France Slot canyon
Pertes de la Valserine
871 m of rock, cut by the Valserine.
Björn Sothmann · CC BY-SA 3.0
The cut
871 metres, to scale.
A slice through Pertes de la Valserine where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.
Standing on the floor, to scale: Great Pyramid · 139 m · Empire State · 443 m
Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is. This is a narrow canyon: the published depth, where there is one, is the better figure.
871m
Depth
measured on the 30 m relief model
14.1km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
30°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
328m
Floor altitude
Rim to floor
6 °C warmer at the bottom.
In July the afternoon reaches 26 °C on the floor, against 20 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are in May and in September. The rim freezes at night from November to March.
- 5°-1°Jan
- 6°0°Feb
- 11°5°Mar
- 16°10°Apr
- 19°14°May
- 24°18°Jun
- 26°20°Jul
- 25°20°Aug
- 22°16°Sep
- 17°11°Oct
- 10°4°Nov
- 6°0°Dec
Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.
Slot canyon in France
Pertes de la Valserine is a slot canyon in France, cut by the Valserine river. The relief model measures 871 m from the floor to the lower rim. Rim to rim it is 14 km wide where the cut was taken.
Getting there.
- Lancransnearest town · 1.0 km in a straight line
- Parking 1,000 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
- Viewpointsnearest viewpoint · 1.7 km from the floor
- Geneva International Airport (GVA)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 26 km in a straight lineCar hire at GVA airport (Geneva)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- In May and in Septemberbest months to hike (estimate)
Plan the visit
Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
The river
The Valserine runs highest from October to May.
The Valserine carries about 12 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from October to May.
- 17 m³/sJan
- 15 m³/sFeb
- 18 m³/sMar
- 14 m³/sApr
- 14 m³/sMay
- 9.5 m³/sJun
- 5.4 m³/sJul
- 5.0 m³/sAug
- 5.0 m³/sSep
- 11 m³/sOct
- 15 m³/sNov
- 17 m³/sDec
From about 5.0 m³/s in the lowest month to 18 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 364 km².
Follow the Rhône from source to mouth on Riveryas
Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.
From the sky.
The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.
N
6 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 24 × 24 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- 10viewpoints within 5 kmPerte de la Valserine, Point de vue Pont des Pierres, Cascade de la Sandezanne and 7 more
- 44marked hiking routes within 4 kmVia Lugdunum, Geneva to Lyon, Grand Tour de la Valserine and 42 more
- 19footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 kmPasserelle des Arts, Sentier des berges du Rhône, Pont des Oules and 16 more
- 1rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
- 4caves within 3 km
- 209car parks within 3 km
- 20information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- 98bus stops within 2 km
- 1campsites within 8 kmLes Géorennes
- 13hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmHôtel Ducret, Chez Marinet, La Biolaz and 10 more
- 28restaurants and cafés within 4 km
- via ferrata routes within 4 km
- climbing crags within 3 km
- swimming spots within 3 km
- named waterfalls within 4 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Towns nearby
- Lancrans1.0 km in a straight line
- Bellegarde-sur-Valserine1.7 km in a straight line
- Châtillon-en-Michaille2.8 km in a straight line
- Collonges6.7 km in a straight line
- Péron11 km in a straight line
- Valleiry12 km in a straight line
- Chancy12 km in a straight line
- Challex14 km in a straight line
In our other atlases
What else is around Pertes de la Valserine.
The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.
Cascadyas1 waterfalls nearbyComing soon
Peakyas7 mountains within 15 km
Lakeyas1 lakes within 15 kmComing soonFigures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Month by month
The weather, at the floor and at the rim.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon · floor | 5 | 6 | 11 | 16 | 19 | 24 | 26 | 25 | 22 | 17 | 10 | 6 |
| Afternoon · rim | -1 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 11 | 4 | 0 |
| Night · rim | -7 | -7 | -4 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 5 | 2 | -3 | -6 |
| Rain (mm) | 103 | 79 | 96 | 84 | 110 | 95 | 87 | 94 | 80 | 108 | 112 | 116 |
| Rainy days | 13 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 14 |
| Sun hours/day | 2.2 | 3.7 | 5.5 | 6.8 | 7.1 | 8.9 | 9.1 | 8.1 | 6.8 | 4.4 | 2.5 | 1.8 |
| Snow on the ground (cm) | 16 | 14 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 14 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 5 | -1 | -7 | 103 | 2.2 |
| Feb | 6 | 0 | -7 | 79 | 3.7 |
| Mar | 11 | 5 | -4 | 96 | 5.5 |
| Apr | 16 | 10 | 0 | 84 | 6.8 |
| May | 19 | 14 | 4 | 110 | 7.1 |
| Jun | 24 | 18 | 8 | 95 | 8.9 |
| Jul | 26 | 20 | 10 | 87 | 9.1 |
| Aug | 25 | 20 | 9 | 94 | 8.1 |
| Sep | 22 | 16 | 5 | 80 | 6.8 |
| Oct | 17 | 11 | 2 | 108 | 4.4 |
| Nov | 10 | 4 | -3 | 112 | 2.5 |
| Dec | 6 | 0 | -6 | 116 | 1.8 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (328 m) and the rim (1,240 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.
Recent years
Wet years, dry years.
Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 56% | 135% | 85% | 54% | 93% | 131% | 27% | 93% | 99% | 194% | 26% | 124% |
| 2021 | 133% | 72% | 59% | 63% | 159% | 114% | 196% | 62% | 111% | 92% | 65% | 167% |
| 2022 | 43% | 107% | 27% | 105% | 33% | 126% | 20% | 66% | 188% | 73% | 123% | 129% |
| 2023 | 78% | 9% | 139% | 110% | 59% | 82% | 63% | 77% | 92% | 177% | 208% | 155% |
| 2024 | 114% | 109% | 114% | 125% | 149% | 125% | 99% | 61% | 241% | 155% | 56% | 101% |
| 2025 | 157% | 58% | 56% | 107% | 85% | 103% | 118% | 92% | 194% | 173% | 150% | 36% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
Pertes de la Valserine
France
- 871 mDepth
- 14 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 30°Steepest wall
Gorges du Val du Fier
France · 18 km
- 761 mDepth
- 10 kmRim to rim
- 3.5 kmLength
- 30°Steepest wall
Where these figures come from
| Name, type, published depth and length | Wikidata (Q89573267) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| River flow and basin | HydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0 |
| Climate | NASA POWER, 1991–2020 |
| Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearby | Coastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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