The Verdon Gorge in South East France
Gorge Du Verdon – A place well worth giving up your beach towel for! The Verdon Gorge, as the English rock climbers call it, is a spectacular and beautiful deep canyon in the Alpes-de-Haute region of Provence in South East France.
Considered by many to be the most breathtaking of all European gorges, this massive 700 metre deep geological sensation was formed over time by the river Verdon cutting downwards into the land.
This limestone ravine is well within a couple of hours drive from the French Riviera and is a welcome change of venue for those who get a little bored lying on a beach for the whole day!
It is between the villages of Castellane and Moustieres-Sainte-Marie where the Gorge du Verdon is at its most impressive. This is a place where white-knuckle activity is rampant as down in the river below the kayakers play in the rapids and high up on the limestone cliffs rock climbers from all over the world tackle routes of incredible technical difficulty.
Some of these multi-pitch routes are over 400 metres high, and in case you are not aware of rock climbing terminology, a pitch is one rope length of about 40 metres!
The reservoir at the end of the Verdon River was created when the Sainte-Croix dam was built in the early seventies. The village of Des Salles was evacuated by force and the church was blown up in order to make way for the project. Naturally, the villagers were not particularly happy! Although times have significantly changed in the village of Des Salles and in more recent year’s environmentalists won their case to stop electric pylons and cables running through this area of fantastic natural beauty.
As well as sports for “supermen” and “superwomen”, regular ordinary folk can go for one of the many hiking routes through the Gorges du Verdon, the most famous of which is the Sentier- Martel.
This breathtaking walk was named after Edourd Alfred Martel, one of the first men to explore the canyon. The route is 15 kilometres long and travelling in one direction alone will take the best part of seven hours. It is a hike which is worth the effort but there are easier hikes available for the more faint-hearted!
The Verdon Gorge is a wonderful and beautiful place to visit. Simply hanging out here watching the amazing super-human ‘monkeys’ glide effortlessly up the huge limestone cliffs and oarsmen and women tackling the rivers white water, is a must if you happen to be in this stunning vicinity of the south of France -You definitely won’t regret giving up your beach towel, for one day at least!