Introduction

This mountain bike tour combines the intriguing ruined castle of La Tour d'Aigues with the slightly larger town of Pertuis. The return route passes through La Bastidonne. The trails between these sites are quite varied and avoid main roads as much as possible. We have small paths, unpaved tracks in varying states, and it's easy to get lost as the trail markers are very discreet.

We outline a visit to the castle of La Tour d'Aigues, but we don't provide any specific directions for visiting the villages. You can explore them at your leisure, depending on the time you have available.

The facts

21,1 km total distance

3 h movement time.

320 m total elevation

orientation easy

mark 75% of the total distance

35% hard-surfaced city alleys

30% hard-surfaced quiet side streets

15% forest roads

10% dirt roads

5% hard-surfaced city roads

5% moderate trails

<5% hard-surfaced country road

<5%

<5% easy trails

<5% cross country

dangers heat in summer, dogs

children yes, but it's long

useful picnic stuff

required Hardtail mountain bike and water

GPS coordinates (WGS84) of start and end point 43.731848,5.55059

downloads

Public transport

Bus 923 runs fairly regularly between Aix-en-Provence, Pertuis, and La Tour d'Aigues. This line also allows bicycles, but only at one stop per town. Check the Zou! (only french) website for the timetable.

The terminus we're interested in is the Albert Camus stop, which is the bus turnaround area at the middle school of the same name. Return to where the bus came from, at the first roundabout, turn right onto the avenue of plane trees. This marks the beginning of section 1.

Access by car

Access from all directions is via the A51 motorway and the Pertuis exit. Follow the signs towards Pertuis town centre. Then continue towards Manosque. At the roundabout with the olive trees, turn towards Cadenet, and at the next roundabout, finally, towards La Tour d'Aigues. Upon entering La Tour d'Aigues, turn left at the roundabout towards Cucuron. Continue straight ahead at the next small roundabouts (3.5-ton weight limit). 150 metres further on, a property walls end, and you'll find an open area on the right. This is the cemetery parking lot.

Useful parking spaces

The Chemin le Long du Mur (Path Along the Wall) passes along private properties, which are indeed hidden behind walls. The section without a wall marks the cemetery parking lot. There are a few trees, but not much shade. We indicate this parking lot as the others can be full during the La Tour-d'Aigues market and other events. There's also room to manoeuvrer bicycles here.

Hints

The route is long, so it's best to start early on days forecast to be hot. This is possible from the beginning of spring. In winter, some of the ditches you'll need to cross may be filled with water.

The whole region is a zone with a high risk of forest fires. In summer, but also in other seasons when it is very dry or by strong winds, access to the forest areas can be regulated. As a result, the roads may be closed to traffic and/or the trails prohibited to hikers. Current information: Map for access to the forests of the Vaucluse department (also english). The map shows the colours green, yellow, orange and red which correspond to levels of danger.

The sections

1. La Tour d'Aigues - Pertuis: passing through the vineyards.
2. Pertuis - La Bastidonne: a strenuous climb, then the wildest part of the tour.
3. La Bastidonne - La Tour d'Aigues: return to the starting point and visit to the castle.

Section 1: La Tour d'Aigues - Pertuis

➙ 9,2 km ... 50 min ➚ 110 m ➘ 160 m ↝ easy

   ↙ Colours of the sections like MTB rating but without the duration.

5% hard-surfaced city roads, without marks

10% hard-surfaced city alleys, without marks

5% hard-surfaced country road, without marks

5% hard-surfaced city alleys, without marks

10% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, without marks

10% dirt roads, few marks

5% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, few marks

5% forest roads, few marks

<5% hard-surfaced country road, few marks

20% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, few marks

20% hard-surfaced city alleys, few marks

The parking area is rather open, but there's usually space.

We leave the parking lot on our mountain bikes, turning left.

One street further on, we turn left again, this time downhill.

This street doesn't lead directly to the roundabout, but we need to go there and turn right.

