Sausses lies on the 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, facing west and south. Here, the location and the shape of the village go hand in hand: the buildings follow the slope while also opening out in two directions. As you explore Sausses, you can take in both the layout of the village and its individual architectural details.

Hillside Setting and Lanes

The winding lanes make it possible to discover hidden corners and small squares. The façades of most houses are rose-orange, so this hue recurs throughout much of the village streetscape. Some of the stairway crossings are also noteworthy: a few pass beneath houses. Here, the buildings extend over the path; the layout of the streets and the houses are visibly connected. As you explore, you’ll encounter lanes, small squares, and these covered stairways. Sausses can thus be experienced not only through its major buildings, but also through its paths and the shape of the village.

Churches, Chapel, and Castle

The Church of Saint-Pons has a nave with three bays. A bay is a section of the nave; here, three such sections divide the building. An apse of the same width but lower in height adjoins the nave. The bell tower stands at the southeast corner, while the sacristy is attached to the east wall of the apse. Visitors interested in architectural forms can trace the layout and differing heights of the building’s sections through these features.

Saint-Pons was extended in 1807 and converted into a parish church. After the present-day Church of Saint-Pons was built, the former parish church was abandoned. The Chapelle Notre-Dame stands partly on its former site. The two religious buildings are therefore connected through the history of the village, while retaining their distinct architectural forms.

The Chapelle Notre-Dame is a small, single-nave chapel with a groin vault. In this type of vault, curved surfaces intersect, with the groins formed along their intersection lines. The castle offers a different architectural contrast: it is a large building with a square floor plan, several stories, and painted façade decorations. The vault is the chapel’s defining feature, while the castle is characterized by its floor plan, height, and façade ornamentation.

Les Selves: A Route with Elevation Gain

The Les Selves hike begins at the Sausses cemetery. A short, steep climb is followed by a path through a pine forest. The route gains a total of 250 meters in elevation and then reaches the Selves canal and the small valley of the Gourre. Les Selves connects Sausses with Castellet-lès-Sausses and is an out-and-back route. Check current route conditions before setting out, as they may change.

This gives you two distinct options for planning your trip: the lanes and buildings reveal the village’s layout and history, while Les Selves combines a steep climb and 250 meters of elevation gain with the canal and the Gourre valley. If you’d like to do both, you can plan your village exploration and hike as separate experiences.

Discover more destinations: Saint-Jean, Mallemoisson, Larche, La Brillanne, Prads-Haute-Bléone, Revest-du-Bion, Saint-Julien-Du-Verdon, Saint-Maime

For the main travel guide: Alpes-De-Haute-Provence.