France kallerna · CC BY-SA 4.0
The cut
654 metres, to scale.
A slice through Verdon Gorge 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.
654m
Depth
measured on the 30 m relief model
6.7km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
42°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
25km
Length
Rim to floor
4 °C warmer at the bottom.
In July the afternoon reaches 30 °C on the floor, against 26 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are in May. The rim freezes at night from December to February. The wettest months are from October to December.
- 8°4°Jan
- 9°5°Feb
- 12°8°Mar
- 16°12°Apr
- 21°16°May
- 27°22°Jun
- 30°26°Jul
- 29°25°Aug
- 24°20°Sep
- 18°14°Oct
- 13°8°Nov
- 9°4°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.
River canyon in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France
Verdon Gorge is a gorge in France, cut by the Verdon river. The relief model measures 654 m from the floor to the lower rim. It runs for 25 km. Rim to rim it is 6.7 km wide where the cut was taken. It lies within Verdon Regional Natural Park.
Getting there.
- Aupsnearest town · 16 km in a straight line
- Parking 680 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
- Tunnel du Fayetnearest viewpoint · 0.6 km from the floor
- Nice-Côte d'Azur Airport (NCE)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 69 km in a straight lineCar hire at NCE airport (Nice, Alpes-Maritimes)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- In Maybest 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 Verdon runs highest from November to December.
The Verdon carries about 19 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from November to December. It is lowest from June to September.
- 19 m³/sJan
- 16 m³/sFeb
- 15 m³/sMar
- 14 m³/sApr
- 12 m³/sMay
- 7.7 m³/sJun
- 4.6 m³/sJul
- 3.8 m³/sAug
- 7.3 m³/sSep
- 17 m³/sOct
- 29 m³/sNov
- 26 m³/sDec
From about 3.8 m³/s in the lowest month to 29 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 1,297 km².
The Artuby from source to mouth on Riveryas — coming soon
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
4 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 15 × 15 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- 38viewpoints within 5 kmBalcon de la Mescla, Belvédère de la Gorge de Guègues, La Mescla and 35 more
- 9marked hiking routes within 4 kmDe Saint-Raphaël à Rougon, Sentier de l'Imbut, Sentier Vidal and 6 more
- 18climbing crags within 3 kmSecteur Belvedère et Chan-Fhé, Secteur Discorde, Baume des Cavaliers and 15 more
- 1footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 kmPasserelle de l'Estellier
- 33caves within 3 km
- 30car parks within 3 km
- 2information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- 1bus stops within 2 km
- 8campsites within 8 kmCamping municipal le Grand Canyon, Camping Verdon Carajuan, Camping à la Ferme de Bourras and 5 more
- 23hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmHostel Restaurant du Canyon, Gîte d'étape de la Ferme des Cavaliers, Hôtel & Spa des Gorges du Verdon and 20 more
- 3restaurants 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
- 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
- Aups16 km in a straight line
- Montferrat17 km in a straight line
- Castellane17 km in a straight line
- Villecroze19 km in a straight line
- Bargemon20 km in a straight line
- Régusse21 km in a straight line
- Callas21 km in a straight line
- Figanières22 km in a straight line
In our other atlases
What else is around Verdon Gorge.
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.
Riveryas1 rivers in the canyon
Peakyas20 mountains within 15 kmFigures 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 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 16 | 21 | 27 | 30 | 29 | 24 | 18 | 13 | 9 |
| Afternoon · rim | 4 | 5 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 22 | 26 | 25 | 20 | 14 | 8 | 4 |
| Night · rim | -4 | -4 | -1 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 9 | 5 | 0 | -3 |
| Rain (mm) | 52 | 46 | 50 | 49 | 51 | 29 | 14 | 20 | 48 | 87 | 109 | 72 |
| Rainy days | 7 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 7 |
| Sun hours/day | 4.5 | 5.5 | 7.0 | 7.8 | 9.1 | 11.1 | 11.8 | 10.6 | 8.3 | 5.9 | 4.4 | 4.2 |
| Snow on the ground (cm) | 6 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8 | 4 | -4 | 52 | 4.5 |
| Feb | 9 | 5 | -4 | 46 | 5.5 |
| Mar | 12 | 8 | -1 | 50 | 7.0 |
| Apr | 16 | 12 | 2 | 49 | 7.8 |
| May | 21 | 16 | 6 | 51 | 9.1 |
| Jun | 27 | 22 | 10 | 29 | 11.1 |
| Jul | 30 | 26 | 13 | 14 | 11.8 |
| Aug | 29 | 25 | 13 | 20 | 10.6 |
| Sep | 24 | 20 | 9 | 48 | 8.3 |
| Oct | 18 | 14 | 5 | 87 | 5.9 |
| Nov | 13 | 8 | 0 | 109 | 4.4 |
| Dec | 9 | 4 | -3 | 72 | 4.2 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (560 m) and the rim (1,221 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 | 48% | 14% | 85% | 85% | 144% | 206% | 18% | 74% | 84% | 64% | 35% | 86% |
| 2021 | 127% | 57% | 9% | 143% | 122% | 67% | 79% | 67% | 81% | 78% | 50% | 67% |
| 2022 | 4% | 53% | 35% | 59% | 37% | 70% | 79% | 202% | 96% | 18% | 57% | 152% |
| 2023 | 33% | 34% | 19% | 24% | 96% | 164% | 37% | 114% | 89% | 72% | 30% | 72% |
| 2024 | 75% | 200% | 315% | 66% | 105% | 126% | 43% | 50% | 175% | 188% | 30% | 12% |
| 2025 | 66% | 38% | 86% | 49% | 24% | 22% | 46% | 60% | 48% | 23% | 22% | 48% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
Verdon Gorge
France
- 654 mDepth
- 6.7 kmRim to rim
- 25 kmLength
- 42°Steepest wall
Gorges de Baudinard
France · 22 km
- 182 mDepth
- 6.8 kmRim to rim
- 3.2 kmLength
- 16°Steepest wall
Basses Gorges du Verdon
France · 29 km
- 188 mDepth
- 2.0 kmRim to rim
- 7.7 kmLength
- 28°Steepest wall
Where these figures come from
| Name, type, published depth and length | Wikidata (Q687057) · 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.
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