The yellow arrow marks the start of the tour from the bus stop.

Here we are on the Boulevard de la République, lined with plane trees.

This street leads us straight to the ruined castle and the old town centre of La Tour d'Aigues.

First, we see the north corner tower of the castle.

It's usually possible to access the square to the north of the castle.

From there, we can see the other corner tower and also the north face of the central tower, which formed the castle's keep.

As mentioned earlier, we'll save the castle tour for last. Let's enjoy the fresh morning air now!

South of the castle is a large square with a parking lot that's often full, except on La Tour-d'Aigues market day.

Almost directly opposite the castle entrance is the Burliaire Gate, and we head through it.

We're in a narrow alley. It initially leads us to a right, but we turn left at the next intersection.

This brings us to the church square, which forms the centre of the village.

We turn left there, and then walk around the church.

The first stones of the Church of Notre-Dame de Romégas were laid in the 13th century, and alterations continued until the 18th century. It is usually closed.

Turn right behind the church.

Turn left at the crossroads.

You can then see the retaining walls that form the old ramparts. We have now left the old medieval enclosure.

Turn left again at the next intersection.

Here we enter the western extension of the village, which began in the 18th century.

We keep to the right in the small square that follows.

This street is initially flat, but then descends sharply.

At the bottom, we reach the roundabout where we turn right onto what appears to be a poor cycle lane.

A little further on, a proper cycle path begins, but we turn left at the pedestrian crossing.

We pass just after the bridge over the Ourgouse creek, which flows into the Èze River a little further on. We will cross the Èze River twice more later.

This street leads into a newer neighbourhood. We turn left at the next intersection to go up the Chemin de Septem.

A sign for cyclists indicates Pertuis is 5.9 kilometres away.

We climb about ten metres and find ourselves in this idyllic, very Provençal landscape.

The road descends slightly, and we turn left at the small cabin.

We follow this narrow strip of asphalt. It takes us between greenhouses growing vegetables.

A little further on, we reach some houses. We continue straight ahead on the farm track, which leads us back between fields.

We pass idyllic cabins nestled among the vineyards.

We follow the the main path.

Among the curves, there are two right-angle ones.

We arrive at a T-junction where we turn left at the signpost of L'Archimbaude.

There is car traffic here.

At the next junction, we bear right. This small road climbs towards a hamlet.

Turn left here. It still climbs.

The descent begins here. The asphalt ends and we plunge into a forest.

Continue along the very wide right-hand curve.

The surface is made of very coarse gravel, it's quite bumpy on a mountain bike.

The tarmac resumes at these green mailboxes.

We emerge onto the D9 Route de la Bonde.

We turn left here for a few moments.

Be careful, vehicles speed here and they ignore safe distances (1.5 metres).

We turn right at the first opportunity to escape this traffic that shows no respect for cyclists or the rules of the road.

We are now uphill again.

Turn left at the first opportunity.

This narrow road descends and passes through a hollow.

Our route reaches a crossroads where we turn right.

As always, each turn also brings a change in gradient. It's uphill again, but not too steep.

Our little road makes two right-angle turns to continue west.

We ignore the driveways to the houses.

We arrive at a crossroads with the road that will take us to Pertuis.

The road descends, we go down 60 metres over just under 2 kilometres.

Watch out, there's a stop sign right in the middle!

The road joins a larger road where we continue in the same direction.

Unusually, the descent continues after this intersection.

We arrive near the centre of Pertuis and in much heavier traffic.

Turn right at the roundabout. A paltry cycle lane is painted on the ground, it offers no protection from reckless drivers.

Traffic remains heavy on Boulevard Jean Guigues. It's lined with plane trees, but it lacks charm.

We take the first left towards the old centre of Pertuis.

We cross the Èze riverbed at a ford, which is also the lowest point of the route at 200 metres. A pedestrian bridge allows passage during floods.

