Heritage and landscapes of Montpezat-sous-Bauzon

(S/E) At the post office car park, facing the post office, turn right and go as far as the signpost, take the narrow passage leading to Rue Pasteur, turn right into Rue Victor Hugo and admire the beautiful facade of the former vicarage.

Follow this street and, just before the round fountain, turn right at the "Chalias" signpost. Cross the bridge over the Pourseilles stream and follow this quiet little road up to the hamlet of Haut-Chalias, at the end of the road.

(1) Take the path on the right : the climb begins with a pretty calade (cobbled path). After a fork, turn left and, a little further on, at a second fork, keep to the right. The path twists and turns and soon you're leaving the chestnut trees to discover a rocky landscape, overlooking the upper town of Montpezat and with the Serre de Tirequiou to the north/north-east. Reach Les Champs" signpost and enjoy the magnificent view of the Fontaulière valley and the young Gravenne volcano (15,000 years old).

Continue straight on. Pass by a ruin at "les Barges" with the date 1710 (?). Along this path, the few ruins you pass bear witness to an ancient practice of summer pasture, with lovely views over Montpezat, the ruins of Château de Pourcheyrolles and the hydroelectric power station. A stony descent back into the forest leads to the hamlet of Les Plantades.

(3) Continue on the small road and at the left-hand bend, ignore the track and go down the small path on the right (two large white/yellow markings). Cross the first stream and then the second (Ruisseau de Bouteille), with a tricky exit from the bridge. The path joins a track to the right, leading to a small road.

At the left-hand bend, after a farm shed, a small "Montpezat" directional sign invites you to take the path which passes over the bridge of the "Rioubert" stream (a waterfall after rainy periods) showing a pretty gour (a plunge pool). Avoid going down there, however : snake den !
On reaching the road (mailbox), after about 10 m, turn right on a hairpin bend, then left in front of a calvary oratory, and descend on the left to the Chapelle Saint-Roch.

(4) Cross the small road and go down the Chemin du Calvaire. At the last oratory, pass between the two cemeteries and turn right into the small meadow overlooking the church and priory. You'll come to a small road : turn left, then left again. From mid-May to the end of June, you'll be rewarded for your efforts with a magnificent little rose garden welcoming you with the fragrance of its roses and their many floral colours !

(5) Continue opposite Place de l'Église towards the bridge over the Pourseille, which you cross.
Turn right at the mission cross, cross the D536 with care, and take the calade opposite to reach the lower town (former toll entrance to Monpezat before the D536 was laid out).

(6) Signs at the entrance and exit of Rue de Chaumienne. Follow this restored street, with its mansions of notables and craftsmen, to join the main road. Cross it with care and, after a few metres, turn right down a flight of steps between two houses. After a small car park, turn left and follow the Allée de la Prade to reach the post office parking lot (S/E).

Corresponds roughly to an information sheet published by the Montpezat Tourist Office called Chalias and rated of medium difficulty.
Steep ascent (approx. 8% average) and stony descent.
Very well marked yellow-white
Close gates completely

Recommended season : mid-May to end of June (Clastre rose garden). Tricky fords and streams after thunderstorms and/or Cevennol storms.

Gour: basin dug by the water at the bottom of a waterfall.

At the Place de l'Église in Prévenchères, take a look at the information panels on the church and on the cemetery wall.

Hiking boots, walking sticks, headgear. Take a small torch to see the frescoes in the Chapelle Saint-Roch.

Uncontrolled water sources outside the village : fountain at Les Plantades and tap at Le Clastre (on cemetery wall).

Urban heritage
(S/E)Monpezat-sous-Bauzon

Presentation text taken from site de la Mairie :
''A natural route to the Auvergne since prehistoric times, Monpezat became a must for muleteers who, from the 12th to the 18th century, transported all kinds of goods along this route, leading to the emergence of a major hotel and commercial activity. In 1693, there were 65 inns in the town. Pilgrims on their way to Le Puy on the Route de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle also stopped at the village's inns and priories.
With the construction of the RN102 road, the arrival of the automobile and the abandonment of a railroad project, the population fell from 2000 souls at the end of the 19th century to less than 500 at the beginning of the 21st.
note: The link shows the different buildings in the village.

(6) Lower town. The château
At the entrance to the lower town, the small square was used to collect the toll imposed on travellers, and features a "plague cross" with its buboes.
The castle, with its attractive Renaissance tower, is built of black stone from a mudflow mixed with volcanic slag and lava.

Religious heritage__
The calvary and Saint-Roch chapel
Built in the early 17th century, the procession took place on Good Friday and ended at the Chapelle Saint-Roch. The saint was invoked against calamities such as plague and drought. The tradition was abandoned around 1920.
The frescoes in the Chapelle Saint-Roch were painted by Jean Saussac, former mayor of Antraigues sur Volane.

(5) Clastre
The church of Notre-Dame de Prévenchères, listed as a historic monument, was once the parish church, but as the local faithful found it too far away, it was replaced by the church of the Assumption on Place de la Poste.
The priory, recently restored and refurbished, provides a temporary home for artists who, in exchange, exhibit their work in the church, the only time it is open to the public.

Industrial heritage__
Usine Hydro-électrique: water from the Loire diverted to the Ardèche...
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