Mont-Cé Circular

Start from the car park at the Chapelle du Mont-Cé, situated at the end of the tarmac section of the forest track leading to the chapel. Access to the chapel, via tracks suitable for vehicles, is signposted from the hamlet of Mazaufroid and from the D132 road near the Croix du Chambon.

Yellow markings (on one side only, in the direction of the route description)

(S/E) With your back to the car park barrier, turn right and walk down the tarmac track for a few metres. At the^first junction (an old cross on the right-hand side), take a grassy path on the left towards the Source des Amoureux (signposted).

(1) At the next junction, continue straight on downhill. You’ll soon come out onto a stony track (the one leading to Mazaufroid) and follow it straight on.

(2) At the three-way junction by the corner of a pond, veer left along the track. At the next three-way junction, turn right. Stay on the Mazaufroid track, which descends gently, and ignore all side paths (a stony track through the woodland, a tarmac road across open ground).

(3) At a very sharp left-hand bend in the road, leave the road and turn right onto a path between a meadow on the left and a fenced-off plot on the right. Enter the woodland again. Further on, walk along a roughly level path with a meadow on your left and a hedge on your right.

(4) At the crossroads, take the^second path on the right and follow a hedge on your right (do not take the^first path on the right, which goes uphill and seems more obvious). The path is lined with beautiful beech trees on the left before entering the forest. The path then climbs gradually.

(5) At the junction at the corner of a meadow, turn right and walk alongside the meadow on your right and a lovely beech copse on your left. Ignore a path branching off to the right and continue through a fir copse. Finally, walk alongside the pond you saw on the way out.

(2) At the three-way junction, follow the stony track to the left. When it turns left, carry on straight ahead along an uphill path.

(1) At the junction, turn right and climb gently up a wide path through the fir trees. You’ll come to a wooden gate on the left; go through it to reach the Chapelle du Mont-Cé. Continue down the grassy path to return to the car park (S/E).

In dry weather, good trainers are sufficient for this short walk, which follows forest tracks and well-maintained paths. In wet weather, wear walking boots.

No water sources were spotted along the route. There are picnic tables near the chapel.

A detailed map is useful (at the very least the one accompanying this description).

Hike undertaken by the author on 7 November 2018.

- A pleasant walk through the forest, with beautiful beech trees.
- A few springs marked off the paths.
- Lovely views over the surrounding hills.
- Mont-Cé Chapel (S/E), very simple in design and with a basic interior.
- A carved stone near the chapel.