THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

A stone bridge leads to the medieval village of Sauves, on the edge of Cevennes National Park.

A lone visitor enjoys a meadow near Saint Jean de Bruel, in the highlands of Cevennes National Park. The region is a great place to escape the crowds of Paris or nearby Provence.

A stone tower stands watch over the village of la Couvertoirade on the isolated Causses de Lingas plateau in the Cevennes.

With its rugged mountains cloaked in chestnut trees and dotted with medieval hamlets, the isolated Cevennes region is perhaps one of France's best-kept secrets.

For centuries, these wild and romantic hills were virtually impenetrable, and even now they still offer those who explore them the increasingly rare sense they are treading where few have been before.

Lying to the southeast of the Massif Central, about 50 miles north of the Mediterranean city of Montpellier, the region is a paradise for lovers of the outdoors. It offers everything from hiking and canoeing down deep ravines to the riskier activities of caving and canyoning.

But the Cevennes also has a varied and sometimes grim history.

It is the land of the Camisards, Protestant peasants who rebelled against persecution in the early 18th century following the repeal of the Edict of Nantes, which established legal toleration of France's Protestant population.

The bloody wars left a lasting impression on its hardy, pious inhabitants, who live mainly in small villages enclosed by stone walls and under the towering gaze of church spires.

One of France's poorest areas, the Cevennes attracts many writers, artists and hippies eager to escape from the hordes of Parisians and other tourists who flock to nearby Provence every year.

They roam the region's rustic markets in search of homemade pates, donkey-meat saucissons (dried sausages), organic eggplants or the earthy wines of the Languedoc.

Others spend their days gently floating in the Herault and Tarn rivers, or fishing for trout. Some don camouflage to illegally catch crawfish and frogs.

"A friendlier, more gentle way of life has been left behind here," says Tom Vernon, a British documentary producer who has retired near the village of Valleraugue to write a novel.

The stone village has two delightful cafes by the river where one can sip pastis, read a book or watch locals play la petanque, a game in which two teams take turns throwing heavy steel boules to land as close as possible to a little wooden ball.

The village is an ideal jumping-off point to explore the 5,171-foot Mount Aigoual, which lies on the edge of the 365-square-mile Cevennes National Park, one of seven such nature reserves in France and the only one with a resident population in its central zone. It was named a world biosphere reserve by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization in 1985 to help roll back deforestation.

The path is steep as it starts out from Valleraugue, but it is thankfully shaded by thick beech and chestnut woodland, winding its way past ruins of shepherd huts before emerging onto a jagged ridge with views overlooking deep ravines.

Be prepared, however, to dive into the bushes to escape colliding with mountain bikers hurtling down -- who, like you, don't really expect to encounter anyone else.

From the summit there is an impressive view of a desolate limestone plateau on one side and Mount Lozere's long granite ridges covered in heather on the other.

The summit is crowned by a meteorological observatory that houses a collection of photos depicting weather patterns, types of clouds and winds or snow. The handful of hikers at the top, however, seemingly preferred to take a nap in a field amid the buzz of cicadas.

The more intrepid hikers -- and literary fans -- can follow the 120-mile Robert Louis Stevenson Trail, named after the famous Scottish author of "Treasure Island." He put the region on the map with his 1879 book "Travels With a Donkey in the Cevennes."

Trekkers today can stay in numerous gites d'etapes, hostels that vary in size and comfort but usually guarantee a friendly welcome and a home-cooked meal. The less energetic can retrace the main points of Stevenson's journey from Le Monastier-sur-Gazeille to St-Jean-du-Gard by car.

For nonhikers, the Tarn gorges and Herault River valleys are wonderful to explore by canoe, though you'll be disappointed if you're looking for challenging white-water rafting. The rivers are calm.

Canoes can be rented in the slightly touristy (at least by the region's standards) but pleasant town of Florac, which is full of small hotels and is a good place from which to tour the hills.

The more adventurous can also rent a donkey to carry a pack to follow in Stevenson's footsteps.

While paddling down the Tarn River, dwarfed on each side by looming limestone cliffs, be sure to keep an eye out for bizarre rock formations caused by centuries of erosion.

You can sleep by a campfire on a sandy beach and eat local rabbit terrine and look out for eagles and peregrine falcons -- and guard against wild boars.

The more courageous can try their hand at caving or canyoning, in which participants use ropes and harnesses to descend a series of waterfalls, a very popular activity in the region.

Among sites not to miss in the Cevennes is the Grotte des Demoiselles, a vast cave complex revealing a mysterious subterranean world that locals once believed was home to fairies.

Inside, the high ceilings, massive pillars and a light mist combine to give one the impression of being in a giant cathedral.

THE CEVENNES

Location: Southern France, about 100 miles northwest of Marseille.

Getting there: Fly or take a high-speed TGV train from Paris to Montpellier, Nimes or Ales, where you can rent a car. Or take a train from Paris to Ales and proceed to Florac by bus. There are also three buses a day from Montpellier to Valleraugue.

Lodging: The best places to stay in the Cevennes are gites, or small properties rented out by residents. There are also many auberges, or houses converted into hotels with only a few rooms. Proper hotels exist only in the bigger towns. There are also numerous campsites, which are cheap and often located by rivers. Walkers can stay in gites d'etapes, walkers' hostels, along most main hiking routes.

Information: There is some information in English at www.cevennes-france.com; www.gr70-stevenson.com is dedicated to the Robert Louis Stevenson Trail.