Provençal villages are built on hills, and in this plain, they take advantage of every hill. Our route therefore climbs.

We arrive at a sloping intersection where we bear left (red arrow) to pass a wash house built into the old ramparts. On this Rue des Remparts, we circle the centre clockwise.

On Pertuis market day, it can be useful to turn right here (yellow arrow) to reach Place Jean Jaurès, located in the upper part of the market. To resume the circuit, continue east from this square on Rue Colbert (one-way except for bicycles), then along the street lined with plane trees to the roundabout with the star, where section 2 begins.

The road leads us to a square closed to cars, we continue and cross this square.

We leave this quiet space, continuing straight between the two houses visible in the photo.

Stay to the left here.

We arrive at a parking lot, turn right to continue the circuit around the medieval ramparts.

The parking lot is a one-way street, but in the wrong direction, do not enter it. The vehicles manoeuvring there are dangerous for us cyclists.

We pass the most remarkable monument in this enclosure, the 14th-century Saint-Jacques Tower. It is the only one of the original seven towers.

Around the tower, the enclosure is breached in several places.

Continuing beyond the Saint-Jacques Tower, we arrive at a square shaded by denser, large plane trees. It is another parking lot, but in the centre is a fountain completely covered in tufa and moss. It is called Diana fountain, and this statue rises above the mound of moss.

Section 2: Pertuis - La Bastidonne

➙ 8,3 km ... 1 h 30 min ➚ 150 m ➘ 55 m ↝ easy

   ↙ Colours of the sections like MTB rating but without the duration.

25% hard-surfaced city alleys, few marks

15% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, few marks

5% dirt roads, few marks

5% moderate trails, few marks

5% forest roads, few marks

5% , few marks

5% forest roads, few marks

5% moderate trails, without marks

5% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, few marks

10% forest roads, few marks

<5% cross country, without marks
   ↖ leave the bike and explore on foot

5% dirt roads, few marks

10% hard-surfaced city alleys, few marks

On the standard route, we turn left at the roundabout marked with a star.

It's an immediate climb. 60 metres over 1.6 kilometres. Only intersections and roundabouts break the monotony of the villas.

Stay here to the right.

And here to the left on the main street.

The first roundabout is to be crossed in a straight line. In any case, we continue uphill.

Further on, there's a lane divider that also serves as a longitudinal roundabout. We don't deviate from our east-southeast direction.

A third roundabout appears on our route, and a little further on, the villas become more spread out, leading us to a saddle.

A long descent takes us to this junction where we turn left.

But not for long, as we immediately turn right at the Callamand signpost.

We take the right fork at this junction.

This leads us into a small forest with a maze of tracks. We stay to the right while bearing slightly left.

To maintain our direction, we must turn left here, more or less following the power line poles.

The farm track gradually begins to disappear between the last fields before the forest.

In spring, poppies bloom in the grain fields. These red dots are a true symbol of Provence.

We take a short break here.

The dirt track becomes a simple path. We descend into the valley carved by an intermittent stream.

There's only water here during thunderstorms.

The large concrete pipe is a real obstacle for mountain biking.

The climb opposite is as short as the previous descent, the valley isn't very deep.

This climb is tough here, but it varies depending on the intensity of the storms, which transform this section each time.

We briefly reach asphalt and a few houses. We continue straight ahead in the same direction.

At the last house, we also continue straight ahead on a simple path.

This path splits, it's not a dirt track.

We follow the fence again along a simple path.

Finally, we have to climb back up onto a forest track where we turn right at the Tournemire signpost.

But we don't go very far on this wide forest track.

Here we turn onto a path in the private Sévanaise forest. Hikers and mountain bikers are expressly welcome here. That's quite rare and worth noting.

This path gradually branches off from the forest track.

We arrive at a field with perhaps unfamiliar plants. As we approach, we see it's a hibiscus field. It's a medicinal plant, and teas are also made from it.

This field serves as a landmark for us, as we turn right roughly halfway along it.

