A must-do hike
A legendary hike in the heart of the Verdon Gorge
One of the most beautiful trails in France, between dizzying cliffs, spectacular passages and turquoise water.
Blanc-Martel trail
Illustrative image
The trail runs from the Chalet de la Maline to Point Sublime. Two simple ways to organise your day: the Park’s official shuttle or a taxi.
Official shuttle
Run by the Parc naturel régional du Verdon
Taxi Castellane
Hike, then find your car waiting at the finish
Grandiose scenery all along the trail
See the start, the finish and the car parks of the trail.
Not to be missedViewpoints, iconic passages and curiosities.Discover 
PhotosDiscover the trail in pictures.View the gallery 
Current conditions (weather, water releases, fire risk, closures) to check before you go — see the state of the Verdon.
Current conditions unavailable offline — checking them is mandatory before you set out. Last synchronised: 17 October 2026.
No source agrees on these figures. Rather than silently picking one, we show the value we kept, where it comes from, and why we chose it — the other published values stay visible. We don’t erase contradictions, we explain them.
The value given by the official manager (PNR du Verdon), repeated word for word by the Castellane-Verdon tourist office. Verdon Tourisme gives 16 km on its own pages about the trail. GPS tracks vary depending on the detours recorded.
The PNR du Verdon, the official manager, gives 600 m — verbatim "600 m de dénivelé positif", reconfirmed on 2026-10-04. Verdon Tourisme also used to give 600 m; its "complete guide" and its trail fact-sheet now state +500 m, a discrepancy retained below. Values from 835 to 1,160 m are recreational GPS tracks inflated by altimeter noise, and are discarded.
5 h 30 min of walking alone according to the tourist office; with the shuttle, there are 7 h 30 min between the typical 8:30 outward trip and the 16:00 return, ride included: breaks and the detour via La Mescla have to fit within that window.
Price confirmed on 2026-08-21 with the official operator: €8.50 adult return, €5.50 child return (under 12), €4.50 one-way. hotelverdon.com gives the same amounts and states they are fixed for the 2026 season. Reconfirmed identical live on navette.parcduverdon.fr on 2026-09-20. The fare is still revised every season: the current price on navette.parcduverdon.fr prevails.
Schedule confirmed live on the official booking calendar for several dates in late September 2026: a single daily round trip, departing La Palud-sur-Verdon at 8:30, returning from Point Sublime at 16:00 — that is 7 h 30 min between the two times, shuttle ride included, for a walk announced at 5 h 30 min. In peak season (29 June-14 September) the Park can add up to 3 shuttles a day depending on demand (an extra shuttle can be triggered up to 48 h before departure): those extra slots only show up in the day-by-day booking calendar, no fixed timetable is published for that busier period. Previously left out on purpose: the booking calendar cannot be read with a plain text fetch, only real (JS-rendered) browsing shows it.
The Blanc-Martel trail is the best-known hike in the Grand Canyon of the Verdon, according to Verdon Tourisme — and yet no source agrees on its numbers: distance ranges from 13 to 16 km, elevation gain from 500 to 1,160 m, duration from 4 h 30 min to 8 h depending on the source. This guide settles the question, backed by official sources, and gives you everything you need to hike it safely.
Figures verified on 5 July 2026 and re-read on 4 October 2026 with the Parc naturel régional du Verdon (the trail’s official manager), Verdon Tourisme, and the Castellane-Verdon Tourist Office; detour revalidated on 14 October 2026.
A rockfall has damaged the trail on its final stretch. A municipal order from Rougon temporarily closes access between the Couloir Samson exit and the Point Sublime. The full hike remains possible: from the Couloir Samson exit, take the RD23A departmental road, then the GR49 trail to the Point Sublime — the manager’s stated total duration does not change. Do not enter the zone marked by the signage, and do not attempt to cross the rockfall area. Check with the Parc naturel régional du Verdon before you go.
| Distance | 15 km |
| Elevation gain | 600 m |
| Duration | 5 h 30 min without breaks (with the shuttle: 7 h 30 min between the 8:30 outward trip and the 16:00 return) |
| Difficulty | Moderate to difficult — exposed sections |
| Type | Linear traverse (return by shuttle or taxi, booked ahead) |
| Start | Chalet de la Maline (900 m), La Palud-sur-Verdon |
| Finish | Point Sublime, Rougon |
| Waymarking | Section of the GR4 |
The classic direction runs from the Chalet de la Maline (right bank, along a balcony path) toward the Point Sublime, gradually descending into the floor of Europe’s Grand Canyon.
Since the Blanc-Martel is linear, you need to plan your return. There are two options, both to be booked: the Park’s shuttle, or a taxi (next section). The shuttle is not compulsory.
Don’t want to travel with everyone else, or depend on the shuttle timetable? Take a taxi. The price difference is small: €10 per person, barely €1.50 more than the shuttle return ticket (€8.50). You travel on your own, set off when you choose and walk without watching the clock. All you have to do is book. We recommend Taxi Castellane, which runs this transfer.
The shuttle does not run every day. In 2026, it runs every day only from 29 June to 14 September. From 3 April to 28 June, it runs on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays and long weekends; from 17 September to 1 November, from Thursday to Monday, so not on Tuesdays or Wednesdays.
The 2026 season ends on 1 November; the opening day for the next season’s bookings is announced on the booking website from the second half of March. Note: that website’s FAQ, updated on 17 February 2026, still describes a Friday-to-Sunday service after mid-September; the same website’s home page and the Verdon Park’s website give a Thursday-to-Monday service, from 17 September to 1 November. Check your date in the booking calendar.
