The Clars Waterfall via the Ubac de Brainée and the Montagne des Louquiers

A superb hike in the Grasse hinterland. On the agenda: megaliths, magnificent views of the entire coast (on a clear day) and, to finish, a superb waterfall in an exceptional setting.

Technical sheet

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 12.11 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Return to departure point: Yes
  • ↗
    Vertical gain: + 539 m
  • ↘
    Vertical drop: - 532 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,137 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 748 m

Photos

Description of the walk

(S/E) From the car park, take the road you arrived on, "Chemin des Galants".

(1) At the first crossroads, turn right and then immediately left to follow Chemin du Château, which you will follow until you reach Le Château, ignoring all other roads.

(2). At this point, follow the yellow markings and go through a private garden (this is normal). Then follow
the path that will take you to a magnificent, beautifully maintained Roman bridge called Pont du Ray, which crosses the stream of the same name.

(3) From here, the path climbs steadily with a few small flat sections. Follow the well-marked path and you will see a sign on your right pointing towards Mons. At this point, take a small path on the left to discover the magnificent Dolmen de Brainée.

(4) Return to the original trail and continue climbing.

(5) Be careful at the hairpin bend: do not take the path that goes straight ahead (even though it leads back to the same point, it is steep and uneven). Follow the marked trail to the pass. From there, the trail is no longer marked.

(6) At the three-way junction, take the left-hand track and follow it to the summit of Pézou at an altitude of 1094 metres.

(7). From there, leave the main track and follow a slightly less well-marked track that branches off to the right to reach the summit of La Montagne des Louquiers.

(8) Enjoy the view before returning by the same route.

(6) Continue straight ahead, then in a fairly open area, turn left to discover another megalith, the Dolmen de La Colle.

(9) Return to the main track and head back to the crossroads.

(10) Leave a large cistern on your left and follow the track that branches off to the right. Follow it for about 1,200 metres.

(11) Leave the track and follow the yellow marked trail that branches off to the right (be careful, it is easy to miss!). Follow the marked trail until you cross the Ruisseau le Ray stream (be careful after heavy rain as the crossing can be difficult).

(12) Cross, taking care not to slip, and follow the marked trail uphill. On the way up, you will see the Clars waterfall at the bottom of the cirque.

(13) Follow the trail on the left. When you arrive below the waterfall, enjoy the view of the Vallon du Ray. Retrace your steps.

(13) Take the path on the left. Follow this marked trail and return to the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 910 m - Les Galants car park
  2. 1 : km 0.32 - alt. 894 m - First crossroads
  3. 2 : km 1.88 - alt. 821 m - The Castle
  4. 3 : km 2.46 - alt. 751 m - Roman bridge
  5. 4 : km 3.04 - alt. 854 m - Dolmen of Brainée
  6. 5 : km 3.72 - alt. 910 m - Marked trail to follow
  7. 6 : km 4.07 - alt. 971 m - Take the right-hand track towards the summit of Pézou.
  8. 7 : km 5.18 - alt. 1,093 m - Crossroads Tracks
  9. 8 : km 5.89 - alt. 1,134 m - Summit of Montagne des Louquiers
  10. 9 : km 7.82 - alt. 975 m - Dolmen of La Colle
  11. 10 : km 7.95 - alt. 978 m - Crossroads Tracks
  12. 11 : km 8.97 - alt. 950 m - Start of the marked trail
  13. 12 : km 10.42 - alt. 866 m - Ford
  14. 13 : km 10.78 - alt. 938 m - Intersection of marked trails
  15. S/E : km 12.11 - alt. 910 m - Les Galants car park

Practical information

The route is mostly marked in yellow, except for the return trip to the summit of Montagne des Louquiers.

