The Ardeche Gorge

May 10, 2025

Have we had a post that was a pure photo dump for awhile? This one will come pretty close, because there are a lot of photos, they're mostly self-explanatory, and if I invest too much time in coming up with a narrative we'll get behind; and I want to get to the following day's entry while it's still fresh in my mind too.

Biking up the Ardeche Gorge again has been a dream of mine ever since Rachael and I biked up it over 30 years agoon our first tour of Europe. If won't be the same by any means - we were loaded down then, traveling to a different destination nearly every day, younger and stronger and healthier obviously, and in pretty good physical condition after a month on the road already that had taken us from Paris through Burgundy and the Vosges to Switzerland; over the alps into Northern Italy; through Provence; and down the incomparable Gorge du Verdon.

We'd seen and experienced so much in the month at all, and I didn't really expect to be awed by any place like the Verdon Gorge again, at least not on this tour. But the Ardeche Gorge, one of the Grand Sites of France, really does come pretty close. It is an exceptional spot and a fabulous bike ride, offering one jaw-dropping vista point after another for nearly twenty miles. Looking back on it now, I'm also a bit awed that after we climbed through the gorge beginning down at Pont Saint-Esprit we continued climbing and working our way north and up into the Central Massif, finally ending at tiny Valgorge in the narrow gorge carved by the Ligne River: a bike ride of 57 miles, and if the RideWithGPS stats are anywhere near accurate, one with over 6,000' of elevation gain.

Well. Those days are certainly long gone now, and we won't be biking ones like that again. I can at least revisit the gorge itself though, which really isn't a difficult climb - especially done as an out and back with an unloaded bike. I went on my own, Rachael electing to walk down into the gorge along the river for a few miles until the footing started feeling too challenging and she backtracked to town and climbed up into the hills through the holm oak forest a ways until it was time to drop back down to town for our lunchtime rendezvous. She' wasn't that enthusiastic about her walk, but she was definitely enthusiastic about the cats she encountered:

And she got nine miles in before lunch; which together with her three or four miles after lunch on the hike to Aiguèze and back nets her some pretty respectable stats for the day.

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I'm sure Rachael would have been fine doing the ride up the gorge, which never rises more than 9% and that for fairly short stretches; but it's just as well she walked instead because I stopped at every viewpoint to break out the camera until finally turning back at the high point before the road starts dropping back down to river level again.

So with no further ado here are just some photos, which might be enough to help you decide whether to come this way yourself some day.

Leaving Saint-Martin. The gorge begins right at the edge of town.

Looking across the river at Aiguèze, classified as one of the most beautiful villages of France. We'll get a better look at it when Rachael and I go over there after lunch.

At the first of the seven or so vista points I pull off on. The road in general is very quiet, with nearly all of the traffic consisting of motorcycles and bikes.

I could try to name these bends or combes or correlate them to the vista points, but I think I'll just show them without comment.

The only bird I managed to get a shot of and it's only a common jackdaw, but I was pleased with it.

Keith cautioned me that I should resist the temptation to take a kayak trip through the gorge, but I wasn't at all tempted anyway. Maybe twenty years ago when we rafted down the Deschutes and a few other whitewater rivers, but not any more.

It's a pretty quiet road that finds goats lying around soaking up the sun on it.

I wasn't sure if I'd make it all the way to the high point before turning back, because I was in a time box: I had to be back in town by 2:00 to meet Rachael for lunch. I figured that 12:15 was my cutoff and I'd be fine making fhe fifteen miles back in time because it's downhill most of the way and I wouldn't plan on stopping for photos on the way back. And it was enough, but just barely because even though it 's downhill most of the way it's a very rolling descent. I climbed 2,000' on the way out and another 1,000 on the way back.

But I made it. It was just two when I pulled into the main square, called Rachael to see where she was, and looked up to see her on the other side of the square answering the phone. Ten minutes later we're seated at a riverside bar staring at the menu at the day.

A rough choice. She got the chèvre salad and I got the pork chop.

And then we went back to the room for a couple of hours before heading across the river and up to Aiguèze. It's a short distance, not much more than a mile and a half each way, so of course Rachael walks it. She sticks mostly to a hiking trail while I stay on the pavement so we see different things on the way up until we reach the village. We've each got our cameras working and we get to some of the same spots and some different ones, so the photos are a mash-up of what we each brought back.

Looking across the river at Saint-Martin.

And the view east and downriver toward the Rhone.

Entering Aiguèze, one of the Most Beutiful Villages of France.

A view across Saint-Martin from the edge of the village. We're high enough up that we get a view of Mont Ventoux in the distance.

Crossing the bridge back to town again. I was surprised rereading our post from 32 years ago to see that it includes a photo of us crossing this same bridge then.

I stopped in the middle to get a view of the river, but it's a little tight. It's a narrow single bridge that carries automobile traffic on an alternating schedule as well as walkers and bikes. There's barely room for the cars to edge past me as I'm squeezed up against the railing.

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Today's ride: 34 miles (55 km)
Total: 584 miles (940 km)

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Betsy EvansBeautiful!

We’re back in Nice now. I’m sorry that we just missed you.
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1 month ago

Scott AndersonTo Betsy EvansOh! I hadn't even thought about that possibility for some reason. That would have been fun. We could have invited you up to our aerie to enjoy the view.
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1 month ago

Susan CarpenterWhat a fantastic day!
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1 month ago

Janice BranhamThis place is def. going on my biking touring wish list. Awesome pictures.
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2 weeks ago