Sainte-Christine Chapel tour - Valcros and the Trubis Cave

A route where you can rediscover the footpaths and, above all, the hamlet of Valcros with its square, the chapel, the tree and its oven. Then a visit to the Trubis Cave when there is water.
Afterwards, we head towards the Castellas oppidum, but that will have to wait for another time, and we return to the Sainte-Christine Chapel to appreciate its history and the view.

Details

470851
Creation:
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Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 6.13 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 55 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,247 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,253 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,079 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 420 ft
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Solliès-Pont (83210)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 43.217655° / E 6.044149°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 3345OT, 3346OT
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the car park at the Sainte-Christine Chapel in Solliès-Pont.

(S/E) Head down to the left then turn left onto the DFCI track, following the direction of the sign (green heart).

(1) Take the steps on your left and, at the bottom, turn right, then right again.

(2) At the junction, go straight on, crossing over a few pallets. After about 700 m, turn left.

(3) Turn left again onto the DFCI track and head towards the CES1 cistern, keeping a general north-westerly direction. Go past the cistern.
(4) Once at the three-way junction, turn right. Continue along the road, following the path, and at the junction with another road, take the path opposite, slightly to the left. It goes downhill.

(5) At the end of this track, turn right towards Valcros and the chapel. You’ll see the oven a little further on, on the left in the hamlet. After the chapel, not far from the millstone on the house opposite, there are fossils on the walls.
Retrace your steps.

(5) Do not take the path again. Stay on the road and at the next junction, turn right and head down towards the Grotte de Trubis. Stay on the main path.

(6) Continue to the right on the main path.

(7) Turn right at the house with white shutters and head towards the Grotte de Trubis. Retrace your steps back to

(6) Turn right uphill, taking a wide bend (the path is barely visible, with litter present); you will be crossing over to the other side of the hill. There are hairpin bends; follow the path and keep to the left until you reach a fork with a ‘private property’ sign.
Take care as there are many paths not marked on the map.

(8) Turn right and, after a right-hand bend followed by a left-hand bend, you’ll reach a fork. Turn left and head towards a large crossroads.

(9) Continue straight ahead, head down the path (which can be very slippery if wet) and follow the boundary of the district town.
(10) At the bottom, turn left, then right, then keep left to reach the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 787 ft - Car park at the - Chapelle Sainte-Christine
  2. 1 : mi 0.38 - alt. 732 ft - Stairs on the left
  3. 2 : mi 0.51 - alt. 755 ft - Crossroads, straight ahead
  4. 3 : mi 1.03 - alt. 1,033 ft - On the left
  5. 4 : mi 1.74 - alt. 1,024 ft - Three-way junction, on the right
  6. 5 : mi 2.34 - alt. 745 ft - Road, on the right
  7. 6 : mi 3.66 - alt. 597 ft - Crossroads on the return journey
  8. 7 : mi 4.09 - alt. 423 ft - On the right, level with the house with white shutters - Grotte de Trubis (Cuers)
  9. 8 : mi 5.15 - alt. 915 ft - T-junction, turn right
  10. 9 : mi 5.44 - alt. 971 ft - Major crossroads, opposite
  11. 10 : mi 5.89 - alt. 581 ft - Crossroads, turn left
  12. S/E : mi 6.13 - alt. 787 ft - Car park at Sainte-Christine Chapel

Notes

(S/E) Opportunity to visit the Chapel of Sainte-Christine.

Worth a visit

Sainte-Christine in Sollies-Pont: its history.

Legend has it that one day in 1041, a terrible storm broke out. On board a boat in the storm, Irenée, Prince of Archaie, vowed to build a chapel if he were saved from the waters.
The hamlet of Valcros.
The Trubis Cave.

Reviews and comments

3.8 / 5
Based on 56 reviews

Reliability of the description
3.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.7 / 5
Route interest
4.1 / 5
diamsazur
diamsazur

Thank you

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Denis26
Denis26 ★

Thank you, ericbeninger, for that information; I’ve just updated the itinerary accordingly.

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ericbeninger
ericbeninger
• Edited:

You can (and should) avoid entering the private property at point 8 by turning right, rather than going straight on. After a right turn followed by a left turn, you come to a fork in the path; take the left-hand fork. You will then reach the large junction after point 9, which you cross straight ahead, rejoining the track and thus having avoided the entire private property area.

