Fay-sur-Lignon walks

A pleasant walk through the forest, undergrowth and meadows, with the pretty, round crater lake of Saint-Front, the highest in the Haute Loire, as your destination. Views of Mont Mézenc and the Monts du Velay, and you will be on the edge of the summit of Les Roches, an ancient volcano which is a climbing site on its southern slope.The name of thePR® trail that we follow most often is "Entre pins et fayards" (Between pines and beech trees), which is very apt. We added the tour of Lake Saint-Front, as it was too tempting to resist.

Discover the Gouffre de la Monette and its waterfall via the marsh route. This is a mysterious place to be enjoyed in peace and quiet, so choose a time when it is not too busy.

Enjoy a beautiful hike on Mont Signon and its old singing slate quarry. Beautiful panoramic views of the Monts de Haute Loire.

This geological trail allows you to discover an ancient small volcano, Mont Signon, which became a peat bog, then an ancient maar, or marshy crater, home to several peatlands. Numerous information panels from the Geopark help you understand these different volcanic formations.

This tour of Mont Mézenc allows you to admire the landscape stretching far in all directions: the Massif Central, the Ardèche, the Alps, the Pilat Massif... It is possible to climb Mont Mézenc during the circuit. The hike offers the best possible view of the beautiful Boutières cirque. The circuit also includes a return trip through the village of Chaudeyrolles and a tour of Mont Signon.

This peaceful route starting from Saint-Front allows you to enjoy the contrast between the steep-sided valleys of La Gagne, the Machabert stream and the tributary of the Aubépin on one side, and the gently sloping Mézenc plateau with its sweeping views on the other.

This is a short circular loop in the Mezenc National Forest, from La Roche Pointue to Le Ventographe, passing by the peat bogs. Le Ventographe is a quirky object created by a DIY artist, placed on a ridge; it is the centre for transmitting messages to the wind, which are received further down by another equally quirky work of art!

This is an easy hike that will take you around Mazet-Saint-Voy, passing by two beautiful trout rivers, the Lignon and the Ligne. The terrain is varied but gentle, alternating between meadows and woods. Beautiful views of Mont Mézenc are the icing on the cake of this hike.

This figure-of-eight route, which mainly follows forest tracks, offers beautiful views of the Lignon’s white water.

At the summit of the ancient volcanoes between Pic du Lizieux and the Meygal Massif. A breath of fresh air in the vast Meygal Forest Massif.

A short hike, accessible to children in all seasons, to discover a 360° panorama from the summit of Pic du Lizieux (1388m): the Lignon valley to the north, the Monts du Vivarais to the east, Mont Mezenc to the south, Meygal to the west and, beyond, the Pilat Massif, Mont Blanc, etc. .

In July, the scent of freshly cut hay will accompany you throughout this walk, which takes you through dense coniferous or beech forests at times, whilst at other times offering superb views of the Velay mountains.

The route starts from the very pretty village of Montusclat and winds its way along the hillsides, crossing several tributaries of the Gagne. It crosses this river twice near Saint-Front before reaching the plateau, which offers stunning views of the Mézenc Massif and, weather permitting, the Alps. It ends with a descent through meadows back to Montusclat.

Climb Mont Mézenc from the Croix de Peccata - car park.

Discover Mont Mézenc and its two peaks and take a detour to admire the Cirque des Boutières.

This route offers a beautiful sample of the landscapes of the high Ardèche valleys that radiate towards Le Cheylard. The environments are very varied: broom heaths on the southern slopes, forests of chestnut, conifer and beech trees depending on the orientation, and grassy meadows on the ridges. There are numerous signs of volcanic activity, such as the Rocher de Soutron and the Échamps maar.

The hike starts at the forest house car park and climbs through the powder snow of Mont Mézenc. From the summit, your efforts are rewarded with a magnificent view of the village of Les Estables below and Mont Alambre. And even the Alps, if the weather is clear.

