By Sandra Bargoin, ATG Route Manager
The Secret of the Emerald: The Mystery of Fontaine-de-Vaucluse
At the foot of a gigantic 230-metre-high cliff lies one of the most mysterious places in Europe. Welcome to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, the village that gave its name to the department (Vallis Clausa, the Closed Valley) and which is home to a spring whose depths no one has yet been able to reach.
Imagine water of a deep emerald green, calm and still in summer, churning and raging in spring. This is where the Sorgue, France’s most powerful river, has its source.
For decades, legendary explorers, including the famous Commander Cousteau, have attempted to unlock the secret of the chasm. Underwater robots have descended to a depth of 308 metres, but the labyrinth of rock continues even further down. Where does this water come from? No one really knows. This uncertainty makes the spring an almost sacred place, a gateway to the bowels of the Earth.
The Refuge of Love: Petrarch and Laura
But Fontaine-de-Vaucluse is not merely a geological marvel; it is the cradle of Romanticism. In the 14th century, the Italian poet Petrarch settled here to escape the turmoil of the world. It was on the banks of the Sorgue that he wrote his most beautiful verses for Laura, his impossible love.
“Here, I have made myself a Rome, an Athens, a homeland…” he wrote.
Strolling along the quays, one can still feel that gentle melancholy. The village invites you to slow down, to listen to the song of the paper mills that still turn today, perpetuating a unique medieval craft.
Farewell to the Emerald
Leaving Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, the path climbs gently, winding its way through holm oaks and halfway along the route, you will come across the remains of Le Mur de la Peste (the Plague wall), an historic 27km long dry-stone wall, built in the 18th century to protect the region from the great plague spreading from Marseille.
The highlight of this walk arrives without warning. As you round the bend of a final copse, the forest opens up and Gordes appears, majestic, clinging to its limestone cliff and, in the fading afternoon light, its facades glow with a honey hue. It’s the perfect moment to pause and take in the views stretching all the way to the Petit Luberon.
The Secret Stop: Joucas, the Templars’ Refuge
Beyond Gordes, after walking through rosemary-scented scrubland, the path descends gently towards Joucas. It is a village of tranquillity and humility, far from the hustle and bustle. Joucas was once a commandery of the Knights Hospitaller of St John of Jerusalem. Whispers of the history of the Waldensians can still be heard here – peasants who came from the Alps in the 15th century to repopulate the region, before being tragically persecuted for their faith. Don’t miss the “Labyrinth of Art” as you pass through the village: monumental sculptures that seem to converse with the ancient stones.
As you leave Joucas, the landscape changes and the white limestone gives way to a subtle ochre, which gradually becomes more vivid. You are entering the land of the ochre miners.
Roussillon and the Legend of Sermonde
Rousillon seems to sit atop a wave of frozen flames, but where does this blood-red colour come from? Legend has it that the beautiful Lady Sermonde, distraught after her jealous husband had killed her lover (the troubadour Guillaume de Cabestan) and made her eat his heart, threw herself from the top of the cliffs. Her blood is said to have stained the earth forever.
The Builders’ Trail: From the Ochre of Roussillon to the Stone of Bonnieux
Descending from the ochre cliffs, the path winds its way through the farmland. Here, you pass through the winegrowers’ estate. Since Roman times, people have cultivated this land to plant vines and olive trees. The perfectly aligned rows of vines bear witness to a craft passed down from father to son. It is an orderly landscape, a rural geometry that commands respect for those who labour under the Provençal sun.
Halfway along the route, you arrive at the Pont Julien, a majestic structure dating from 3C BC. Imagine Roman legionaries and merchants travelling along the Via Domitia on these very same stone slabs. This bridge, a triumph of human engineering, made up of three elegant arches and built without mortar using perfectly cut limestone blocks, has withstood over two thousand years of flooding from the Calavon.
After crossing the plain, the path begins to climb. Your destination lies ahead: Bonnieux. The climb is a tribute to the dry-stone masons, the low retaining walls along the path (known as faïsses) and the bories, mysterious dry-stone shepherd huts, bear witness to a time when people had to literally ‘clear the stones’ from their fields to be able to farm, reusing every pebble to build their shelters.
The Forest of Cedars
Leaving Bonnieux the path climbs steeply, winding its way through the holm oaks until it reaches the Petit Luberon plateau. There, a botanical miracle awaits you: the Forest of Cedars. Planted by man in the 19th century with seeds from the Moroccan Atlas Mountains, these giants spread their horizontal branches as if to protect the walker. The scent here is different: a woody, fresh and resinous fragrance that contrasts with the garrigue of the plain.
The Ridge Trail to Lourmarin
Once you reach the ridge, the view is breathtaking. To your left, the Grand Luberon and Mont Ventoux; to your right, Sainte-Victoire and, on a clear day, the silvery glint of the Mediterranean in the distance. It is here, on this narrow ridge of white limestone, that one comes to understand the geology of the massif: a vast ridge of rock shaped by the forces of the Earth. Little by little, the Château de Lourmarin emerges from the olive groves. It is Provence’s first Renaissance castle, elegant and proud. The village welcomes you with its murmuring fountains and shaded terraces. It is here that Albert Camus and Henri Bosco found their final resting place, enchanted by the light they had discovered.
