The Roman camps of Lussas

A page of history for children and adults. 2,800 years ago, the Helvetii - long before the Gauls - settled in this region and built their first fortified villages on the cliffs. Julius Caesar himself described these enclosed and isolated places as "Oppidum". The Romans, who colonised the region from the 1st century AD onwards, finished the job. Further south is the "Camp de César", a Roman camp. The return path runs very close to the edge of the cliff, so please be careful.

Details

961504
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Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.44 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 1h 45 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 54 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 56 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 371 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 303 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Access: in Aubenas, head towards Privas until you reach the Saint-Privat roundabout (Garden Centre). Then turn right onto the D259 towards Lussas. There is a small car park on the plateau after the bends.

(S/E) From the car park, return towards Aubenas for 50 metres and take the leftmost path. Leave the fork on the right, then continue for 80 metres.

(1) Turn right, walk 50 metres to reach a path and follow it to the left. On this path, turn left twice in succession, then continue straight ahead through the heath for 800 metres heading south (path closed by an electric fence - cows in winter, open in summer, but no problem to use).

(2) Take the path on the right at a right angle. Continue straight ahead for 300 metres until you enter the grounds of Camp de César. Follow the path that veers to the left. Continue until you reach the cliff (viewpoint, be careful).

(3) Turn onto the track on the right (heading north, parallel to the cliff), then after 40 metres, turn onto the first track on the right. This track goes around the camp, heading due west for 150 metres along the north wall, then turning at a right angle to the north. It runs along the cliff at a distance of 50 metres, then very close to the edge. At the end, it turns left right at the edge, so be very careful. You will come to a wider path on your left, blocked by stones to mark the immediate proximity of the cliff edge.

(4) Walk along the stones on the right, find the track that heads east then north-east. It runs through the Oppidum, goes around the fortifications and returns due south. At this point, visit the towers and ramparts directly in front of you. Set off again directly opposite the north-eastern end of the fortifications and find a path that heads due south.

(5) At the fork, turn left and continue east. Then turn left north-northeast to reach the road. The car park is 50 metres to the right (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 317 m - Parking on the D259.
  2. 1 : km 0.57 - alt. 312 m - Crossroads
  3. 2 : km 1.69 - alt. 313 m - Plateau du Gras, crossroads
  4. 3 : km 2.53 - alt. 371 m - Caesar's camp, viewpoint
  5. 4 : km 4.09 - alt. 314 m - Oppidum, cliff edge
  6. 5 : km 4.69 - alt. 309 m - Oppidum, fortifications, sign
  7. S/E : km 5.44 - alt. 317 m - Parking on the D259.

Notes

No water.
Be very careful with children (we cannot stress this enough), especially when approaching point (4).
Technically very easy walk, suitable for children aged 4 and above.

Worth a visit

To round off the day: visit the dolmens of Mias
After the walk, take the car towards Lussas to Eyriac, turn right towards Les Rieux then Mias. Park. At the crossroads, take the path south between the houses which leads to the dolmens, one of which is in very good condition. (1200m round trip). On the way back, from Mias, take the D224, turn right at Lavilledieu, then at the traffic lights head towards Aubenas.
Alternatively, there is a collapsed dolmen near the car park at the start of the walk, towards Lussas, 150 m on the right before the path that heads south.

Reviews and comments

4.2 / 5
Based on 9 reviews

Reliability of the description
3.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.4 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
Noush
Noush

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 24, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Nice hike!

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nael2015
nael2015

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 18, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The description was unclear, in our opinion.

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ardo
ardo

In my opinion, you did not follow the path indicated! (See other reviews)

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mrugala
mrugala

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 10, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The description of the route at the start and end is very poor. It would suffice to say to take the hiking trail (yellow and white markings) to the first signpost.
What's more, you can set off directly from the car park, so why make us take the road?
Explanation 3 is completely wrong: it mentions a cliff, but this is only 1 km further on, practically at point 4!
In short, it is better to do without the explanations if you don't want to get lost.

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Alain Fournière
Alain Fournière

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 19, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very pleasant!

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Phil_Mag
Phil_Mag
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 25, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A lovely hike that isn't difficult when the weather is good. A storm caught us by surprise halfway through, which made the outing rather epic! It's a shame there isn't a bit more information about the walls...

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e-v-e
e-v-e

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 16, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

It was a lovely walk through the heath, easy and pleasant, recommended in spring or during cooler periods as there is no shade along the route (lots of fragrant boxwood) rather than in summer, which is often scorching in this area.
It would have been interesting to find more historical information about this camp, and the signposting is a little lacking.
The view over the valley is magnificent, following the meanders of the Ardèche, and the walk is easy.

I discovered Visorando and it didn't work properly (no network, incorrect or missing handling) and we were accompanied to the site by someone from the area. However, this software shows great promise!

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CeliaAnaëJonathan
CeliaAnaëJonathan

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 18, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

It was a great hike with magnificent views!

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bleu azur
bleu azur

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 12, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

educational rondo
Be very careful near cliffs

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