The Loup is a river in the Alpes-Maritimes department, Southeastern France. With a length of 49 km, it ends in the Mediterranean Sea in Villeneuve-Loubet, near Cagnes-sur-Mer. It takes its source in Andon.

Geography

The total length of the river is 49.3 km. The source of the Loup is north of the mountain of Audibergue in the municipality of Andon, a small town in the Alpes-Maritimes situated at nearly 1,200 meters above sea level and surrounded by small ski resorts. The stream first turns east, then turns south and forms the Gorges du Loup, a series of gorges. After passing Bar-sur-Loup, it resumes its course towards the east, passes south of the city of Vence, then moves towards the south-east and arrives at Villeneuve-Loubet. From there it flows into the Mediterranean Sea southwest of Cagnes-sur-Mer.

Hydrology

The water flow in the Loup was observed for a period of 34 years (1980-2013) in Villeneuve-Loubet, a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department, located at its mouth at the Mediterranean Sea. The river's catchment area is 289 km2, and the average flow rate is 4.480 m3/s.

Cities and villages along the river

The Loup flows through the following cities and villages (source to mouth):

Gorges du Loup

The Gorges du Loup is a gorge carved by the Loup river in the Maritime Alps in France, about 45 minutes from Nice.

Waterfalls

There are several cascades in the gorge. Among them are the Saut du Loup and the Cascade de Courmes.

Climbing

The gorge is a popular climbing area with several high-level routes, with at least 22 routes above the grade. According to UKClimbing the gorge offers a total of 451 routes set in the French limestone. The first free route in the gorge was Déversé Satanique, opened by Bernard Duterte in the mid-1980s. Now graded.

9a difficulty routes