Fontaine de Vaucluse (spring pool)
The famous spring pool at the head of the Sorgue, visited by walkers along a public path. It is a restricted case: the commune reports a municipal ban on diving since 1974.
The pool sits at the foot of a high limestone cliff above the village and is reached on foot. Its level rises and falls dramatically with the seasons; in floods water spills over the rim into the river, while in dry periods the Sorgue is fed by springs lower down.
The commune asks visitors not to cross the safety barriers at the pool because stones regularly fall from the cliff. Diving has been banned by the municipality since 1974 according to the commune, so the pool is listed here for its history rather than as a dive site.
The environment
A deep shaft opening at the base of a cliff; the FFS fiche describes a steep gallery from the pool, a metal boat wreck from 1878 at about 25 m, and an engraved rock from 1683 at about 15 m.
Conditions
Strong seasonal variation in level and flow; rockfall hazard at the pool.
Typical ranges from published sources, not current conditions.
Facilities
Public footpath from the village; the commune publishes parking regulations for visitors.
Every fact on this page, with its source (6)
| Fact | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| The Modexa robot reached a sandy floor at 315 m on 2 August 1985. | Verified | [1] [2] |
| Water temperature is near-constant at 12.5 to 13 °C. | Verified | [2] |
| A metal boat about 5 m long, probably left by Ottonelli in 1878, lies at about 25 m, and a rock engraved in 1683 lies at about 15 m. | Verified | [1] |
| The municipality prohibited all diving in 1974; visitors are asked not to cross the pool's safety barriers because of rockfall. | Verified | [2] |
| Diving has been prohibited by the municipality since 1974. | Verified | [2] |
| The commune's tourism pages include parking regulations and the page on the gouffre. | Verified | [2] |
Verified: stated by an official or primary source we opened. Reported: from a secondary source only. Sources conflict: the note gives both versions. May be out of date: the newest source we found is old.
Written in our own words from the sources above. Report a correction