The Ardèche gorges: white water paradise

The good news is that this beautiful wild river descent can be done by almost everyone. You just need to know how to swim and be able to paddle over the thirty kilometres between Vallon Pont d'Arc and Saint Martin d'Ardèche.

But from Easter to the end of May navigation is more athletic because of the high water level. Afterwards, until the end of August you can profit from a more leisurely descent with bathing and sunbathing stops and, later in September, you can take advantage of the beginning of autumn far from the crowds, which is a pleasure not to be sneezed at.

On numerous occasions you can have a picnic or you can bivouac. For security reasons and in order not to disturb the fauna, illegal camping is forbidden. The Gaud and Gounier bivouac areas will welcome the campers in marabouts (cone-shaped tents). They are very well organized and equipped, but you have to book in advance to fully profit from the pleasures of white water.

Descending in a canoe is the best way to explore at a gentle pace, the fauna, the flora and the gorges sculpted into the limestone. We will spare you, in the name of respect for his privacy (!), the details of the legend which tells that God himself dug the Pont d'Arc to prevent the Seigneur de Sampzon's wife from escaping with her lover who was no other than the devil himself disguised as a beautiful young man.

We will just let you know that it is a sixty meters high natural arch and that the cliffs along the gorges reach three hundred meters at its highest point and draw meanders intersected by numerous rapids. An authentic wonder of nature!

For those who dare, numerous rivers in the Ardèche department offer high river kayak practice: the Bourges, the Fontaulière, the Besorgues, the Volane, l'Auzène, the Glueyre, the Cance, the Deûme, the Beaume, the Drobie or even the Thines...