Country:
City:
Parking is available at the car park on the Route de Montmirail, or at the side of the road at Pont du Rieu, but only for one or two cars.
(S/E) Start at the signpost at Pont du Rieu, on the outskirts of Vacqueyras heading towards Montmirail. Take the Chemin de Caveau north-east and follow it for just under a kilometre.
(1) Turn right onto a fairly wide path that descends and crosses a bridge before climbing back up through the vineyards.
(2) Leave the path on your right and continue straight ahead. Continue uphill for 300 m, then turn right onto a flatter path for 200 m, before a 180° bend to the left. Climb another 100 m to reach a ruined farmhouse.
(3) Take the path on the left and continue northwards through a wooded area, passing several entrances to vineyard plots on either side. When the path emerges from the woods, follow it for another 150 m to a pass.
(4) Ignore the paths on the left and the one climbing up to the right; continue straight ahead on the path that runs through the trees before beginning to descend. The path eventually reaches a stream and, after a hairpin bend to the left, turn right. Ten metres further on, take a path on the right which climbs the embankment and heads into the undergrowth. Follow it and, after 300 m, join the GRP®.
(5) Head off to the right. When the path makes a 90° bend to the right, leave it and take the path that climbs to the left. Follow it despite some very steep sections. After about 400 m, it joins another path; continue in the same direction for a further 200 m before coming out onto a much wider track.
(6) Turn left onto a path that climbs steeply. The middle is completely washed out by runoff, but it is passable on both sides. About 150 m further on, the path splits: continue straight ahead and join the DFCI track, which you should follow to the Col d’Alsau.
(7) Take the log staircase, then follow the path to the left. At the first junction, continue straight on. Two hundred metres further on, take the path on the right which climbs up a scree slope. Continue to the ridge (superb views).
(8) Cross the ridge and begin the descent through a holm oak wood. After 400 m, the path turns left, then, another 400 m further on, it turns right again. Another left turn, then turn right. One hundred and fifty metres further on, at a collapsed cairn, turn left then continue the descent until you reach the fire brigade track.
(9) Take this track to the left and follow it downhill. Pass the gate and continue to the cistern.
(10) Leave the track and take a path on the right that runs between the vineyards. Go over a small pass and descend towards a large vineyard plot. Twenty metres further on, ignore the first path on the right and take a stony track that branches off to the right of the main path and descends alongside piles of large stones. Follow the edge of the embankment alongside the vineyard plot, then continue the descent to a fairly wide path which you should take straight ahead, heading downhill. Continue down this path until you reach the track at a small abandoned building (the pumping station for the Montmirail purge water).
(11) Continue along the track to the right. After the hairpin bend, pass the “Menhir de Vacqueyras” on the left, then the two caves on the right, and take a path that climbs up to the right. Pass the first path on the right, then a second, and continue straight ahead, slightly to the right and downhill. Follow the path to the other side of the vineyard plot and turn left. At the bottom of the slope, turn left to rejoin the DFCI track.
(12) Cross it and take the path leading uphill straight ahead. Following the vineyards, and after several bends still going downhill, you’ll reach the Ruisseau du Lauchun. Take a path—sometimes muddy—that follows the stream a few metres away before crossing over it. Continue along this path, which passes to the left of a ruined house.
(13) After crossing the stream, follow a wide, carriageable track to the right, which joins the Chemin d’Ambrosi 100 m further on. Continue in the same direction until you reach the (tarmac) Chemin des Crottes. Turn left and follow the road through these small gorges. Leave the Chemin de Payard on your left and, 80 m further on, take a path that climbs up to the right.
(14) Turn immediately left onto a small path that runs alongside a vineyard plot on the right. At the end of the plot, cross the embankment to the right and take Chemin de Pié Ripert. Continue along this path past a large house, then leaving Chemin des Chambilles on your left.
(15) Cross a small bridge on the left and then turn left again, between the olive trees. Climb up a slope and follow the vineyards on the right until you reach a fairly wide path, which you follow up to the Montmirail road. Turn left and, after 50 m, you will reach the car park (S/E).
Visorando Member
Difficult 
