SPHC, étape 01

The SPHC, Étape 01 is an 8.2-km point-to-point trail in southern France's Cévennes region, gaining 342 m of elevation over roughly 2 hours 30 minutes. Rated moderate, it follows the historic Sur les Pas des Huguenots route from Mialet's Mas Soubeyran through chestnut terraces and stone-hamlet lanes to the market town of Saint-Jean-du-Gard — one of the most atmospherically charged walks in the French Protestant heartland.

About the SPHC, Étape 01

The Sur les Pas des Huguenots et des Camisards (SPHC) is a long-distance pilgrimage and heritage trail tracing the forced exile routes of French Protestants after Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes in 1685. Tens of thousands of Huguenots fled through these valleys toward Protestant havens in Switzerland and the German Rhineland; Étape 01 marks the symbolic starting point of that diaspora in the deep Cévennes.

The stage begins at Mas Soubeyran in the commune of Mialet — a place of immense emotional weight for French Protestants. This farmstead was the birthplace of Pierre Laporte, known as Roland, the most charismatic leader of the Camisard uprising (1702–1704). Every first Sunday of September, 12,000 to 15,000 pilgrims gather here for the Assemblée du Désert, a tradition unbroken since the clandestine worship assemblies of the 17th century.

From Mas Soubeyran the route climbs out of the narrow Gardon de Mialet valley through layered chestnut forests — the backbone of traditional Cévennes agriculture — before threading across an open ridge with views extending south toward the Garrigues and north to the granite peaks of Mont Aigoual and Mont Lozère. The descent drops through Mediterranean scrub into Saint-Jean-du-Gard, a trim riverside market town that literary hikers will recognise as the journey's end for Robert Louis Stevenson's 1878 Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes.

As a certified route of the International Walking Network (IWN), the SPHC is one of the most historically significant long-distance trails in Europe. Étape 01 is signposted along sections shared with the GR 61 and provides an outstanding introduction to the Parc National des Cévennes, a UNESCO biosphere reserve covering 910,000 hectares of plateau, valley, and garrigue.

At just 8.2 km, this is a gentle entry stage — ideal for families, first-time Cévennes visitors, or hikers who want to spend a full morning exploring Mas Soubeyran before setting out. It pairs naturally with an afternoon in Saint-Jean-du-Gard's weekly Tuesday market and the town's remarkable Maison Rouge museum. The official Sur les Pas des Huguenots website offers downloadable GPX files and the current topo sheet for the full SPHC route.

Route Overview & Stages

Étape 01 is a single hiking day but divides neatly into three segments that reflect the changing landscape. The table below gives the key numbers for each section.

Total: 8.2 km, +342 m / −338 m, approximately 2 h 30 min at a moderate hiking pace. The trail is well-waymarked throughout with SPHC blaze panels (white-on-orange cross symbol) and standard GR red-and-white blazes where the routes overlap.

Highlights & Points of Interest

• Mas Soubeyran and the Museum of the Desert (Musée du Désert) — The birthplace of Camisard leader Roland is now France's leading museum of Protestant resistance history, housing 10,000 artefacts on clandestine worship, the galley-slave punishment of Protestant men, and the paths of exile. Allow 90 minutes before setting out.
• Aigladines Cave — A few hundred metres from Mas Soubeyran, this cave hosted the first Reformed church assembly in Languedoc in 1560 — a gathering so dangerous it was held underground to evade royal informants. A small interpretation panel marks the entrance on the trail.
• Chestnut Terraces of the Gardon Valley — The lower slopes between Mialet and La Faysse are carpeted with centuries-old chestnut orchards (châtaigneraies), cultivated since the 16th century as the Cévennes' primary food crop. In autumn the canopy turns deep copper and the air smells of roasting nuts.
• Col Redonnel Ridge Viewpoint — At roughly the halfway point the route crests a bare ridge at around 500 m altitude. On a clear day you can see Mont Aigoual (1,565 m) to the north and, on exceptionally clear mornings, a glint of the Mediterranean to the south.
• Dry-Stone Hamlet of La Faysse — A cluster of schist-and-granite farmsteads largely unchanged since the 18th century. The terraced fields here form part of the broader Cévennes restanques landscape recognised by UNESCO as a living cultural heritage site.
• Abraham Mazel's House, Saint-Jean-du-Gard — Abraham Mazel (1677–1710), who launched the first Camisard attack on 24 July 1702, was born in this town. His restored house on the Grand Rue operates as a small resistance-history museum, open during summer months.
• Maison Rouge Museum — Saint-Jean-du-Gard's major local museum holds a 10,000-object selection from a 30,000-piece collection covering regional history, craft, and domestic life. Entry to the ground-floor permanent collection is free on the first Sunday of each month.
• Robert Louis Stevenson Connection — Saint-Jean-du-Gard is where Stevenson sold his donkey Modestine and caught the diligence back north in September 1878. A bronze plaque on the Rue de la République marks the inn where he stayed — a tangible overlap with the Chemin de Stevenson - Liaison 1.

