Roussillon and Aude · about 3 km from Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet
Source de la Tirounère
- Max depth13 m
- CertificationFull cave
- SpecialSidemount
Diving and fills
Dive here with
No dive centre guides here yet. Do you dive here with guests? Add your centre for free →
Fills nearby
- Fill stationCAP Port-Vendres (Centre d'Activité Plongée)Air, nitrox 32/40/50, oxygen, trimix; up to 300 bar (surcharge above 230 bar); CCR fill packageRoute ↗
- Fill stationCAP Port-Vendres (Centre d'Activité Plongée)Air, nitrox 32/40/50, oxygen, trimix and CCR fills up to 300 bar (surcharge above 230 bar); custom blends too (O₂ and helium per m³)Route ↗
- Fill stationPlongée Bleue (Banyuls-sur-Mer)Air, nitrox (membrane) and oxygen (B50 cylinders, booster for CCR) up to 300 bar; trimix not listed — askRoute ↗
What it looks like
tirounère 3 1 tirounère saint paul de feunouillet Source de la Tirounère diving plongée à la source de la tirounére
All 4 videos and posts
Videos and posts
From other divers, via YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. They only load when you click; after that, Google's or Meta's privacy rules apply.
tirounère 3 1 tirounère saint paul de feunouillet Source de la Tirounère diving plongée à la source de la tirounére
Search for more onYouTube ↗Instagram ↗Facebook ↗
Other people's footage, not advice: how someone else dives here says nothing about what suits your team. Dive within your training.
The dive
Pitch dark, cold water and changing visibility: that is the Tirounère. Nearby opens the aven des Anarchistes (aven de Tirounère), a shaft down to several pools, with a sump to -50 m (with a squeeze).
Profile and sections
Pitch dark, cold water and changing visibility: that is the Tirounère. Nearby opens the aven des Anarchistes (aven de Tirounère), a shaft down to several pools, with a sump to -50 m (with a squeeze).
The spring is the karst spring of the Fanges–Paradet massif (~60 km²), at 840 l/s on average, with large reserves; it supplies Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet's drinking water. It reacts to rain within ~2 days, and a flood lasts ~12 days.
Practical: the Pyrénées-Orientales FFESSM cave-diving commission runs supervised discovery days here (e.g. October 2026; minimum N2 and a licence).
- Depth and profile
- Main gallery to -12 m, then 65 m back up to the surface; total 119 m / -13 m. S2: a 1.2 m-wide passage with a violent current, ending at a squeeze at -2 m under a scree slope. At -12 m a 50 cm squeeze filled with pebbles and sand. According to one source (2019 club report) an upstream sump (S3) has been dived by explorers to -106 m.
- Configuration
- Sidemount or small cylinders for S2 and the squeezes; the first section also works with a compact backmount (estimate).
- DPV: Not DPV-suitable (estimate)
- Short, tight passages with strong current: no scooter (estimate).
Who can dive where
- At least Full cave
- Configurations: Backmount / twinset / Sidemount / CCR / Small cylinders / no-mount (speleo sumps)
- Goes down to 13 m (trimix or deco may be needed)
This is how the planner decides who in your team may dive this cave. Rules your own trip adds (organizer, a mail, the AI) show with your trip.
How to get there
In the Agly riverbed, on the left bank at the exit of the Gorges de Galamus (~3 km NW of Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet). You enter the water in a small basin that hides the spring opening. Wet, slippery ground and changing water levels. The spring supplies Saint-Paul's drinking water: check beforehand with the town hall or through the Pyrénées-Orientales FFESSM commission.
Around Source de la Tirounère
Fills3 fill stations · nearest 62 km
CAP Port-Vendres (Centre d'Activité Plongée)
Anse Gerbal (ancienne criée), 66660 Port-Vendres
Air, nitrox 32/40/50, oxygen, trimix; up to 300 bar (surcharge above 230 bar); CCR fill package
Not listed — ask
Dive centre at Port-Vendres harbour (Côte Vermeille); also fills walk-in customers' cylinders. Far from Ganges (~2 h 45, estimate). Sofnolime: ask.
CAP Port-Vendres (Centre d'Activité Plongée)
Anse Gerbal (ancienne criée), 66660 Port-Vendres
Air, nitrox 32/40/50, oxygen, trimix and CCR fills up to 300 bar (surcharge above 230 bar); custom blends too (O₂ and helium per m³)
Not listed — ask
Dive centre at Port-Vendres harbour (Côte Vermeille). Also fills cylinders for visitors who do not dive with the centre; CCR fill package for 1.5–3 l cylinders. Website prices include helium €90/m³ and O₂ €40/m³. ~1 h 20 from Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet and ~35 min from Perpignan (estimates). Sorb (sofnolime): ask.
Plongée Bleue (Banyuls-sur-Mer)
Port de plaisance, 10 quai George Petit, 66650 Banyuls-sur-Mer
Air, nitrox (membrane) and oxygen (B50 cylinders, booster for CCR) up to 300 bar; trimix not listed — ask
Not listed — ask
Dive centre with two compressors (58 m³/h) and eight 80 l buffer tanks; runs rebreather courses. Whether walk-in fills for visitors are possible is not stated on the site — ask. ~1 h 30 from Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet (estimate).
The links to Booking.com are affiliate links: if you book through one, DiveTripPlanner earns a small commission. You pay the same.
Going to Roussillon and Aude with your team?
Marcel finds the sites that match your team's certifications.
Plan a trip