Discovering the Upper Cévennes (Day 1).
Florac Trois Rivières

1. Discovering the Upper Cévennes (Day 1).

Architecture and village
Fauna and flora
History and culture
Water and geology
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This part of the hike follows a section of the Stevenson Trail, named after the famous Scotsman who crossed the Cévennes with his she-donkey Modestine. You walk deeper into the Mimente valley on the disused railway tracks, which include several tunnels and bridges.

3 points of interest

  • History

    Château de Saint-Julien-d'Arpaon

    This 13th century castle was the property of the Lords of Anduze, who owned the barony of Florac in what was then the Gévaudan. In 1618, when the Gabriac family owned it, the castle was demolished. In the 18th century, it was inherited by the Montcalm family from Rouergue province, which owned several properties in the Gévaudan. The family restored the building, but it has suffered from effects of time and is currently in ruins – though in a better state of preservation than other castles in the Gévaudan.

  • History

    The CFD (mountain-bike route)

    Users and employees still talk of the former railway (CFD) with regret and emotion:
    “To go to Montpellier on Mondays, I could leave at 6 in the morning, and arrive in Montpellier at 10, and you could get back here in the evening. The train arrived at 10 o'clock in the evening. Now (with the coach), you can go down, but you have to wait for the next day to come back up. It was very useful. Nowadays, if you don't have a car, what do you do? You hitch-hike, you walk!” (P. Grime)
    “Two years after the train was shut down, we had the idea of putting it back on the track and turning it into a tourist train. We managed to get a railcar to start... We hadn't told anyone: apparently we didn't have the right to do it, we even risked getting a correctional sentence. Nothing happened... Except that at St-Julien-des-Points we gave a blast of this kind of horn that we had, and M., from the restaurant, came up with a litre of pastis, and two or three farmers from the area arrived too. We all cried like babies. We had the impression that the heart of the area was beating again.”  (Revue Cévennes, issue 15)

  • History

    The disused railway (CéFéDé)

    From 1909 to 1968, this railway line linked Florac and Sainte-Cécile-d'Andorge (50 km). A metre-gauge single-track line, it was managed by the department's railway company. It was linked to the SNCF state railway network. The trains transported passengers and merchandise: ore from Ramponenche mine near Florac; baryte from the mine at Jalcreste, and plums, chestnut wood, dried boletus mushrooms, etc., destined for northern France. As you move along the disused line, you will see former engineered constructions (bridges, tunnels, etc.).

Description

From the centre of Florac-Trois-Rivières, head for the Corniche des Cévennes road (RD 907); 800 m after the roundabout take the Pont de Barre bridge on your left and immediately turn left onto the GR®70 long-distance trail (waymarked white and red).
1 – You alternate between lanes and tracks for 7 km, before reaching the N106 road.
2 – Cross the road and walk towards Saint-Julien d'Arpaon, then go right onto the disused railway tracks for 4 km.
3 – Cross the road again and take, on your left, the path that runs alongside the river for 3 km until you reach the former train station at Cassagnas.
If you wish to go to the actual village of Cassagnas, you will have to walk uphill to above the RN106 (3 km).
  • Departure : Florac
  • Arrival : Cassagnas: former train station
  • Towns crossed : Florac Trois Rivières, Cans et Cévennes, and Cassagnas

Forecast

Altimetric profile

Recommandations

Bring a head torch for the tunnels. Make sure your equipment is appropriate for the day’s weather conditions. Remember that the weather changes quickly in the mountains. Take enough water, wear sturdy shoes and put on a hat. Please close all gates and barriers behind you.
Is in the midst of the park
The national park is an unrestricted natural area but subjected to regulations which must be known by all visitors.

Information desks

Tourism'house and national Parc at Florac

Place de l'ancienne gare, N106, 48400 Florac-trois-rivières

https://www.cevennes-gorges-du-tarn.cominfo@cevennes-parcnational.fr04 66 45 01 14

This office is part of the National Park's associated tourist-information network, whose mission is to provide information on, and raise awareness of, the sites and events as well as the rules that must be observed in the National Park's central zone.

On site:  exhibitions, video projections, events and shop Open year-round

Find out more

Transport

Old train station car park

Bus line Florac-Mende
Daily from Monday to Saturday morning (except bank holidays) all year
https://lio.laregion.fr/IMG/pdf/oc-1903-fhbus-48-251-3v_bd_04_.pdf

Bus line Florac Ste-Enimie Le Rozier, July and August, every day
https://lio.laregion.fr/IMG/pdf/oc-1903-fhbus-48-258-3v_bd_04_.pdf

Bus line Alès-Florac (by reservation only if departing from Ispagnac) Boulet +33 (0)4 66 65 19 88
Daily bus line (except Sundays and bank holidays) from 15 April to 31 October.

https://fr.calameo.com/read/003034667db3a5b1c0788

Access and parking

Florac-Trois-Rivières on the RN 106.

Parking :

3 car parks: by the former train station, on François Mitterrand square, by the church.

Source

Maison du tourisme et du Parc national, Florachttp://www.cevennes-parcnational.fr/
Parc national des Cévenneshttp://www.cevennes-parcnational.fr/

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