Best Time to Hike the SPHC, Étape 01

The Cévennes occupies a climatic transition zone between the Atlantic west and the Mediterranean south. As of 2026, the reliable hiking window runs broadly from late March through early November.

April: Wildflowers peak across the scrubland above La Faysse. Trails are uncrowded but can be muddy after winter rains. Ridge temperatures range from 10–18 °C.

May — the single best month. Chestnut trees are in full leaf, the ridges are green, and daytime temperatures sit at a comfortable 14–22 °C. Crowds are thin except around the Ascension long weekend. Days are long enough (sunrise ~06:40, sunset ~21:10) to visit the Museum of the Desert before hiking without any rush.

June–July: Hot and increasingly dry. The descent into Saint-Jean-du-Gard offers little shade, so an early start before 08:00 is advisable. The Tuesday market in Saint-Jean-du-Gard is at its liveliest in high summer.

September: Excellent conditions return. The first Sunday of September is the Assemblée du Désert, drawing 12,000–15,000 pilgrims to Mas Soubeyran — a remarkable spectacle, but gîtes and car parks fill days in advance. Book accommodation 6–8 weeks ahead for that window.

October–November: Chestnut harvest season transforms Mialet into a hub of local food culture. Trail surfaces can be slippery under fallen leaves; trekking poles are worthwhile for the schist descent into Saint-Jean-du-Gard.

December–February: Short days, occasional frost on the ridge, and limited accommodation availability make this period unreliable for casual hikers. The Museum of the Desert operates reduced winter hours from November through March.

Practical Information

Accommodation

Both trailheads have well-developed accommodation — important because Étape 01 is short enough to combine with museum visits into a full day.

Mialet / Mas Soubeyran: The Gîte d'Étape le Foyer Roland sits directly adjacent to the Museum of the Desert and offers dormitory beds at roughly €20–25 per night and double rooms from €50. Reservation is essential in July–August and in the week around the first Sunday of September. Several chambres d'hôtes in the commune offer B&B from €65.

Saint-Jean-du-Gard: The town has the widest choice — two 3-star hotels from €90 per night, a municipal campsite (Camping Les Sources) from €14 per pitch, and several gîtes. The Auberge du Pèlerin caters specifically to long-distance hikers and SPHC walkers with room-and-packed-lunch packages. Book 4–6 weeks ahead during the May–September peak season.

Getting There & Back

By train: The nearest mainline station is Alès, served by TER trains from Nîmes (30 min, ~€6) and Montpellier (1 h 15 min, ~€14). From Alès, bus line 167 or a taxi transfer (~25 km) reaches Mialet in approximately 35 minutes. Return buses from Saint-Jean-du-Gard to Alès operate year-round on the same line; check the Transports en Commun du Gard timetables for current schedules.

By car: Mas Soubeyran is 32 km north of Nîmes via the D999 and D50. Free parking is available at the Museum of the Desert. A taxi or shuttle service (bookable through the Saint-Jean-du-Gard tourist office) covers the 9 km return from Saint-Jean-du-Gard to Mas Soubeyran for approximately €18.

Nearest airports: Nîmes-Alès-Camargue Cévennes Airport (FNI, 40 km south) handles flights from London Stansted, Brussels, and Paris Orly. Montpellier-Méditerranée (MPL, 90 km) offers broader international connections.

Permits & Fees

No permit is required to walk SPHC Étape 01. The trail crosses private farmland in places, but the right of way is established and clearly signposted. The Parc National des Cévennes charges no general access fee, though wild camping within the core zone is prohibited — use the official accommodation options above. Entry to the Museum of the Desert costs €8.50 for adults and €4.50 for children aged 7–17 (2026 prices); museum entry is entirely optional and not required to hike the stage.

