guide to outdoor activities 2009-2010 - South of France Tourism

C4
VELLERON / COMTAT VENAISSIN
HIKING CIRCUIT:
SUBARROQUES
This hike is great for observing borie construction in detail.
Distance: 3 km
Altitude change: 100 m
Time: 1 1/2 hours
Marking: yellow
Departure point: parking lot to the
south of the village of Viens
Description: Leave the village of Viens by the
road to Céreste.
After a Romanesque sheepfold building, turn
right on a path which goes between two houses.
Then, take a trail to the left. The trail goes along
the edge of the cliff and offers a great view on the
shady side of Reillanne and Céreste, side wooded
with Austrian pine, and on the Calavon river
valley. A bit farther on, the cliff trail overlooks
olive groves. This is about the northernmost point
where olive grows, showing that the Mediterranean climate continues to exert its influence here.
At the bottom of the slope, go on your right, toward the Rossignol valley. The trail is horizontal at
first, then climbs upward to reach the left side of the valley. As you go oup, notice the many signs of the
massive clearing work that once took place, to clear the stones from the soil. All the stone walls and
bories that have been built used the stones cleared from the fields. Observe the lintel on the first borie,
and the corbeeled vault on the second, which demonstrates two different styles despite the same
construction principle. At the top of Rossignol valley, on the edge of the field, take the trail lined with
stone walls. On the right there are the ruins of an old stone house. On the left, there is a borie which
has remained unfinished. At the point where the trail mmets the road, take a rigiht on a path which
leads back to the starting point.
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From: "Le Parc naturel régional du Luberon à pied" Ed. FFRP 12.50 euros