Mont Ventoux Drive

A typical starting-point for a drive over the mountain is Vaison-la-Romaine to the northwest of the Ventoux Massif. Follow the D938 as far as Malaucène, then turn left on to the D974. This stretch, which traverses exceptionally beautiful scenery with magnificent views on both sides, climbs fairly steeply through coniferous forests. Some 16km/9mi beyond Malaucène, at an altitude of about 1,400m/4,595ft, there is a junction where a narrow road leads to the viewpoint of Le Contrat. Beyond the junction the D974 is closed in winter, and even in early summer the availability to traffic of this road, which in any case is not particularly wide, may be further restricted by snow on the northern flank of Mont Ventoux. For the last 6km/4mi the road winds upwards, the vegetation becoming increasingly scanty, until at 1,829m/6,001ft the highest point of the road is reached at the Col des Tempêtes (literally Pass of Storms), where there is an orientation table. From here there is a magnificent view over the Valley of the Toulourenc and the mountains rising beyond it. At this point the pass is fully exposed to the frequent storms which roar violently over the crest. On the summit of Mont Ventoux an observatory and a television transmitter have been erected, with a radar station a little lower down. Near the observatory can be found an observation platform facing south, from where the view extends to the Montagne du Lubéron.

The road downhill on the southern side is less steep, has fewer bends and is also wider than the road on the northern flank. It descends to the valley amid gravel slopes completely bare of vegetation. After 6km/4mi there is a junction; the turning on the right, which formed part of the former racing circuit, goes to Bédoin and on to Carpentras. To the left the D164 goes via Sault to Aps. From Sault, though, the trip through the Gorges de la Nesque is definitely not to be missed.