Cliffs and rocks in Pays Diois

Come and discover the world of minerals from strata, limestone pavements, marls or folded layers of rock, all bearing witness to the geological evolution of the Diois over time.
Follow a guide who will take you into the underground passages of the earth, grazing the stalactites and other natural wonders.
Touch the limestone and fossilized mosses in summer walks through cool gorges and canyons.
Go climbing on the equipped climbing routes of unique and protected natural sites. Slide down the natural toboggan runs of canyons or leap, feet together, into deep pools.

In the L’Oule Valley, the ground is bare and reveals its stones… A few sites are worth the detour to discover the powerful mechanisms which created the mountains and the valleys, the cliffs and the ravines. 

One of the iconic site of Pays Diois is le ‘Serre de l’âne’ before the village of La Charce. The shale and limestone layers are nearly vertical, right by the side of the road. Geologists have been coming for many years now to observe these layers that signal the transformation from one geological period to another. Scientists have chosen this site as world-wide reference because of the amount of fossils and other specificities. 

Further along, other sites are worth the detour: the Roanne Gorges and its series of passages hemmed in by cliffs: the vertical rocks of Pennes Le Sec, which can be matched by the ‘Sucettes de Borne’, beyond the ‘Gorges des Gâts’ ; the bastion of the Glandasse, a plateau edged by impressive cliffs, dotted with caverns and sinkholes ; the Cirque d’Archiane, a deep cutting where resurgences of water emerge ; the Claps at Luc-en-Diois, a chaos of giant rocks into which the Drôme falls in cascades.

TAMING THE ROCKS

Climbing along a via ferrata is a good way to acquaint yourself with the rocks and get a feel for it. 4 sites of various levels are available to you across the region. For a safe practice, ask a professional to guide you.