If the shuttle is full:
To get back without the shuttle:
Sources: navette.parcduverdon.fr (home page, “Le service navette” page, FAQ), parcduverdon.fr, Taxi Verdon’s listing on verdontourisme.com and our Verdon taxis page (checked on 2026-10-09); consulted on 2026-10-14.
The first full traverse of the gorges took place from 11 to 14 August 1905, led by the explorer Édouard-Alfred Martel, commissioned by the Ministry of Agriculture, accompanied notably by Isidore Blanc, the schoolteacher-guide from Rougon. The trail was built in 1928 by the Touring Club de France, named the “sentier Martel” in 1930, then renamed “sentier Blanc-Martel” in 2005 to also honor Isidore Blanc. A major renovation took place in 2012-2013.
Data cross-checked and verified on 2026-07-05: PNR du Verdon (navette.parcduverdon.fr), Verdon Tourisme, OT Castellane-Verdon, Wikipedia (Sentier Martel; É.-A. Martel), AllTrails, Visorando, Outdooractive, Wikiloc, camptocamp, FFRandonnée, GEO, Routard. Discrepancies retained and settled above. Couloir Samson → Point Sublime detour verified 2026-08-22, reconfirmed 2026-09-06, 2026-09-20 and again 2026-10-17 (Rougon municipal order no. 750 of 2026-08-14 still online, no reopening date announced): navette.parcduverdon.fr (dedicated page “Le sentier Blanc-Martel”). Shuttle calendar and schedule re-checked live on 2026-09-20 (real browsing of the official booking site — homepage, FAQ, booking calendar on several September dates): periods corrected, typical 8:30/16:00 schedule published for the first time. No data invented: a missing field means it still needs verification.
Yes, but with a mandatory detour. A municipal order from Rougon closes the section between the Couloir Samson exit and the Point Sublime (rockfall). The full hike remains possible: from the Couloir Samson, take the RD23A road, then the GR49 trail to the Point Sublime (same total duration). Do not attempt to cross the closed zone.
Allow 5 h 30 min of walking without breaks for 15 km according to the Castellane tourist office. With the shuttle, there are 7 h 30 min between the typical 8:30 outward trip and the 16:00 return, ride included: breaks and the detour via La Mescla have to fit within that window.
Yes, it's required: the Baou (670 m) and Trescaire (110 m) tunnels are completely dark inside.
No. In 2026, it runs every day only from 29 June to 14 September. From 3 April to 28 June, it runs on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays and long weekends; from 17 September to 1 November, from Thursday to Monday, so not on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. The 2026 season ends on 1 November; the opening day for the next season's bookings is announced on navette.parcduverdon.fr from the second half of March.
Without a booking, a seat is not guaranteed: a ticket can be bought on board on the day, in cash or by card, only if seats are left. The official website recommends the last morning shuttle, usually the least in demand. In peak season, an extra shuttle can be added up to 48 h before departure. Otherwise, come with two cars or book a taxi the day before: Taxi Castellane (SAS SERANTO) or Taxi Verdon, in Rougon.
Two options, both to be booked: the Park's shuttle (navette.parcduverdon.fr, €8.50 return for an adult) or a taxi. Taxi Castellane offers the Blanc-Martel transfer Monday to Saturday: barely more expensive, with no return trip to arrange. You can also come with two cars (one at the Chalet de la Maline, the other in the Couloir Samson car park) or book Taxi Verdon, in Rougon. On foot, allow 8 km from Point Sublime to La Palud-sur-Verdon, then 8 km to the Chalet de la Maline, on top of the hike.
No, dogs and mountain bikes are banned on the entire trail.
It is not recommended for children under 8 or for anyone prone to vertigo. A shorter version of about 5 km exists from the Chalet de la Maline to the Estellier footbridge (the Petit Sentier Blanc-Martel).
No, there are no supply points anywhere along the route: bring at least 3 L of water per person (the minimum given by the Verdon Park).
April-June and September-October. In July-August it goes above 30°C in the gorges: set off before 7am.
No, it's a linear traverse from the Chalet de la Maline to the Point Sublime, so you need to plan your return: the Park's shuttle or a taxi, booked ahead.
'Martel' was given in 1930 in tribute to the explorer Édouard-Alfred Martel; 'Blanc' was added in 2005 to also honor Isidore Blanc, the schoolteacher-guide from Rougon.
No. The Parc naturel régional du Verdon, which manages the trail, states that swimming is strictly forbidden in the Verdon, to protect the apron du Rhône, an endemic fish threatened with extinction and very sensitive to trampling. One GPS track mentions natural pools along the first half: the Park's rule takes precedence. EDF water releases can also make the level rise very quickly.
Our figure (15 km) is the one from the official manager (Parc naturel régional du Verdon), repeated by the Castellane-Verdon tourist office. Other sources give a different figure: Verdon Tourisme lists 16 km on its pages about the trail, trails-viewer.com lists 14 km, and Wikivoyage lists up to 23 km under the name "Sentier Martel" (a longer historical route). We use the official manager's figure and document the discrepancies rather than ignoring them — see the sources table above.
The 20 sources this page relies on, one click away. We would rather you be able to contradict us than ask you to take our word for it.
18 of these 20 links responded during our last check, on . The others are sites that block automated checks: they open normally in a browser, but we do not claim to have checked them. A broken link is removed, never left in place.
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