In the nearby area

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 98 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Clarity of route map
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
Franck D
Franck D
• Last modified:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : May 31, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

  • Sometimes there's a choice as to the direction of the hike... in this case you really need to do it in the direction indicated (even if you start by going downhill): finishing at the waterfall is nice ... rather than going back up on the tarmac * It was hot at the time (abnormally high temperatures for 1st June) and it's true that you're out in the open quite a lot * No problem following the route, or finding the Dolmens (there are signs) * We were lucky to have quite a lot of water at the waterfall and it's a really nice time of year: It's full of flowers, especially around point 11 * We also had the patous between 7 and 8, which meant we had to make a diversion around to the south (continuing straight on at point 7): this allowed us to go to the edge of the cliff (towards Pézou to the south-east) and offer another viewpoint.

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gréwis
gréwis

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Apr 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

superb hike however for the first time I came across a few people between the mont des louquiers and the cascade de clars where it was crowded

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annasteeljo
annasteeljo

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Apr 01, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Thank you very much for this suggested hike.
It's difficult to find your way to the Louquiers mountain.
Otherwise, it's magical to finish with this sublime waterfall.

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AJOUPA7516
AJOUPA7516

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Feb 03, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

A lovely walk on a sunny winter's day, with panoramic views of the surrounding snow-covered hills.
Well signposted on the whole. However, be careful when approaching the ford (about fifty metres), as two very close markers made us turn left up the mountainside instead of going straight on.

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p. de vence
p. de vence

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Apr 28, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

Great outing! with the reward at the end: the waterfall! a jump of around twenty metres, water at 12 degrees! what a pleasure! Don't forget your swimming costume.

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rumax
rumax

Yes, we did meet a patou (spotted coat), but he was very peaceful and posed no problems to our group.

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jdourlens
jdourlens

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Mar 24, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : No

Not a difficult hike. The only problem was an unpleasant encounter with patous between the 6th and 7th!

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rumax
rumax

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Mar 24, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

A very nice hike on Sunday 24 March, when the waterfall was flowing abundantly.
For the dolmen at WPT 4, look out for the RM inscription painted on a rock on the left: the dolmen is 20m from the path.
The waterfall 20' from the car park makes it easy to get to and popular.
On the rest of the route we met only one couple.
Thank you for offering us this pleasant route.

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Jean Wieviorka
Jean Wieviorka

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Nov 22, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Nice walk, but if possible avoid the June to September period as it's too hot.

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Paul06
Paul06

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 15, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

A lovely walk between Escragnolles and Mons, ending at the Cascade de Clars; no major difficulties, but bring water in summer as you'll be walking in direct sunlight!

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cmercier45
cmercier45

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Jun 26, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : No

Start from the large car park at the entrance to the hamlet of Les Galants. It was a lovely walk, but we couldn't go all the way to the top of Les Louquiers because there were herding dogs halfway up the slope. It's a shame we had to turn back.
At point 11, the path goes off to the right. It's not very visible, but there's a large sign for a private road that crosses the path and it's not very clear until point 12.
Reward: the viewpoint at the waterfall is great and there was water.

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Krysia
Krysia

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Jan 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : No

Lovely hike in the Haute Siagne, with varied terrain. As for the waterfall, the water is back!

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Coldom
Coldom

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 30, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

It is true that the start of the circuit on the road is not very pleasant, but once past "le château" you find a very pleasant path back to the starting point.
It is easy to find the first dolmen very close to the path; however, on the way down from the Montagne des Louquiers, the Colle dolmen is a little more hidden: it is on the left of the path about halfway between point 6 and the green cistern, visible from quite a distance.
The end of the trail with a view of the Clars waterfall (unfortunately dry) is very pleasant.
A beautiful walk typical of the landscape of our region

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Doux2
Doux2
• Last modified:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Aug 07, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : No

A short walk with no difficulties 😁 A family outing for a breath of fresh air.

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phot07
phot07

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : May 29, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : No

A very pleasant hike with a waterfall that currently lacks a little water but is located in a very beautiful spot.

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