France Yanalda67 · CC BY-SA 4.0
The cut
774 metres, to scale.
A slice through Canyon of Thurignin where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.
Standing on the floor, to scale: Great Pyramid · 139 m · Empire State · 443 m
Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is.
774m
Depth
measured on the 30 m relief model
10.4km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
38°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
243m
Floor altitude
Rim to floor
7 °C warmer at the bottom.
In July the afternoon reaches 26 °C on the floor, against 19 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are in May and in September. The rim freezes at night from November to March.
- 6°-2°Jan
- 7°0°Feb
- 12°5°Mar
- 16°9°Apr
- 20°13°May
- 24°17°Jun
- 26°19°Jul
- 26°19°Aug
- 22°15°Sep
- 17°10°Oct
- 11°4°Nov
- 6°-1°Dec
Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.
Canyon in France
Canyon of Thurignin is a canyon in France, cut by the Séran river. The relief model measures 774 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 1,087 m to the higher one. Rim to rim it is 10 km wide where the cut was taken.
Getting there.
- Artemarenearest town · 2.7 km in a straight line
- Parking 260 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
- Viewpointsnearest viewpoint · 0.4 km from the floor
- Chambéry Aix les Bains airport (CMF)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 33 km in a straight lineCar hire at LYS airport (Colombier-Saugnieu, Rhône)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- In May and in Septemberbest months to hike (estimate)
Plan the visit
Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
The river
The Séran runs highest from November to May.
The Séran carries about 3.5 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from November to May.
- 4.8 m³/sJan
- 4.1 m³/sFeb
- 4.9 m³/sMar
- 3.9 m³/sApr
- 3.9 m³/sMay
- 2.6 m³/sJun
- 1.4 m³/sJul
- 1.3 m³/sAug
- 1.3 m³/sSep
- 3.0 m³/sOct
- 4.1 m³/sNov
- 4.6 m³/sDec
From about 1.3 m³/s in the lowest month to 4.9 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 132 km².
Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.
From the sky.
The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.
N
6 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 23 × 23 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- 17viewpoints within 5 kmBelvédère du pierrier, Cascade de Cerveyrieu, Belvédère du Sérémond and 14 more
- 79marked hiking routes within 4 kmBalcon du Valromey, Chanduraz depuis Chavornay, Sentier de Parnaud and 76 more
- 1climbing crags within 3 km
- 9footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 kmPont à Fabre and 8 more
- 2named waterfalls within 4 kmCascade de Cerveyrieu, Gouffre à Balthazar
- 1caves within 3 km
- 26car parks within 3 km
- 23information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- 3campsites within 8 kmAire de stationnement de Ceyzérieu, Le Vaugrais, Camping municipal de Champagne
- 34hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmGîte de Charancin, Le Grand Amiral, La Boiserie de Fitignieu and 31 more
- 7restaurants and cafés within 4 km
- via ferrata routes within 4 km
- rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
- swimming spots within 3 km
- bus stops within 2 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Towns nearby
- Artemare2.7 km in a straight line
- Virieu-le-Grand5.2 km in a straight line
- Culoz10 km in a straight line
- Hauteville-Lompnes11 km in a straight line
- Tenay13 km in a straight line
- Belley15 km in a straight line
- Chindrieux16 km in a straight line
- Châtillon17 km in a straight line
In our other atlases
What else is around Canyon of Thurignin.
The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.
Cascadyas3 waterfalls nearbyComing soon
Peakyas5 mountains within 15 km
Lakeyas1 lakes within 15 kmComing soonFigures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Month by month
The weather, at the floor and at the rim.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon · floor | 6 | 7 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 22 | 17 | 11 | 6 |
| Afternoon · rim | -2 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 13 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 15 | 10 | 4 | -1 |
| Night · rim | -8 | -8 | -4 | -1 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 1 | -4 | -7 |
| Rain (mm) | 103 | 79 | 96 | 84 | 110 | 95 | 87 | 94 | 80 | 108 | 112 | 116 |
| Rainy days | 13 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 14 |
| Sun hours/day | 2.2 | 3.7 | 5.5 | 6.8 | 7.1 | 8.9 | 9.1 | 8.1 | 6.8 | 4.4 | 2.5 | 1.8 |
| Snow on the ground (cm) | 16 | 14 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 14 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6 | -2 | -8 | 103 | 2.2 |
| Feb | 7 | 0 | -8 | 79 | 3.7 |
| Mar | 12 | 5 | -4 | 96 | 5.5 |
| Apr | 16 | 9 | -1 | 84 | 6.8 |
| May | 20 | 13 | 3 | 110 | 7.1 |
| Jun | 24 | 17 | 7 | 95 | 8.9 |
| Jul | 26 | 19 | 9 | 87 | 9.1 |
| Aug | 26 | 19 | 8 | 94 | 8.1 |
| Sep | 22 | 15 | 5 | 80 | 6.8 |
| Oct | 17 | 10 | 1 | 108 | 4.4 |
| Nov | 11 | 4 | -4 | 112 | 2.5 |
| Dec | 6 | -1 | -7 | 116 | 1.8 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (243 m) and the rim (1,330 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.
Recent years
Wet years, dry years.
Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 56% | 135% | 85% | 54% | 93% | 131% | 27% | 93% | 99% | 194% | 26% | 124% |
| 2021 | 133% | 72% | 59% | 63% | 159% | 114% | 196% | 62% | 111% | 92% | 65% | 167% |
| 2022 | 43% | 107% | 27% | 105% | 33% | 126% | 20% | 66% | 188% | 73% | 123% | 129% |
| 2023 | 78% | 9% | 139% | 110% | 59% | 82% | 63% | 77% | 92% | 177% | 208% | 155% |
| 2024 | 114% | 109% | 114% | 125% | 149% | 125% | 99% | 61% | 241% | 155% | 56% | 101% |
| 2025 | 157% | 58% | 56% | 107% | 85% | 103% | 118% | 92% | 194% | 173% | 150% | 36% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
Canyon of Thurignin
France
- 774 mDepth
- 10 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 38°Steepest wall
Gorges du Val du Fier
France · 13 km
- 761 mDepth
- 10 kmRim to rim
- 3.5 kmLength
- 30°Steepest wall
Where these figures come from
| Name, type, published depth and length | Wikidata (Q19382779) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| River flow and basin | HydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0 |
| Climate | NASA POWER, 1991–2020 |
| Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearby | Coastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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