The Gagne and its tributaries from Montusclat

Start near the bread oven in the centre of the village (easy parking).

Yellow^PR® markings

(S/E) Head south to the church and walk around it, keeping it on your left. Follow a narrow lane leading towards the Ruisseau de Montusclat.

(1) Cross a bridge and take the track on the right that runs alongside the stream (do not follow the road). The track climbs slightly and turns into a wide path that winds through meadows and woods.

(2) The path turns sharply left and climbs more steeply straight away. As you emerge from the woods, the path levels out and widens. This brings you to the hamlet of Pouzol Vieux. Follow the road for a few metres to reach a bread oven.

(3) Turn immediately left onto a path that quickly passes by some bachats (the local name for drinking troughs). The path joins the road near a somewhat enigmatic iron sculpture.

(4) Here, take the path on the left, join a small road and follow it to the right.

(5) At the junction in front of another iron sculpture, called “the Periscope”, which offers views of the surrounding peaks, take the road to the right until you reach a junction.

(6) Head down the road to the right, turn right at the three-way junction and reach the hamlet of Pouzol Jeune (farm buildings). Just before crossing the Ruisseau du Cros, pass the start of the path leading to the fortified house of Pouzol Jeune, a very beautiful building which is unfortunately abandoned.

(7) Continue straight on. The road continues and turns into a wide track, passing close to the isolated farm of Auriac. The track then becomes a road and leads to the lower part of the hamlet of Couteaux.

(8) Follow the road to the right which crosses the Gagne and take the road to the left which follows the river upstream.

(9) Turn onto a path on the left which crosses a bridge (after the bridge, note the ruined mill and its reservoir, which is still in very good condition). The path climbs steeply, passing through lava scree to reach the hamlet of La Rochette.

The path turns into a road and leads to the farms of Les Gaux and Sioulac. Just before reaching them, turn left at a 90° angle and take a path that joins the upper part of the hamlet of Couteaux, which you have already passed through, and turns into a track.

(10) After a house with a stone entrance, take a path that climbs to the right. Follow this path to the plateau and the edge of the woods, remembering to look back to enjoy the view of the plateau and the Mézenc massif.

(11) Take the path on the right which continues along the edge of the woods to reach a crossroads in the middle of the meadows, where all the paths are marked in yellow.

(12) Take the path on the left which descends to reach the hamlet of Cros de Montroy, sheltered from the plateau winds by its position. Head straight up the access road to reach a crossroads

^GR®40White and Red markings

(13). Take the^GR® opposite, which winds through woods and meadows and joins a track near the road.

No markings

(14) Do not join the road but turn left onto the track which very quickly begins to descend. Note the isolated farm of Le Single on the right – aptly named! The track descends straight ahead.

(15) Just as the track turns right, continue straight ahead on a path that continues to descend straight on until the village of Montusclat. Once you reach the road, return to the starting point (S/E) by taking the road to the right and after crossing the stream.

Between the1st and the 13th, the yellow markings apply to several^{PR® routes.}

(S/E) Montusclat boasts a beautiful Romanesque church as well as several mansions, former homes of royal notaries dating from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. One of them is situated opposite the church and the other a few metres further away from the church.

(5) Once you reach the "Périscope", you can take the path on the left leading to the Oratoire Saint-Joseph and the pilgrimage site of [Notre Dame de l’Étoile|http://www.catholique-lepuy.cef.fr/Notre-Dame-de-l-Etoile.html|, dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

(7) You can approach the fortified house to admire its architecture, particularly its square tower.