This circular walk starting from the pretty village of Boussoulet and its stunning church is an easy walk. Passing through a beautiful forest, beneath the summit of La Tortue, you will arrive at another pretty village in the Haute-Loire, Montusclat. From this village, you can start a second circular route that will take you to the remarkable Way of the Cross and the Calvary of the Croix de l’Étoile. Return via a pleasant valley.

This circuit takes you to the summit of the Grand Testavoyre (pronounced testa-wouaire), the highest point of the Meygal. From up there, you can see the entire massif, dotted with numerous conical peaks. Another highlight of this hike is discovering the rural heritage, in particular the typical houses of the hamlet of Villaret and the false church of Monedeyres.

Short, easy route around the drystone shelter, with a beautiful view of the Gouleyou, an ancient lava plug, and a visit to the Chier de Borée site, an arrangement of raised and engraved stones, which is a contemporary work of art.

Walk along paths or small roads offering numerous viewpoints over the steep-sided Azette valley at the start of the route, then over the less wild Saliouse valley, with a beautiful view of the Cirque des Boutières at the end of the route.

A long hike across the plateaus, south of Les Estables, amongst the knolls and near Mont Gerbier de Jonc.

A very easy climb to reach the highest point of the Ardèche and Haute-Loire, offering sublime panoramic views.

Circular starting from the Croix de Boutières, passing by the peaks of Mont Mézenc and the strange machine called the Ventographe des Boutières.

This second stage leads from the Hauts Plateaux du Mézenc to the Loire Valley. It takes you through the Mézenc National Forest and the Breysse woods, a mixture of beech and coniferous trees.The route more or less follows theGR®®40trail, avoiding wide tracks and small roads where possible.

Starting from Les Estables, Mont Mézenc, La Croix des Boutières and back via Mont d’Alambre. The descent from Mont d’Alambre is partly via a ski run, so avoid this route when the ski area is open. A very pleasant and varied hike. The ascent of Mont Mézenc is very well signposted and not very steep; the two summits of the mountain offer fabulous views over the Ardèche, the Haute-Loire and much more; this part of the route is quite busy. From Mont d’Alambre, things get slightly tougher. The climb is steeper but not excessively so, and not very long. The descent from the summit back to the path is steeper as we took a ski run; it is far from dangerous, as you are walking on grass. The rest of the return journey is flat with a slight downhill gradient.

Starting from the charming village of Les Estables, this hike takes you on a tour and ascent of Mont d'Alambre (a ski resort in winter), with a 360° view of the surrounding peaks and a magnificent view of Mont Mézenc, the highest point in the region.

Beautiful scenery around Rechausseyre and Rocher Tourte with lovely views of Mont Mézenc and Mont d'Alambre and very pleasant forest trails from the village of Les Estables.

This is a gentle hike that leads to the summit of Rocher Tourte before circling around it. The summit, which is easy to climb and offers a beautiful panorama, is nevertheless very quiet with a wild moorland atmosphere; it is also a biological reserve. Throughout the circuit, except for the sections in the forest, the view is splendid.

The route follows the Via Gebennensis (GR®65-GR®430) to near Les Araules. Next, discover the Pic du Lizieux and its orientation table, which offers a 360° panorama. The hike continues along the Bonas discovery trail, then joins Arnissac to pass through Pic Testavoyre and ends with the forest road to Chalet Raffy.

A route exploring little-used paths and points of interest, an alternative to the marked trails.

Discover the Meygal massif via little-used, unmarked paths, some of which are not shown on maps. The route runs mostly through woodland and skirts the hamlets of Monedeyres and Boussoulet without entering them. A physically easy hike, but only suitable for walkers who can find their way and recognise at least the main tree species (fir, conifers, beech, hazel).

Short loop starting from the Meygal Forest. After crossing the forest, a balcony path with beautiful views of the surrounding knolls leads you to the village of Queyrières, which is topped by a remarkable basalt dyke. After crossing the village of Monedeyres, you climb back up through pleasant undergrowth.