Les Demoiselles Coiffées from Théus

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Beautiful views of the Salle de Bal des Demoiselles Coiffées

Details

n°3872086
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.70 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 40 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 523 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 525 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,324 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 837 m
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Description of the walk

Park in the Demoiselles car park at the exit of Théus.

(S/E) At the car park exit, head towards the ford and cross it, keeping to the right. Follow the Vallauria stream, staying on the yellow marked trail. You will reach another ford.

(1) Continue straight ahead, do not cross the ford, and you will come to athird ford further on.

(2) Cross here and continue along the right bank of the stream. You will reach a footbridge that marks the entrance to the Demoiselles Coiffées ballroom. Cross this room to reach the exit onto a tarmac road.

(3) Here, you can turn left to reach the picnic area.
Back at the crossroads, continue straight ahead. Take the dirt track on the right at the bend and continue along this forest path. You will reach an area of fields.

(4) Continue on to enter the Moyenne Durance National Forest. You will come to a sheepfold in a clearing.

(5) Go behind this sheepfold and take a path on the left to reach a forest track. Follow this track to return to the Demoiselles car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 839 m - Les Demoiselles car park at the exit of Théus
  2. 1 : km 0.8 - alt. 930 m - Ford no. 1
  3. 2 : km 1.13 - alt. 984 m - Ford no. 2
  4. 3 : km 2.87 - alt. 1,305 m - Salle du bal des Demoiselles Coiffées
  5. 4 : km 4.05 - alt. 1,304 m - Fields
  6. 5 : km 6.13 - alt. 1,151 m - Sheepfold
  7. S/E : km 7.7 - alt. 840 m - Les Demoiselles car park at the exit of Théus

Worth a visit

(3) To find out more about Les Demoiselles
If you have time on your return, take your car to Mont Colombis, where you can enjoy a magnificent panorama: several orientation tables and a view of the Serre Ponçon reservoir

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 15 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
coyote71
coyote71

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, but you do need to be a little more careful at point 5.
Note that there is a private property sign, but this did not stop us.
We ended the hike with a visit to the small village of Théus, dear to Giono.

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Simone claude
Simone claude

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 10, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pretty, well-marked trail with a few tricky sections on the descent where you need to be sure-footed 😁

I recommend it for experienced hikers.

Thank you for this route.

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Kicri
Kicri

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 16, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

We did this route in early April 2025. It is very interesting. Ideal for hairdressers, as there are many ladies' heads to style. One thing to note: depending on your fitness level, you can choose between Théus (more elevation gain) or Rémollon, the neighbouring village. The few ladies in the latter village are easy to access.
At point 5 in Serre Giraud, the house is a good landmark for turning left. At this point, earthworks have erased the junction between the path and the trail. The trail can be found a little further on

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RadisLon
RadisLon
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 15, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful, peaceful hike. Stunning views of Les Demoiselles Coiffées and then the Durance valley. A varied route.
However, the route back via Serre Giraud (after Point 5) needs to be changed: we couldn't find the trail markers anymore, probably because they had been removed by the farmer (tree planting and field). The suggested route requires crossing an unmowed field, which we don't like to do! So we turned back and took the track that goes around the woods and passes by the Noutaret house. At the next big hairpin bend, we spotted the suggested path downhill, coming from the right... Route to be done perhaps in reverse to see where the path leads in the Serre Giraud meadow?

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Kicri
Kicri

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

We did this route in early April 2025. It is very interesting. Ideal for hairdressers, as there are many ladies' heads to style. One thing to note: depending on your fitness level, you can choose between Théus (more elevation gain) or Rémollon, the neighbouring village. The few ladies in the latter village are easy to access.

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nomisimon
nomisimon

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

A lovely circular route alternating between passages through the stream valley, viewpoints and return along the balcony path.

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piat colette
piat colette

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

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

A very beautiful hike for experienced hikers due to the significant elevation gain on the way there

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piat colette
piat colette

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 16, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful hike but significant elevation gain on the way there for experienced and seasoned hikers

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Mch79
Mch79

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Arrival on the road to the viewpoint was straightforward, but the signage for the return journey was unclear. You have to go back up, then in the bend there is no signage and there is a private property sign.
But it was a very beautiful hike and we didn't meet anyone

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Noby
Noby

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Thank you!

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Polo la rando
Polo la rando
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 16, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

For your information, regarding point 3, it is still possible to go to the picnic area, but access to the field is no longer possible. Despite the clear signage, the path is clearly prohibited by the local farmer. We made the round trip.

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Britanicus100
Britanicus100
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 10, 2015
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

Hike completed in 2015 with an ascent of Mont Colombis, followed by a visit to the Demoiselles Coiffées.
I made a video that shows these waterfalls and describes the atmosphere of our trip.
it's here https://youtu.be/JHLz8KXJIiA

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Hirondelles45
Hirondelles45

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 09, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely circular route starting from the car park in Theus. The climb is steep all the way along the stream, but the view of the rock chimneys is well worth the effort, with plenty of benches to sit on and admire them. The return to the village is along a road that reveals a wild, rural and unspoilt landscape dotted with a few farms. The views over the valley are magnificent.

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le dd
le dd

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 11, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

An excellent walk through splendid water lilies
Perfect for the route
Thank you

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jonpallot
jonpallot ★

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 31, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

thank you for this lovely walk

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