Uchaux walks

About ten kilometres north of Orange, in the Haut Vaucluse, the hills of Uchaux conceal a little-known heritage: a chapel and 13th-century "castellas" surrounded by forests and vineyards offering quality wines await you.

Before reaching the plateau overlooking the Rhône valley, offering superb views to the south and north, this route takes you through old sand quarry galleries and part of a surprising drystone shelter trail. At the western end of the plateau stands the fortress of Mornas, which you can see from above but which can be reached by taking a short detour.The only difficulty of this route is its length, as it mainly follows wide forest tracks lined with majestic pine trees.

Walk in the woods of the Montagne between Sérignan du Comtat and Uchaux.

A pleasant circular starting from Lagarde-Paréol through the Massif d'Uchaux, among forests and vineyards.

The old quarries are not open to visitors for safety reasons: in this area, do not stray from the paths as there are large holes in the ground. The Massif d'Uchaux offers spectacular views, particularly of Mont Ventoux and the Dentelles de Montmirail.

Enjoy the beautiful crossing around the Grande Combe ravine and, once you reach the highest point of Montmount, you can admire the beautiful panorama.

The first part of the hike is through the woods, followed by a ridge trail offering superb views of the Rhône valley. At the end of the trail, you will arrive above the fortress.

Who hasn't admired the fortress of Mornas while driving along the A7 motorway? Now is your chance to climb up a very accessible path and admire the landscape of the Rhône Valley from a cliff over 100 metres high, then continue on a circular route between heath and pine forests. This is a variation on a route offered on site, which avoids returning via a fairly busy tarmac road between buildings and houses.

An easy route, mostly in the shade, through the forest of the Massif d'Uchaux. The path along DFCI tracks and trails will take you to a former site where raw materials for the manufacture of refractory products were extracted. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the presence of exceptional clay made Bollène a renowned industrial centre. The remains of a system of railways and inclined planes, as well as the buildings of a former factory, are still visible. The excavation of the hill for sand extraction has left galleries that are still open, and lakes now fill the former clay quarries.

This is a short, easy route that can be enjoyed by families with young children. Almost the entire route is shaded. These old quarries were dug into the hillside to extract sand. They were then used by the Germans during the Second World War to store ammunition. Then, in the 1970s, they were converted into mushroom farms. They are now disused. It should be noted that the first quarries were open-pit. Their locations are marked by the presence of several lakes.

A short family walk through heath, vineyards and woodland.Not particularly difficult, but not suitable for pushchairs.

Sometimes in the woods, sometimes in the vineyards, this walk takes you through the countryside of the Rhone Valley and Mont Ventoux.

Discovering the Roman city of Orange and its heritage with the very famous Antique Theatre (Théâtre Antique), which annually hosts the Chorégies d’Orange festival.

A walk without too many difficulties and numerous headlands along the route.

Route around the remarkable water sources of Camaret-sur-Aygues (Vaucluse) through the Plan de Dieu vineyards.