Gear & Packing List

Étape 01's 8.2 km and 342 m gain is modest, but the schist descent into Saint-Jean-du-Gard is steep in places and the Col Redonnel ridge section is exposed in high wind. Pack accordingly.

Footwear: Trail shoes with grip suffice in dry conditions; waterproof boots add confidence on spring and autumn paths where the chestnut-terrace sections stay damp well into the morning.

Backpack: A 20–35 L daypack suits Étape 01 when you are based in one of the trailhead towns. The Fjällräven Abisko Hike 35 handles a museum guide, packed lunch, and a windproof layer without strain. Hikers continuing onto later SPHC stages or carrying multiple nights of gear should consider the Deuter Aircontact Lite 45+10, which distributes load well on the sustained ascent out of Mialet, or the Osprey Aether 65 for full multi-day SPHC traverses. For an ultralight approach, the best ultralight backpacks of 2026 are reviewed in depth on the HikeLoad blog.

Food & water: No water sources between Mialet and Saint-Jean-du-Gard are reliably drinkable — carry 1.5–2 L from the trailhead. The Tuesday market in Saint-Jean-du-Gard is an excellent source of local provisions. For longer days on the trail, the HikeLoad calorie guide for a full hiking day helps calibrate your food kit correctly.

Navigation: The IGN 1:25,000 map sheet 2840OT — Anduze / Saint-Jean-du-Gard covers the full stage. A GPX file is freely downloadable from the official trail website.

Sun protection and layers: The ridge above La Faysse is fully exposed. Sun cream (SPF 30+), a hat, and a windproof shell layer are essentials from April through September.

Similar Trails You Might Like

If SPHC Étape 01 sparks an appetite for longer heritage walking or bigger Cévennes landscapes, several routes share the same dramatic upland character. The Chemin de Stevenson - Liaison 1 overlaps with the SPHC in Saint-Jean-du-Gard itself, following Stevenson's donkey route northward toward Le Puy-en-Velay. For sustained high-altitude ridge walking in France, the GR 20 Principale in Corsica is the benchmark multi-day mountain traverse, while the Tour du Mont Blanc offers the classic Alpine circuit. The GR 105 continues south from the Cévennes toward the Mediterranean coast, staying within the broader Protestant heartland. For a cross-border pilgrimage experience that directly mirrors the SPHC's historical scope, the Sulle strade dei valdesi — GRV Glorioso Rimpatrio dei Valdesi (325 km across France and Italy) traces the 1689 return march of the Vaudois from Geneva to the Italian Cottian Alps — a natural companion route for anyone drawn to Reformation-era walking history.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best time of year to hike SPHC, Étape 01?
May is the best single month: comfortable temperatures of 14–22 °C, full chestnut canopy on the ascent, and long daylight hours (sunset after 21:00). April and September are strong alternatives. July–August is manageable with an early start but hot on the exposed ridge. December through February brings frost on the Col Redonnel section and limited gîte availability.

How difficult is SPHC, Étape 01?
The stage is rated moderate. The 342 m elevation gain is spread across the first 5 km in a gradual ascent, manageable for most fit adults and older children. The steepest section is the descent into Saint-Jean-du-Gard — 338 m lost over 3.2 km on stony schist paths. Trekking poles help considerably on wet or leaf-covered autumn days.

How far is the daily walking distance and how long does it take?
Étape 01 covers 8.2 km, completed in approximately 2 hours 30 minutes at a moderate pace. Add 90 minutes for the Museum of the Desert and 30 minutes for the Col Redonnel viewpoint and you have a full half-day outing. Most hikers leave Mas Soubeyran between 09:00 and 10:00 and arrive in Saint-Jean-du-Gard comfortably in time for lunch.

What accommodation options are available at the start and end of Étape 01?
Mialet has the Gîte d'Étape le Foyer Roland (dormitory from €20/night, doubles from €50) directly beside the Museum of the Desert. Saint-Jean-du-Gard offers 3-star hotels from €90/night, the municipal campsite from €14 per pitch, and several hiker-focused gîtes. Book 4–6 weeks ahead in peak season; 6–8 weeks ahead around the first Sunday of September Assemblée du Désert.

Do I need a permit to hike SPHC, Étape 01?
No permit is required. The trail is open and freely accessible year-round. The Parc National des Cévennes charges no entry fee, though wild camping within the core zone is prohibited. Entry to the Museum of the Desert at Mas Soubeyran costs €8.50 for adults, but this is entirely optional — the hiking route departs from the car park regardless of whether you visit the museum.