St. Pierre-de-Vassols Provence-Beyond (Beyond the French Riviera) ® Vaucluse (84330) Population: 410 Altitude: 212 m Nearby: [ Carpentras 11 km | Bédoin | Caromb | Mazan ] Below: [ History | Hiking ] St. Pierre-de-Vassols is a sleepy, residential village, a couple of km southeast of Caromb. One interesting sight here is what seems to be well-tended hedges along the remote country roads. The "hedges" are actually stunted holly-oak trees cunningly and carefully pruned as road-side barriers (photo). The village sits out on the farming plain of the Mède, with the Ventoux mountain range about 5 km to the north. Name First record, 1262: Villa Vazolis; Sanctus Johannis de Vassols History Prehistoric: Many neolithic remains were found at Font-de-la-Gamatte. Roman: The Roman remains include the vestiges of villas. Medieval: The early settlement was around the Benedictine Abbey at St-Jean-de-Vassols to the north. Following the barbarian invasions, St-Jean was abandoned and the settlement reformed at the location of the current village. St. Pierre-de-Vassols was part of the fief of Saint-Siège until it passed to the control of the Bishops of Carpentras. Dates Market day: Friday Fête patronale St. Pierre: 1st Sunday August Hiking Maps: IGN "bleue" (1:25,000) 3040 ET "Carpentras" Didier Richard (1:50,000) #27 "Ventoux" St. Pierre-de-Vassols is in the middle of the Mède river plains, an area of rich farmlands, cherry orchards and vineyards. Local hiking here would be country walking along the small roads. One marked hiking trail follows the little roads to the north, past the perched village of Crillon-le-Brave, then goes through the woods to join the GR (Grande Randonnée) trails at the edge of the Ventoux mountains. The GR trails include the GR91 and the GR4, and the closest villages are Bédoin and Malaucène.