We rejoin a simple path and try to stay on the main one.

We have to cross this step, which is only manageable with a good running start.

We arrive at a sort of old, straight, main avenue, which we follow north.

However, we take the path to the left, where the main avenue climbs to the right.

A little further on, the path forks. Both routes climb and rejoin further along.

Our foray into the forest ends as we return to the previous forest track.

We continue in the same direction, heading north.

Just after, we come to a small paved road. We continue straight ahead.

About 600 metres further on, the road veers to the left, and we continue straight ahead on this dirt track. It leads directly north.

After passing through a forest, we see a field on the left. Far ahead, we can see a farmhouse on the left side. We continue until we reach it and turn right shortly before.

As we turned, we can no longer see the farmhouse, only the small forest on the right.

We continue straight ahead along the edge of the forest.

Finally, we see what looks like an old dry stone wall.

We park our mountain bikes and walk up the low wall. Beyond it, we continue in the direction of the arrow.

We arrive at the ruins of a large farmhouse. We can walk around it and enter the rooms. However, it's difficult to determine the former functions of the rooms.

We then return to our bikes and continue along the trail, still heading north.

We then pass closer to the farmhouse we saw in the distance. It consists of three adjoining barns. You can also see them in the photo at the top of this page.

There's a maze of tracks here, we stay to the left.

We reach a road at the Guap signpost.

We turn right.

Not even 150 metres further on, we turn left.

Now begins a 40-metre climb.

We turn left again at the wash house called La Fontaine Éloignée (The Distant Fountain).

The uphill straight stretch is tough.

When we see this bridge, we've reached the highest point. This bridge isn't old; it's the D973 road, which bypasses the village of La Bastidonne to the south.

We enter the village when we see this sign. It's downhill to begin with.

Section 3: La Bastidonne - La Tour d'Aigues

➙ 3,6 km ... 45 min ➚ 60 m ➘ 105 m ↝ easy

   ↙ Colours of the sections like MTB rating but without the duration.

10% hard-surfaced city alleys, few marks

5% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, few marks

20% forest roads, few marks

15% hard-surfaced quiet side streets, few marks

25% hard-surfaced city alleys, faulty marks

5% easy trails, few marks
   ↖ leave the bike and explore on foot

25% hard-surfaced city roads, without marks

Rue de Fontvieille leads us to this intersection, where we turn left.

La Bastidonne is a very quiet village. There's a small supermarket and a bar on the street to the right.

The change of direction takes us uphill again. But note that this is one of the last climbs.

We reach a saddle at a place called Le Dernier Château (The Last Castle, but we don't see one) at the edge of the village.

We continue and descend along this small D165 road.

As is so often such cases, we turn left at the first opportunity to find an even smaller road.

Here begins a descent through the fields. We can let the bikes roll, it's a real pleasure!

Scattered cabins in the fields add to the charm of this descent.

The narrow road leads us to this intersection where we don't have the right of way and where visibility is poor.

We continue straight ahead on a short stretch of unpaved road.

The asphalt resumes after 500 metres.

We then enter the southern part of the village of La Tour d'Aigues. It has expanded here with new construction.

The road winds a few times, crosses this bridge, and leads to the Route de Mirabeau. We turn left there.

We soon arrive at the bridge over the Èze River, which we already know.

To the left, under the road, just before crossing the bridge, is a wash house with an old water source.

Just after the bridge, we turn right to climb very steeply towards the castle.

There's even a hairpin bend on this steep road.

We arrive in the old town and exit through the Burliaire Gate onto the parking lot in front of the castle.

Bicycles must be left at the entrance. Access is free, however, climbing the tower and visiting the chapel are not permitted.

