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Grotte Nouvelle

A classic route down to -80 m links inclined planes, pits and steps, with climbing passages and forced conduits.

Vallon-Pont-d'Arc 1150m 87m

A classic route down to -80 m links inclined planes, pits and steps, with climbing passages and forced conduits.

Characteristics

  • Type: Cave
  • Municipality: Vallon-Pont-d'Arc
  • Length: 1150 meters
  • Depth: 87 meters
  • Record updated:

Location

Map

Entrances

Always verify coordinates and access conditions before setting out.

  1. Grotte Nouvelle

    44.393040, 4.412913
Download all entrances as GPX

Description

Morphology

The route includes a P32, a large inclined plane near the entrance pit, a ledge, a joint with a wedged block, a short crumbly inclined plane, an 8-metre step and a final inclined plane at -80 m. At the bottom, a short climb in a crawlway leads to pretty little forced conduits.

Speleothems

At the base of the large pit, the marking and reflectors allow you to go around the chamber and discover secret passages through the formations.

Progression

From the entrance to the base of the P32, you never leave the rope. Several rigging options are possible; the simplest is the right-bank line, which leads directly to the P32 bolts. To continue towards -80 m, you must go back up a large inclined plane located right next to the entrance pit; a ledge allows you to approach the pit, which is descended in two or three pitches. A short crumbly inclined plane leads to an 8-metre step, giving access to the final inclined plane at -80 m. At the bottom, a short climb in a crawlway leads to the forced conduits. The continuation with the junction into the network at 10 Francs remains to be discovered.

Other details

At the base of the large pit, it is possible to go around the chamber following the marking and reflectors, offering the chance to discover multiple climbing passages. Beware of the wedged block in the joint. The last part may be subject to CO₂ pockets; it is imperative to carry a detector before committing to the step. Progression towards the junction is made difficult by the high CO₂ level and the fatal risk of asphyxiation.

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Contains information from Grottocenter (Wikicaves), grottocenter.org, made available under the Open Database License (ODbL 1.0, https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/1-0/), modified. · https://grottocenter.org/ui/entrances/23396 · The derived data is available on request under the ODbL: [email protected] · data as of 2026 · Source: Grottocenter (Association Wikicaves), worldwide collaborative cave database (grottocenter.org), modified. CC BY-SA 3.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Grottocenter (Wikicaves) · Text by Lunul07 (Description classique -80m) · adapted by Espeleoworld (normalized, translated); the adaptation is licensed CC BY-SA 3.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ · https://grottocenter.org/ui/entrances/23396 · data as of 2026