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Start at Place de l'Amour, opposite the town hall in Flat.
(S/E) Starting from the circular fountain in Place de l'Amour, take Rue des Deux Fontaines northwards and continue to a fork in the road with a fountain and a cross. Take the pedestrian crossing and follow Chemin des Écoliers opposite, reaching thefirst turn-off on the right after about 100 metres.
Follow this path to a crossroads. Turn left, cross a small road and walk alongside the houses on your left. Continue along this steep path which leads to La Malcourtie. At the top, turn left and head for the large circular fountain.
(1) Continue in the same direction, taking the street opposite to the west. Then reach the grassy area behind the houses and, at the tarmac, turn left onto a dirt track. Ignore the access to the housing estate on the right and reach a path on the right at the corner ofthe second field on the right.
(2) Turn onto the path uphill to the right. At the top, turn left and enjoy a magnificent view of the southern Limagne plain and the Issoire basin, nestled between its 'chaux' (limestone hills). Continue along this path and enter a grove. The path makes a 90° turn to the left and begins a descent to a gravel path.
(3) Turn left, walk along a field on your right and, at the end of it, take the path on the right downhill (a few metres before a building on the right). At the next fork, at a copse, keep to the right and continue along a field on your left until you find a passage on the left. Turn right at the bottom of the slope between two fields, walking towards the Château d'Ibois, and you will reach a cross path. Follow it to the right until you reach the road.
(4) Continue along the road to the left downhill. After walking 400 metres along the road, you will arrive at a place called Barsou. Ignore the entrance to the farm and, 20 metres further on, turn right into a shaded area where you will find a wash house with a roof and two "routoirs" or hemp tubs, dug into the ground and set in stone.
Turn around and continue along the road.
(5) Just before reaching the hairpin bend on the D9, take the small path on the left that runs alongside a house and then climbs up to Le Chauffour. Follow Ruelle des Grandes Aires and you will come to a fork in the road with four streets.
Turn right, pass a very pretty little fountain at the intersection. Continue to the right on Rue des Petites Aires and arrive at Route d'Issoire.
(6) Turn left, pass a fountain with a rectangular basin against a wall on your left, then take the pedestrian crossing and cross the road to reach Rue des Jardins at the three-way junction. Follow it and, at the end, continue straight ahead on a path lined with walnut trees, towards Flat. Continue between the fields, ignore the turn-off to the left towards the housing estate above and reach the next four-way junction.
(7) Turn left towards Les Clovias and, after 200 metres, take thefirst small path on the right. At Les Clovias, go straight ahead for about 40 metres, then turn left and you will come to a crossroads.
(8) Turn right and follow the road. After the right-hand bend, pass in front of a wash house and then, at the next crossroads, turn left uphill. Pass in front of the wash house and continue along Rue de la Fontaine de l'Âne to Flat. Turn left and return to Place de l'Amour (S/E).
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