Dentelles de Montmirail

The Dentelles are Jurassic limestone beds that Alpine folding stood on end, after which erosion cut them into thin parallel blades; dentelle means lace, and the name comes from the fretted look of the ridges rather than from any height, since the top point is only about seven hundred and thirty metres. They rise straight out of vineyard country, which gives the classic Provencal composition of pale rock over vines. Gigondas, Vacqueyras and Beaumes-de-Venise all lie at their foot. The rock is popular with climbers and the ridges are crossed by marked paths with steep, exposed sections.

History

The name comes from dentelles, French for lace, after the fretted shape erosion has given the ridges, and from the Latin mons mirabilis, "admirable mountain". Spread over the communes of Beaumes-de-Venise, Gigondas, Vacqueyras, Malaucène and others, the range was an important natural frontier in antiquity between the Memini to the south and the Vocontii to the north (Wikipedia, Dentelles de Montmirail).

What's there

• The blade ridges - vertical limestone beds eroded into thin fins.
• The vineyard foreground - Gigondas and Vacqueyras vines below the rock.
• The col walks - marked paths crossing between the ridges.
• The climbing routes - bolted lines on the sunlit faces.

When to go

April to June and September to October; summer is hot and exposed with fire restrictions possible. Autumn colour in the vines against the pale rock is the best combination.

Before you go

Paths on the ridges are steep, rocky and exposed in places, with drops. There is no water and little shade. Roads between the villages are narrow and busy at harvest.

Nearby

Vaison-la-Romaine lies north; Mont Ventoux is east.

Key facts