The Gorges du Doubs

Car-sharing car park in Fournet-Blancheroche, in the centre of the village. Yellow, blue and white-red markings.

(S/E) Head left as you leave the car park towards the signpost (towards Barrage du Refrain) and walk down the departmental road carefully until you reach the start of the first bend, then turn left into the woods via the forest path.
Just before reaching the main road, turn left into the pasture through a metal gate and head diagonally downwards to another gate. Enjoy the superb view of the French-Swiss mountains.

(1) Cross the road carefully and head left towards the small car park and a wooden hut nearby. Head down to the right into the woods towards the dam to reach a clear, gravelly area and a lodge. Superb view of the cliffs. Continue down the stony path to the main road.

(2) Cross carefully to get to the right side of the road and head down to the right for 200 metres until you reach the gravel forest track (signpost) leading down into the woods on the left. You will soon descend along a picturesque, steep path, winding through sharp limestone pavement and rocks, until you reach a fork in the tracks with a view of the river.

(3) Head down to the left towards ‘Le Refrain’. Cross a stream rushing down the hill via a metal footbridge to soon reach the dam and its small tarmac road.

(4) Head up to the left for about fifty metres, then descend to the right towards the river along the stony path between the crash barriers. It will guide you through these impressive gorges, winding its way between the enormous moss-covered boulders that have tumbled down from the cliffs over the millennia. You’ll come to a fork in the trail marked by a signpost.

(5) Start on the left with the steep climb towards the Belvédère de la Cendrée and you’ll soon come to a small tarmac road.
Follow it to the left for about 150 m and head into the pasture on the right, climbing the wooden ladder. Climb diagonally to the left towards the edge of the woods.
Continue along the forest track which, at the foot of a hillock, forks. Keep right onto the wider path, soon turning sharply right. You’ll rejoin the small road at the foot of the superb cliffs, continuing for some two hundred metres.
Shortly after a blue sign reading ‘Signal sonore obligatoire’ (Audible warning required), turn right onto the forest path (a gully) for a final push to a small clearing overlooking the valley and a fork in the tracks marked by a signpost.

(6) Walk left for about ten steps and, at the new fork, continue the climb to the left along the ledge, towards “La Cendrée”. A little further up, at a fork, head down to the left to reach the beautiful ridge line and a hiking junction, marked by a signpost for “La Cendrée”, 995 metres. Continue straight on to the viewpoint.

(7) Set off again along the path that runs alongside the fence and the ledge until you reach a small tarmac road, which you cross, continuing along the path opposite, still following the ledges to the second viewpoint. To the far left are the Arêtes de Sommêtres.

(8) Set off again, following the fence and the ledges, dotted with beautiful crevices. You enter a pasture through a small stone archway. Keep the edge of the pasture on your left and arrive at the final viewpoint over the valley, continuing along the ledge. Cross another pasture, keeping the edge on your left.

(9) Please note: you will re-enter the woods after about forty steps. Look for the yellow-blue mark on a conifer on your left. It marks the barely visible path that descends beneath the rocks, right at the far left, and merges with the rocky edge of the ledge. Don’t miss this lovely path, which brings this walk to a very pleasant close.
You’ll arrive at a pasture which you cross, keeping your eyes on the wooden chalet next to the car park (S/E).

The route includes ledge paths and unsecured viewpoints. Some paths are described as ‘mountain routes, narrow paths along cliffs’, rocky and slippery in places. Sturdy footwear and walking poles are essential.

(1) and (2) Take care on the (fortunately short) sections of the D464: commuters drive fast during rush hour!

It is recommended that you do not go near the riverbank, as the dam may release water at any time.

The Refrain Dam was built on the initiative of the Société des Forces Motrices du Refrain and inaugurated in 1909. It was nationalised in 1946, when Électricité de France was established. It is, nonetheless, an eyesore on the river.

The Doubs Gorges: the river, winding its way around the moss-covered rocks that obstruct its course and, over time, carving out the Franco-Swiss border, flows through impressive, wild and verdant gorges, sometimes reaching heights of 150 metres.

(5) The Couleuses: nestled between steep, seemingly impassable cliffs, the Doubs valley features steep paths known as the ‘couleuses’. These allowed farmers from the plateaus, smugglers, deserters and even poachers to descend into the valley. It was via these smuggling routes that the ‘bricotte’ took place. Scouts would warn the smugglers, laden with bales, of the presence of the ‘gabelous’, the customs officers.

(7) and (8) The Cendrée and Sur les Roches viewpoints offer sweeping panoramic views of the Franco-Swiss Doubs Valley.