Despite the growing interest for natural areas, the Verdon Gorges were long considered a simple gash in the mountain. Édouard-Alfred Martel (1859-1938), considered the father of modern speleology, was the first to venture in and explore them from one end to the other, including the ‘Grand Canyon’ in 1905. However, tourists’ enthusiasm for the Gorges did not begin until twenty years later, following the development of infrastructure (trails, roads, lookouts) and major press campaigns led by the Touring Club de France.