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biloba
biloba

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 02, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Not very clear at No. 9, apparently private property, the signposting leads into a part of the

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vébé83
vébé83

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful route, with the Turbis cave, which was overflowing with water, for the first time (out of three visits). Passed through the beautiful hamlet of Valcros.
As a result, much of the route was muddy and there was water at the bottom of the small natural streams.
If you set off around 10 a.m., you can picnic on the steps of the Sainte Christine chapel when you arrive, in the sunshine with a beautiful view of the southern valley of the Gapeau.

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gegemft
gegemft

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 05, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The area is very popular with runners, walkers with their dogs and hunters. However, there is room for everyone! The elevation gain is gradual and does not present any significant difficulties. It allows you to maintain a good pace and enjoy the surroundings. I took advantage of this route to do a variation via the Castellas oppidum on the Cuers side. It takes 20 minutes to reach the top of a steep climb. The village of Valcros is worth a visit. You can pass through the property at point 6 by going straight ahead (to be confirmed). A beautiful hike in a green setting.

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Kzimir59
Kzimir59

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 18, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Very busy route : No

Please note that the cave is fenced off and inaccessible. In addition, part of the hike is on a private road, so please take care during hunting season.

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Perrye83
Perrye83

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 06, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike with plenty of shade except on the "track" section. We did it clockwise. On the way up, we came across a path blocked by a "no entry" sign, which we easily got around to return to the marked trail. Access to the cave is closed off by large bars for obvious safety reasons, as it is a resurgence that can be dangerous, but the site is worth a look. The hamlet of Valcros is very charming with its wash house, liberty tree, public pizza oven, etc.
Thanks to the author for his work and explanations.

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Giel83
Giel83

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 10, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Two points to note: The large crossroads towards Les Trois Ragages, with an unmarked path 100 m further on, then the fork that you must not miss when descending towards Belgentier (hidden by vegetation)

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diamsazur
diamsazur
• Edited:

Thank you for sharing your experience
Biz mumu

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AlainB08
AlainB08

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 16, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant route, even though we didn't have time to visit the cave. We had a little trouble finding the right path at the start, then again on the way back near the private property, especially after climbing over the collapsed wall, where we came across a "Beware of dogs" sign. Luckily, the trail is well marked. The paths are varied and would certainly be very pleasant in summer as they are well shaded. On the downside, there are relatively few clear views. The detour via the hamlet of Valcros is really interesting, especially as we were lucky enough to meet some locals who were delighted to tell us about their region.

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LAÏFA
LAÏFA

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 25, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello, No access to the cave!
There are lots of "Private property" signs, but we went in anyway. The paths are rarely used and therefore difficult to navigate in places because nature has taken over.

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Belette83
Belette83
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 21, 2022
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Route completed using an IGN map, accompanied by my dog.

The route starts on the DFCI at the sign... No difficulty in finding your way, just follow the DFCI for 80% of the route... You need to pay attention to the map and it's easy going.
The only potential difficulty is at the private property (point 9, the chain in the middle of the path is surprising)....I checked with the dog's GPS that the blue markings went around the property and back to the chapel.
After that, the trail leads you straight to the chapels....it's obvious.

The walk is interesting, both for the views and the visit to Valcros (I missed the fossils on the wall), and the Truebis cave is very pretty....

Not enough time to go down to the oppidum, next time...

Thanks for the walk

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jmgg
jmgg

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 21, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike, but a GPS is essential to successfully complete the circuit without getting lost.The two chapels, Valcros and the cave, are definitely the most interesting parts of the hike. At point 9, be sure to take the small path on the right (cairn) before the "private property" sign, which seems to take you back in the opposite direction, but look carefully after a few metres and you will see another small cairn on the left that will take you back along the large terraces towards Ste Christine. You will rejoin the original route after about 10 minutes. It would be a good idea to modify the GPS route to avoid the private property and the anxiety of getting lost off the planned route. The entire trail was fairly well maintained. We had a good day. Thank you for this hike.

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christdona
christdona
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 11, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Hello,
I saw the cairn at point 6, excellent initiative.
On the positive side, the hamlet of Valcros is worth seeing, as is the Trubis cave, but the Valcros stream is completely dry.
I think there is a way to avoid this place and the "private property", "no trespassing" and "beware of the dog" signs.
between points 6 and 10, the path is poorly maintained (vegetation is taking over) and GPS seems welcome.
Passed points 6 and 7 but the track wasn't deleted from the GPS.

We changed our plans for the day because on Saturday 5th there were hunters and dogs "everywhere" etc.

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