Sausses: Lanes, Churches and Hiking

Sausses can be explored through three specific aspects: its hillside setting and winding lanes, the architectural history of its churches, and the Les Selves hike. The village is perched on very steep slopes of a spur between the Riou and Saint-Pons valleys. The castle occupies its summit; the village has a fan-shaped layout oriented to the west and south. The castle is a large building with a square floor plan, several storeys and painted façade decorations.

Village Layout and Lanes

The winding lanes lead to hidden corners and small squares. Most of the houses have rose-orange façades. Some stairways pass beneath houses, with the buildings directly overhead in these places. Together, these features describe Sausses at several scales: from the layout of the village to its lanes and individual architectural details.

As you explore the village, you can shift your attention between these levels: the hillside setting shapes the overall impression, while the squares, façades and stairways passing beneath buildings reveal individual aspects of the village’s character. The façade colour helps shape the overall impression, but is not a feature of every house: most are rose-orange.

Churches and Architectural History

The Church of Saint-Pons has a nave with three bays and an apse of the same width but lower in height. The bell tower stands at the southeast corner; the sacristy is attached to the east wall of the apse. These details clarify how the building’s parts are arranged: the nave and apse differ in height, while the bell tower and sacristy are each located on a specific side of the building.

The Chapelle Notre-Dame is a small single-nave chapel with a groin vault. It stands partly on the site of Sausses’ former parish church. This former parish church was abandoned after the present-day Church of Saint-Pons was built. Saint-Pons was enlarged in 1807 and converted into a parish church. The Chapelle Notre-Dame thus connects the site of the former parish church with the architectural history in which Saint-Pons became a new parish church.

The Les Selves Hike

Les Selves offers a specific hiking option alongside exploring the village. The route starts at the Sausses cemetery and, after a short, steep climb, passes through a pine forest. It gains 250 metres in elevation before reaching the Selves canal and the small Gourre valley. Designed as an out-and-back route, it connects Sausses and Castellet-lès-Sausses.

For trip planning, there are two distinct options: lanes, squares and buildings shape your view of the village, while Les Selves offers a described route featuring a climb, forest, canal and valley. Route conditions can change; check them before setting out.

Discover more destinations: Chaudon-Norante, Montagnac-Montpezat, Authon, Gréoux-Les-Bains, Saint-Julien-Du-Verdon, Mane, Quinson, Soleilhas.

For the broader travel overview: Alpes-De-Haute-Provence.