From the Galetas bridge, paddling between the walls where the Verdon reaches the lake.

What it is

The Galetas bridge crosses the Verdon just where the river leaves the great canyon and opens into the artificial Lake Sainte-Croix. Beneath the bridge, the water is an almost opaque turquoise green, and upstream you see the gorge walls closing in. The way in is by paddle: you hire a boat or kayak on the shore, pass under the bridge and go slowly up the mouth of the canyon between rock walls, on calm water. No guide or experience is needed.

It is the easiest activity in the Verdon and the one children like most: in an hour or two you are inside the canyon, without the effort of the Blanc-Martel trail. Inside the canyon, though, swimming is banned.

What you can hire and how much it costs

It is hired out by the Base Nautique de l'Étoile, on the lakeshore next to the bridge, in the commune of Moustiers-Sainte-Marie. The 2026 rates, for one hour, were: single kayak, €10; double kayak, two- or three-seater canoe or pedalo, €20; electric boat for five people, €50. Two hours cost double. With two hours you have time to go up the gorge unhurried and come back.

The electric boat is the most comfortable with small children or grandparents; the kayak is the most agile and the cheapest.

Hours and booking

The base opens from March to November. The first departure and last return change with the months: 10:00 to 17:00 in March, October and November; 10:00 to 18:00 in April; 9:30 to 18:30 in May, up to 12 June and in September; 8:30 to 19:00 from 13 June to 31 August. Part of the fleet can be booked online, in one- or two-hour slots, in the municipality's shop; the rest is hired on arrival. When strong wind blows, a prefectural order closes boat access to the gorges. There is a snack bar with a shaded terrace next to the base.