La Rochette (Ardèche) walks

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.

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 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 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.

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

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

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

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

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

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 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.

Located between Mont Gerbier de Jonc and Mont Mézenc, the Suc de Sara rises to 1,521 metres. The ascent via the south face and then the east ridge leads to the summit, which offers a 360° panoramic view of the surrounding knolls and valleys as far as the Vercors, Mont Ventoux and the Alps. During the ascent of the south face, the crossing of the scree slopes offers beautiful landscapes.

Between Gerbier de Jonc and Chartreuse de Bonnefoy, the Ardèche plateau offers numerous stone-slab knolls. This circuit between Aigue Nègre and Veyradeyre passes by four of them and at the top of three. In order, these are Séponet (tower), Montfol (summit), Lauzière (summit) and Taupernas (summit). From each of them, there is a beautiful 360° view of Mont Mézenc to the north, the Tanargue massif to the south, Gerbier and Areilladou to the east, and Haute-Loire to the west.

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 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.

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.

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.

On the ridges of the Ardèche mountains in a sumptuous setting, this walk is also geological. On the programme: granite piles over ten metres high, five superimposed basalt flows and a view of some of the most famous volcanoes in France: Mont Gerbier-de-Jonc and Mézenc. A change of scenery guaranteed.

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.

This walk takes in forests of chestnut, oak, beech and pine trees, two volcanoes, three types of lava, three typical hamlets and a 360° view of all the Boutières (at least twenty volcanoes in sight). 24/10/2023: Hike modified to avoid the Oppidum de la Farre, which is private property, classified as a historical monument and closed to the public (see practical information).

This trail goes around and climbs up the Gerbier de Jonc whose summit offers a view over the Ardèche mountains.

A free hike allowing you to discover the different sources of the Loire: "the authentic", "the true" and "the geographical". After climbing Mont Gerbier des Joncs, enjoy the 3km of this easy route.

Climb the most famous knoll in the Ardèche, which offers a magnificent spectacle from its summit thanks to its 360° panorama of the surrounding volcanic landscape, then cross the River Loire and discover its various sources. 

This route takes you up the most famous knoll in the Ardèche. The effort required to reach the summit is rewarded with a magnificent 360° panoramic view of the surrounding volcanic landscape.

An easy snowshoe route to explore the snow-covered Ardèche plateau, near the Gerbier des Joncs. 'Les Coux' is a small volcanic knoll rising from the plateau, near the 'Gerbier des Joncs'. Car park at the cross-country skiing chalet on the Lachamp Raphael – Gerbier des Joncs road (1 km).

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.

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.