The triumphal arch is the work of the Piedmontese architect Ercole Nigra, who began working in the Tour d'Aigues in 1566. He was directly inspired by Roman monuments in Provence, such as the Pont Flavien and the triumphal arch of Orange. The portal was completed in 1571, the date is engraved on the tip of the tympanum. In the form of an ancient triumphal arch, this arch is a two-tiered composition separated by a wide, ornate frieze framed by two tall, fluted pilasters with composite capitals, supporting an entablature surmounted by a large triangular pediment.

The two levels are each arranged in the manner of a triumphal arch: a large central bay, niches or secondary bays framed by columns on the ground floor and pilasters on the upper floor.

The entrance features a keystone depicting the god Mars, helmeted and armed. On either side, in each spandrel, is a winged Victory, her foot resting on a ball and brandishing standards.

The large frieze blends themes inspired by both antiquity and the Renaissance: trophies, weapons, and martial attributes such as shields, breastplates, helmets, swords, and quivers. Torches, cartouches, and leatherwork are also depicted.

The pediment is adorned, from bottom to top, with friezes of trefoils and finials, dentils, rosaries, egg-and-dart motifs, modillions, coffered rosettes, and lion heads.

This gate is the most original and best-preserved part of the castle.

The magnificent portal conceals a ruin.

In 1780, an accidental fire ravaged the north wing of the building, causing extensive damage. Reconstruction work was not yet complete when the Revolution broke out. On September 14, 1792, a group of revolutionaries attacked the building: the last baron, Jean-Baptiste-Jérôme de Bruny, was absent, but his château was looted and engulfed in flames. It burned for five days. This event must, of course, be understood within the context of the upheaval that gripped France in the autumn of 1792, a few weeks after the fall of the Tuileries Palace and the monarchy, but also in light of the numerous resentments accumulated by the villagers against their last lords. Indeed, throughout the century, the disputes and numerous lawsuits between the two sides testify to an increasingly bitter climate of hostility. The castle, reduced to ruins, fell into disrepair and served as a quarry for the inhabitants of the village and surrounding area for the entire following century. It was therefore an extremely dilapidated building that the Vaucluse General Council purchased in 1897. This acquisition saved the last vestiges of the castle. Source: Wikipedia, Château de La Tour-d'Aigues.

The central tower is impressive.

The original keep dates from the 13th century, but in the second half of the 14th century, it was renovated to form the centre of the large courtyard. It was covered with an imperial roof with a double lantern, like the castles of the Paris region. This roof burned down during the Revolution. Renovations of the keep continued until the beginning of the 17th century.

On the first floor are the figurative letters C, λ and D representing the monograms of the usurping noble family of Créquy-les-Diguières, this is the link between the powerful family of Créquy d'Artois and the lineage of François de Bonne de Lesdiguières, Constable of France.

The main courtyard is used for concerts in the summer.

At the rear are the remains of the southwest corner tower.

On the southeast side, the main courtyard is enclosed by a single facade with a plaza in front.

We leave the castle and return to the starting point, which was north of the cemetery. Turn left at the roundabout north of the castle, then right uphill.

The yellow arrow marks the direction to the bus stop.

Turn right again at the stop sign.

At the end of the wall is the entrance to the parking lot.

This concludes our tour, which is perfect for a summer forenoon.

Sources and additional information

It is better to use a good topographic hiking map: this tour is on the IGN map "Pertuis, Lourmarin", scale 1:25000, 3243OT.

If you don't want to bother with a paper map, you can also use mapping apps on your cell phone. On the one hand, it is the Cartes IGN app from the official map service. However, it requires access to the data network and this is sometimes difficult in canyons or remote locations.

Alternatively, you can use apps that store data directly on the device. They're generally not free, but they don't cost much. We mainly use OSMAnd, here it is possible to add contour lines, relief shading, markings and others. To store this data on your phone you need a lot of space.

Of course, one needs access to satellites for the GPS signal with any app. In some canyons this is not the case. Therefore, do not rely on the position shown, but read the map on your phone as you would read it on paper. Most apps are available for Android and iPhone. The applications usually allow us to record the route travelled and also view the GPS files offered for each of our hikes.