Mountain bike - Le col de la Cize
Come and test your skills at the next level with this long mountain bike loop of around 30 kilometres. Demanding and physically challenging, this route takes you through technical terrain, sustained climbs and superb descents in the heart of the countryside. A varied route, tailor-made for those who love riding and pushing themselves, promising a great sporting challenge and unforgettable panoramic views of the wilderness. Get on your bikes!
Description
- From the car park next to the coach station, walk up Rue Louis Clairon (please note: vehicles may be coming from the opposite direction on this one-way street). You are now on Boulevard Peschaire Alizon. Take Rue des Maquisards (the first on the right), then turn right again opposite the temple onto Rue Auguste Sabatier. On Rue du Mas des Aires, turn right, then left onto Chemin de Saint Laurent; after 120 metres, turn right onto Chemin du Fez.
- Follow the white-and-yellow markings; follow signs for Déserte / Ruoms. Continue along the road, passing the junctions for Saint-Martin, La Loubière and Déserte. Follow signs for Sampzon.
- Cross the D 579 road and, via a tarmac track, head towards the Les Troullières junction; follow signs for: Sampzon. The road winds uphill and passes the Le Bournas junction; follow signs for: Sampzon.
- Stay on this road and take the Chemin du Bois; follow signs for: Le Péréral / Salavas. Take the road used on the ascent, and at the first hairpin bend, take a tarmac track opposite; this is a dead end for vehicles. Pass the Richard junction; follow signs for: Le Péréral / Salavas.
- Take a footpath for a few metres, then rejoin the track and the Le Pérérol crossroads; follow signs for: Col de la Cize / Grospierres; follow the red-and-white markings (GR 4). The track passes the Les Agrenasses junction; follow signs for: Combe de Bonne Fille / Grospierres.
- Then Bertras; follow signs for: Combe de Bonne Fille / Grospierres, then Combe de Bonne Fille; follow signs for: Col de la Cize / Notre Dame des Songes, then Plot de la Molle. Follow: Col de la Cize / Bessas.
- Col de la Cize: Head towards Notre Dame des Songes / Bessas, following the white-and-yellow markings. The path runs along the mountainside, offering panoramic views of the Barjaquès, the Dent de Rez, the Gorges de l’Ardèche, Mont Bouquet, Mont Ventoux, the Alpilles and the Dentelles de Montmirail.
- At the sharp left-hand bend, leave the main path heading up towards Colombou/Trépaloup and turn immediately onto the track that dives left in a hairpin bend. Descent towards Prades: Follow this single track/path as it descends through the woodland to join, further down, the track leading to the Bartras junction. Bartras: Follow the signs for L’Epingle / Salavas. Continue downhill, then head back up a dirt track to cross through the hamlet of Prades.
- After Prades: 100 metres past the hamlet, turn left onto a dirt track. Cross the Rieussec stream, then pass the La Boriette junction. La Boriette: Follow the signs for L’Épingle / Salavas as far as the Les Hubasses junction. Les Hubasses: Follow signs for L’Épingle / Salavas. Join a tarmac road. At the entrance to the pine forest, turn left onto the forest track, passing the Darbousset and Bois des Bruyères junctions whilst continuing towards L’Épingle / Salavas. L’Épingle crossroads: Follow signs for Salavas.
- Head down the track suitable for vehicles, join the tarmac section and then the Pont de Lantousse junction. Pont de Lantousse: Follow signs for Vallon-Pont-d’Arc / Salavas, rejoining the white-and-red markings (GR 4). Salavas junction: Follow signs for Vallon-Pont-d’Arc. Take the D 579 road. At the second roundabout, head for the Les Brugières junction. Les Brugières: Follow signs for Vallon-Pont-d’Arc. Follow the white-and-yellow markings on the D 579 for a few metres, then turn right into Rue Henri Barbusse. Walk up the street and turn right to follow the markings back to the starting point.
- Departure : Ardèche Gorges Tourist Office
- Arrival : Ardèche Gorges Tourist Office
- Towns crossed : VALLON-PONT-D'ARC, RUOMS, SAMPZON, GROSPIERRES, BESSAS, VAGNAS, and SALAVAS
Forecast
Altimetric profile
Recommandations
Follow the signposted paths, keep your speed in check and always give way to pedestrians with a smile. The southern Ardèche is home to an exceptional and fragile ecosystem: help to preserve it by staying on the tracks, taking your rubbish away with you and closing gates behind you. Before setting off, check your mountain bike, wear your helmet, pack water and a repair kit, and let a friend or family member know if you’re setting off alone.
🚨 Emergency: 112 or 18
Cycling ;) – Suitable shoes, plenty of water, sun-protective clothing.
Information desks
Office de Tourisme Gorges de l'Ardèche - Ruoms
9 rue Alphonse Daudet, 07120 Ruoms
Office de Tourisme Gorges de l'Ardèche - Vallon-Pont-d'Arc
16 rue des Abeilles, 07150 Vallon Pont d’Arc
Transport
Route X76: Valence TGV – Montélimar – Vallon-Pont-d’Arc
Route E15: Avignon – Vallon-Pont-d’Arc – Aubenas
Access and parking
From Aubenas, take the D579 towards Vogüé and the Gorges de l’Ardèche as far as Vallon-Pont-d’Arc.
From Bourg-Saint-Andéol, take the D4 towards Vallon-Pont-d’Arc.
From Alès, take the D104 towards Aubenas. Then take the D111 towards the Ardèche Gorges until you reach Vallon-Pont-d’Arc.
Parking :
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