Photo : Tom Chirossel / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Cirque D'Archiane
The Archiane cirque is a natural cirque in the southern Vercors, in the Drôme, which surrounds the hamlet of the same name. Its highest point, the Tête du Jardin, reaches 1,820 metres. It results from the collapse and then clearing of a karst network, and its cliffs overlook plateaux such as Tussac and the plaine du Roi.
It is one of the gateways to the Hauts-Plateaux du Vercors national nature reserve, in the Vercors Regional Nature Park. The site shelters a large colony of griffon vultures, reintroduced about twenty years ago, ibex reintroduced in 1989-1990, as well as chamois and marmots. A programme to reintroduce the bearded vulture began in 2010. Hiking enthusiasts follow the GR93, and climbing on the cliffs is governed by a charter that protects nesting birds. The cirque was listed by decree in 2025.
