Walk along the Auze river in Araules-Saint-Jeures

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A short route to include as an alternative on your local walks that pass through Vareille and then the road, providing access to the Auze up to a little-known waterfall at the bottom of almost impassable gorges.
The paths not shown on the IGN map are nevertheless passable; the Auze is crossed via two large steps (requiring a bit of a jump) at one of the only possible points, regardless of the river’s level.

Details

n°2088976
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 3.79 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 656 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 663 ft
  • ▲
    Highest point: 3,461 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 3,002 ft
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Photos

cable

Description of the walk

Moderator update as of 10/08/2020: Please note! Some paths appear to be blocked by vegetation. Check the reviews.

(S/E) Start from the car park in front of the dairy in Araules. Walk past the town hall and post office to reach the crossroads by the church.

(1) Walk alongside the church, with the cemetery on your left, along the road signposted “Coucoules” for 800 m.

(2) At the bend, near a fence, follow the path to the right, continuing along the road; keep going downhill through the woods until you reach the first houses of Vareilles, where the path ends in a small valley.

(3) Turn onto the path on the right for about 500 m.

(4) There used to be a bridge at this point leading up to La Rochette; it is still marked on maps although it was washed away over thirty years ago! So stay on the path for 200 m through a recently cleared area.

(5) Leave the path, which disappears a little further on, and head uphill for about twenty metres to find a passage through a very old mill race. Follow it for 100 m; the waterfall is just below. Head back down towards the Auze, crossing via two large flat rocks conveniently positioned in the stream. I’ve attached a cable above the Auze to help with the crossing.

(6) On the other bank, head off in the opposite direction for 300 m and climb the very steep path on the right. You’ll come out onto aPR® which leads, to the right, southwards to La Rochette. A possible shortcut climbs up to the right along the rocks, 100 m after crossing the Auze. (Pink markers)

(7) In the hamlet of La Rochette, you join theGR® - Saint-Jacques, which emerges from the left at the exit; it leads to Araules, crossing the A-road which it follows overhead before joining it. Follow the scallop shells and take the small shortcut to the left at the sewage treatment plant, which leads into the village towards the church.

(1) Turn left and head for the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 3,419 ft - Car park at the Araules dairy
  2. 1 : mi 0.08 - alt. 3,409 ft - Church crossroads
  3. 2 : mi 0.6 - alt. 3,399 ft - End of the tarmac road
  4. 3 : mi 1.11 - alt. 3,012 ft - Path before Vareille
  5. 4 : mi 1.41 - alt. 3,002 ft - Old bridge
  6. 5 : mi 1.56 - alt. 3,048 ft - End of the trail
  7. 6 : mi 1.64 - alt. 3,107 ft - Passage of the - Auze (rivière)
  8. 7 : mi 2.17 - alt. 3,379 ft - La Rochette
  9. S/E : mi 3.79 - alt. 3,422 ft - Car park at the Araules dairy

Notes

The only interesting part of the route is the Araules–La Rochette section, as it does not appear on any map.
It is short and can be incorporated into my “schoolchildren’s path” route.

Worth a visit

The bakery-grocery shop and the dairy (cheese shop) are open on Sunday mornings.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

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Reviews and comments

3.5 / 5
Based on 7 reviews
Reliability of the description
3.4 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.4 / 5
Route interest
3.6 / 5
ferblantier
ferblantier

Actually, no, we didn't cross via the cable.
Thank you for your reply

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picotel
picotel

... you must have gone the wrong way; the route isn’t quite right by the stream, but it follows the old leat of a mill that’s no longer there. I cleared the route myself not long ago!
The blue markings were added by other people who have ‘copied’ my route!
Did you manage to cross at the “cable”?

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ferblantier
ferblantier

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 18, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The section along the river was difficult to follow. Finding the path on this stretch isn’t easy.
There is a Blue Circle marker – is that part of the route?
Can be done in 1.5 hours.

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Rébecc
Rébecc

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 19, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The paths have virtually disappeared between point 2 and point 7. The path is not maintained at all. You have to cut across the woods.
The scenery is very beautiful and the walk through L'Auze is lovely. Avoid doing this walk with children when it’s hot as there is a lot of tall grass and the paths have disappeared.

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pradel
pradel

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 25, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Very busy route : No

The first part of the route takes you through sections where logging machinery has damaged the path and the landscape. The Auze river isn’t very visible and the scenery is a bit uninspiring. The return journey takes you through a rather pleasant landscape (apart from the dairy and the sewage treatment plant, which are necessary, but…

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Lesauches
Lesauches

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

Perfect. Just a slight lack of detail regarding the river crossing. But otherwise, no issues overall.
Just to note that many trees have fallen and you have to crawl under them, which isn’t always easy for everyone...

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Pascal07300
Pascal07300

Well done on maintaining the footpaths

Enjoy your walks.

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picotel
picotel

That’s sorted – I’ve cleared the whole route, so it’s now safe to cycle in shorts.
Please let me know about any issues like this on the routes around my area (43200) – I maintain them all on my own!
And before you’re too harsh in your comments, work out how much of the trail YOU maintain!
Happy exploring...

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picotel
picotel

Indeed, flooding of the Auze and the brambles have completely overgrown part of the route, which is no longer visible.
I have cleared part of the path, but there remains a stretch of about ten metres to climb up to the old canal of a very old mill, an area of brambles mixed with branches carried by the Auze and hollows in the ground that I have not yet been able to clear.
The more adventurous can follow the stream ‘wild boar style’ to reach the waterfall.
My apologies for not checking beforehand!

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christiancolomb
christiancolomb

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 09, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We’ve just done this route, and we do agree with Pascal’s comment: there were loads of brambles and lots of fallen trees along the way. When we reached points 5 and 6, we were really unsure about that famous crossing to the other bank. We ended up turning back (after a dip in the river to cool off). We took another forest track to get back to our starting point. A hike to avoid as the route isn’t marked out clearly enough. Best regards. CHRISTIAN

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Pascal07300
Pascal07300

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 08, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Hello to the author

Is this crossing of the Auze still passable (August 2020)?
I wanted to try crossing from Vareilles to La Fabrique via the track that crosses the Auze.
The track turns into a path, then brambles, then nothing at all; clearly a flood has destroyed the area.
Trees are lying all over the place in a right mess... Everything’s been ravaged...
I never found the crossing to get to La Fabrique (footbridge? ford?)
It turned into a proper ‘off-the-beaten-track’ adventure, wild boar style.
Yes, I did see the waterfall (a lovely surprise, by the way)... but by chance, because I kept at it, but anyway...
Note that I hadn’t read the guidebook beforehand, but having seen it afterwards, I’m posting about my adventure.
Best regards, Pascal

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The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.