Gouffre et source de la Sorgue (Fontaine-de-Vaucluse)

Fontaine-de-Vaucluse

At the back of a cirque closed off by a 230-metre cliff, the Sorgue bursts out of the ground all at once: this is the most powerful resurgence in metropolitan France and one of the five largest in the world, fed by an underground catchment of more than 1,100 km² that drains Mont Ventoux, the Monts de Vaucluse, the Albion plateau and the Montagne de Lure. The bottom of the flooded conduit was reached only in 1985 and then 1989, at a depth of 308 metres, by remotely operated craft, after a long series of human attempts begun by Nello Ottonelli in 1878 and continued by Jacques-Yves Cousteau in 1946 and 1955. The archaeological campaigns of 2002–2003 brought up from the chasm several thousand coins and objects, many of them Roman: offerings were already being thrown into this spring two thousand years ago. Provençal tradition, for its part, made it the home of the Coulobre, a winged monster with poisoned breath, a kind of "drac" that devoured the beasts and people of the valley. Saint Véran, bishop of Cavaillon in the 6th century, is said to have wounded it with the sign of the cross and driven it towards the Luberon and then the Alps, where the village of Saint-Véran would mark the place where it fell. A late version, born in the 15th century from confusion with a fresco by Simone Martini depicting Saint George, credits the final blow to Petrarch, who lived for sixteen years at Fontaine-de-Vaucluse: the dying beast is said to have spat its venom on Laura. The village has kept both memories, the poet's and the dragon's, and the Romanesque church of the village is still dedicated to Saint Véran.

Grand Site de la Fontaine de Vaucluse — le gouffre ↗

Getting there : From the village centre, a flat path of about 1 km along the Sorgue, starting from the church of Saint-Véran; free access, very busy in season. A safety barrier closes off the last fifty metres beside the pool. The chasm overflows only in spring or after heavy rain: in summer the pool is often low and green, the water emerging lower down through the scree.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound