The Véroncle mills

Description

The car park is beside the road D2 from Gordes to Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt, about 3km from Gordes. Go past the fork for the D156 (which bears right towards Goult) and continue about 200m further along the D2. You will see the entrance of a house with a lovely stone wall on your right. The car park is opposite this wall on the left (signs for Mas de Véroncle and La Lézardière).
If the car park is full, you can park 300m further up the lane.

(D/A)From the car park on the edge of the D2, take the GR6-GR97 on the left which leads up alongside some oak trees. After passing some houses, you will reach the sign for "Les Grailles"

(1)Leave the GR path and continue straight on towards "Les gorges de Véroncle", along a small footpath.
Shortly after, ignore the path waymarked in Red and Yellow which climbs to the left above the canyon. Instead, take the path to the right, (without waymarks and not marked on the map) which leads immediately into the gorges. After 300m, you will reach Cabrier mill.

Ignore a path that leads up to the left and continue straight on, alongside the walls of the mill. You should follow the Yellow or Red/Yellow waymarks which lead up the canyon, sometimes in the bed of the Véroncle and sometimes overlooking the ravine on the right or left.

N.B. Take care: the waymarks are not always very apparent. In any case, the aim is to climb up through the canyon as best one can.

After Cabrier mill, the route uses the mill-race cut out of the rock.
Later, another 10-rung ladder leads to the "Pas de Marie-Hélène" overhang. The route continues, alternating sections in the floor of the canyon, obstacles to be negotiated and corniche sections as far as a narrow gully fitted with steps and ladders, leading back down to the river bed.
The waymarks lead up again, through vegetation that is sometimes dense, coming out into a wide canyon to arrive at the Jean de Marre mill 2, below a holed rock. (This was a mill used to produce fine flour).
Preferably take the path to the left of the mill until you reach the area above it with signage for "Jean de Marre" (if you took the path around the ruins to the right, you will need to head a few metres to the left to reach the sign).

(2)Take the path to the right towards Murs. Shortly after, ignore the path heading right across the canyon and instead continue straight on through the canyon, then climb up left to overlook it. The route leads past a few more ruined mills and then passes through a pleasant meadow to reach the mill Moulin des Etangs, which has been converted into a house.
N.B. Just before the mill, the path marked in purple on the map does not exist any more.

(3)Continue up around the mill to the right, and then you will emerge onto a lovely lane opposite the holiday cottage "Au temps jadis". Take the lane to the very right marked with a yellow cross (no further waymarks). Continue up to the first crossing, and then bear left and pass a gate. Follow a bend around to the right and then at the next bend, leave the track and turn right along a path (not very visible at the start). After about 100m, continue past a ruin on the left and a fork (not marked on the map), and follow the path to the right. You will come out onto the Bois d'Audibert track 400m further.

(4)Take the track to the right at cistern N°117 and head down, enjoying the views of the Luberon (yellow waymarks).
150m lower, at the signpost for "Lauzière", follow the sign for "Borne des Trois Evêchés", continuing along the track. The waymarking then leaves this track and bears left to join the signposting again.

(5)Head right towards ""L'Auvières", still following the Yellow waymarking. The footpath runs alongside the track and then heads off to the left again to join the signs for "L'Auvières".

(6)Continue straight on towards "Gordes" "Borne de Baume Brune". Be sure to take the path to the right at the next fork (the left-hand path leads to Joucas).

(7)On reaching the "Borne de Baume Brune" head right towards "Bois d'Audibert". There is a short, fairly steep descent on a stony path, which then levels out among the pines. It comes out onto a wide track, which you should continue straight along.

(8)About 200 m further, the track leads off to the left, but you should bear right into the forest to reach the "Bois d'Audibert" intersection. At this point, head straight on towards "Les Grailles".

(1)At the "Les Grailles" signpost, head left back down the route taken at the start of the walk (the GR path), to return to the car park.(D/A)