one bicycle all day.

Moderator's note: 12 June 2024
This comment should be about the hike: La Tête de Chien aux Encanaux n° 6333610
https://www.visorando.com/randonnee-la-t...

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