This morning, we take the opportunity of a day off to do a canyon near La Palud sur Verdon with Denis, guide of the “Guide pour l’ aventure”. On the program, abseiling, jumps, slides… all this embellished by the kindness of Denis thanks to whom we’re going to live a little cordial and playful adventure!
Canyoning in Verdon Gorges will deliver on its promises with this small slot canyon that can be done as a family with children from 11 years old.
Some ideas of activities to do in the Verdon during your canyoning trip
Here are some ideas of activities to book before or after your canyoning session :
– Book a guide for the Imbut Trail
– Book a guide for the Martel White Trail
– Enjoy an astronomy evening on the shores of Lake St. Croix and sleep on site
– Watch the Verdon Secret 3D movie on giant screen
Canyoning in the bau, access in two abseils
The choices of canyoning in the Verdon are diversified and it is located near La Palud sur Verdon. After parking not far from the bridge on the road between La Palud and the Sublime Point, we hike up a path for a short half an hour. Access is simple and not very tiring. Besides, Denis tells us some anecdotes so that we don’t see the time passing. While crossing the Bau, we see two trouts that seem to be waiting for us. All this is starting to make me hungry and I’d like to come back with a fishing rod.
Two easy abseils to get to the canyon
A little higher up, the serious things start with the first abseil. Indeed, these two abseils allow us to reach Le Bau just below a small waterfall. The first one is really easy and is especially useful to train a little for the second abseil. Indeed, the second abseiling of roughly twenty meters takes us to a small basin. That’s where we put on our neoprene suits.
Exploring the canyon begins with a 4-meter jump followed by a great slide.
A brief digression on canyoning safety in the Verdon
So here we are at the bottom of the canyon! One important point: we particularly appreciate the “special canyon” shoes provided by our guide. Most guides do not provide these shoes and yet it is an essential aspect for safety…and for pleasure. Indeed, the super adherent sole of these shoes allows you to safely move on wet stones.
In short, when choosing a guide, ask him/her the question. Does he provide canyoning shoes or is it up to you to bring your own sneakers?
How to cliff jump into a basin and get into the water without getting “slapped”
If you have already made jumps from a certain height, you probably know that landing or rather touching the water is sometimes more or less pleasant. Indeed, between the water entering the nostrils and the head a little too far forward, there is probably a way to jump with an optimal arrival in the water…
Our guide Denis has studied the issue at length and gives us some valuable advice.
Start with your lead foot and keep your head straight
First of all, you never jump on both feet together. Indeed, the practice of canyoning requires to be precise because the landing area can sometimes be quite narrow. So we start with a right or left lead foot. Second advice: if you look at the river during the jump, you are likely to get slapped when you touch the water. So you’ll have to keep your head straight. Otherwise, the punishment is immediate and goes from water in the nostrils to a slap in the face that will straighten your head abruptly when you enter the water.
Touching the bottom is quite frequent…
Another advice: enter the water straight but keep your knees soft. If the water will slow you down, keep in mind that touching the bottom is quite frequent. Being straight like an I when entering the water can have a disadvantage: you must be able to cushion your weight if your feet ever touch the bottom of the basin.
Canyoning slides and couple therapy
Another interesting contribution of our Guide Denis in canyoning is couple therapy. It all started with a question as soon as we arrived in the parking lot. “Are any of you in a relationship?” This question may seem inadequate as we are going to do canyoning and not ballroom dancing.
In concrete terms, we will better understand the issue when we get to the first slide, which we will descend twice using two different techniques. And indeed three times for couples.
After having descended this first slide in a classic way, Lucile will give us a demonstration of the slide upside down. And besides, we will all test this method, which is ultimately more pleasant than expected.
For “couple therapy” the boy positions himself upside down and the girl on the boy (but in the same direction, please, see picture).
The effects of couple therapy in canyoning in Verdon Gorges
In our case this morning, the method was tested on a couple already formed. And on a couple “in the process of formation”? In fact, the answer to Denis’ question “Are you in a relationship?” was not very clear.
If you read this article and recognize yourself, perhaps you can make a contribution? For example, by giving us information about what came next…
Anyway, I want to thank Denis, our canyoning guide, for his contribution to the sociological and behavioral effects of canyoning on couples. Perhaps, a thesis will be published soon?
Canyoning Verdon Gorges: the jump from the rolling mill in the film 127 hours
If like me you are a fan of cinema and adventure, maybe you’ve seen the movie 127 hours?
See the video link above. In this case, we will also jump from a kind of rolling mill that reminds me of the scene in the film. In this type of jump, you really have the feeling that you are going to crash on the other side of the cliff that is reaching out to you. If you also have this same impression, don’t worry, it’s completely normal and everything will be fine! This jump is one of the highlights of this canyon, with the slide upside down. For my part, it made me feel like visiting Utah and its famous “Bluejoohn slot canyon“. Are their canyons as beautiful as those of the Verdon?
The canyon exit slide
Our last emotions came with the final slide (see pictures). In a word, canyoning in the Bau without the final slide would be like going to Cairo without seeing the pyramids! Just for fun, here are you some pictures.
If you liked this article, feel free to react by adding a comment. If you would like to book a guide for this canyon and why not go with Denis for canyoning therapy, you can book on this site.
Did you like this article? You will find more articles about canyoning or canyoneering in the Verdon Gorges in this blog.
