France Patrice78500 · CC BY-SA 3.0
The cut
792 metres, to scale.
A slice through Gorges de la Balme 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. On one side the ground was still rising 12 km out: the true rim is further away and the canyon deeper.
792m
Depth
published figure: 200 m
21.5km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
32°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
216m
Floor altitude
Rim to floor
8 °C warmer at the bottom.
In July the afternoon reaches 27 °C on the floor, against 19 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are in May and from September to October. The rim freezes at night from November to March.
- 7°-1°Jan
- 8°0°Feb
- 13°5°Mar
- 17°9°Apr
- 21°13°May
- 25°17°Jun
- 27°19°Jul
- 27°19°Aug
- 23°15°Sep
- 18°10°Oct
- 12°4°Nov
- 8°-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.
Gorges de la Balme is a canyon in France, cut by the Le Rhône river. The relief model measures 792 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 1,257 m to the higher one. The published depth is 200 m. Rim to rim it is 22 km wide where the cut was taken.
Getting there.
- Yennenearest town · 2.5 km in a straight line
- Parking 2,310 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
- Viewpointsnearest viewpoint · 0.9 km from the floor
- Chambéry Aix les Bains airport (CMF)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 14 km in a straight lineCar hire at GNB airport (Grenoble)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- In May and from September to Octoberbest 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 Le Rhône runs highest from November to June.
The Le Rhône carries about 425 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from November to June.
- 525 m³/sJan
- 495 m³/sFeb
- 524 m³/sMar
- 496 m³/sApr
- 524 m³/sMay
- 448 m³/sJun
- 379 m³/sJul
- 317 m³/sAug
- 319 m³/sSep
- 399 m³/sOct
- 480 m³/sNov
- 512 m³/sDec
From about 317 m³/s in the lowest month to 525 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 13,785 km².
Follow the Rhône from source to mouth on Riveryas
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), 24 × 24 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- 16viewpoints within 5 kmBelvédère du Rhône, Belvédère de Pierre Châtel, Belvédère du Tombeau de Boisson and 13 more
- 70marked hiking routes within 4 kmPerrigny - Yenne and 69 more
- 274climbing crags within 3 kmCrise de negativite aigue, Que je suis beau quand je grimpe, Miss escalope d'acier and 271 more
- 5footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 kmpasserelle Virignin La Balme and 4 more
- 9rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 kmStade d'eaux Vives Yenne kayak and 8 more
- 2caves within 3 km
- 36car parks within 3 km
- 11information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- 6bus stops within 2 km
- 10campsites within 8 kmAire de Camping-cars Belley, Kanoti, Camping des Lacs and 7 more
- 56hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmLe Fer à Cheval, Hôtel la Source, Clos de Capucins and 53 more
- 8restaurants and cafés within 4 km
- via ferrata routes within 4 km
- swimming spots within 3 km
- named waterfalls within 4 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
- Yenne2.5 km in a straight line
- Belley6.3 km in a straight line
- Le Bourget-du-Lac12 km in a straight line
- Brison-Saint-Innocent13 km in a straight line
- Novalaise13 km in a straight line
- Châtillon14 km in a straight line
- Tresserve14 km in a straight line
- Saint-Genix-sur-Guiers14 km in a straight line
In our other atlases
What else is around Gorges de la Balme.
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.
Cascadyas1 waterfalls nearbyComing soon
Peakyas15 mountains within 15 km
Lakeyas2 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 | 7 | 8 | 13 | 17 | 21 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 23 | 18 | 12 | 8 |
| Afternoon · rim | -1 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 13 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 15 | 10 | 4 | -1 |
| Night · rim | -8 | -8 | -5 | -1 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 4 | 1 | -4 | -7 |
| Rain (mm) | 79 | 62 | 74 | 69 | 97 | 77 | 72 | 76 | 70 | 89 | 97 | 86 |
| Rainy days | 12 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 12 |
| Sun hours/day | 2.6 | 4.0 | 5.8 | 6.9 | 7.4 | 9.4 | 9.8 | 8.7 | 7.0 | 4.7 | 2.9 | 2.3 |
| Snow on the ground (cm) | 16 | 14 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 14 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | -1 | -8 | 79 | 2.6 |
| Feb | 8 | 0 | -8 | 62 | 4.0 |
| Mar | 13 | 5 | -5 | 74 | 5.8 |
| Apr | 17 | 9 | -1 | 69 | 6.9 |
| May | 21 | 13 | 3 | 97 | 7.4 |
| Jun | 25 | 17 | 7 | 77 | 9.4 |
| Jul | 27 | 19 | 9 | 72 | 9.8 |
| Aug | 27 | 19 | 8 | 76 | 8.7 |
| Sep | 23 | 15 | 4 | 70 | 7.0 |
| Oct | 18 | 10 | 1 | 89 | 4.7 |
| Nov | 12 | 4 | -4 | 97 | 2.9 |
| Dec | 8 | -1 | -7 | 86 | 2.3 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (216 m) and the rim (1,473 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.
Photographs
Seen from the trail.
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 | 55% | 128% | 93% | 66% | 105% | 155% | 30% | 118% | 98% | 175% | 29% | 137% |
| 2021 | 168% | 75% | 70% | 85% | 153% | 103% | 197% | 77% | 111% | 92% | 74% | 204% |
| 2022 | 44% | 102% | 28% | 103% | 38% | 112% | 18% | 73% | 172% | 67% | 121% | 147% |
| 2023 | 70% | 8% | 167% | 111% | 74% | 116% | 46% | 87% | 94% | 162% | 184% | 198% |
| 2024 | 126% | 93% | 138% | 115% | 151% | 149% | 109% | 47% | 234% | 153% | 49% | 121% |
| 2025 | 150% | 45% | 64% | 111% | 74% | 79% | 100% | 78% | 171% | 138% | 113% | 40% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
Gorges de la Balme
France
- 792 mDepth
- 22 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 32°Steepest wall
Gorges du Val du Fier
France · 30 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 (Q16508156) · 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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