The Chaudefour Valley

Discover the Chaudefour Valley, located in the nature park of the same name.

Details

n°100153

Creation:
05 Feb 2015

Last update:
22 Jul 2026

Last review:
29 Jun 2026

Activity: Snowshoeing
Distance: 6.66 mi
Duration according to the author: 6 hrs
Difficulty: Moderate
Back to start: Yes
Ascent: + 889 ft
Descent: - 902 ft
Highest point: 4,058 ft
Lowest point: 3,671 ft

Country: France
Areas: Massif central, Monts Dore, Vallée de Chaudefour
City: Saint-Victor-la-Rivière (63790)
Start/End: N 45.546805° / E 2.901579°
IGN map(s): Ref. 2432ET, 2432ETR
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Description of the walk

Start from the Volcaflore lodge in Courbanges.
(S/E) Take the D36 due west.

(1) Keep left on the D36 at the junction with the D618 leading to Murol. Continue to a junction below the Rocher de l’Aigle.

(2) Continue along the road until you reach this rock, overlooked by a telecoms pylon.
Carry on along the road and turn left again onto the D36 towards Mont Dore, then head for the car park at the Maison de la Réserve Naturelle.

(3) Leave the road and turn left onto the track that forms part of the nature trail, lined with numerous information boards. Cross the stream flowing from the Cascade de Pérouse via a bridge, then head towards the waterfall.

(4) Return to the path and continue to the left to reach the Pont Saint Anne, which spans the Biche stream. Cross the bridge and follow the path along the bottom of the Chaudefour valley. You will reach the junction at the Biche waterfall.

(5) Return via the same route to the car park at the Maison de la Réserve Naturelle.

(3) Take the path leading off to the right into the forest; after a gentle climb, you’ll reach the mountain pasture.

(6) Stay on the ridge to reach the junction with the D36 below the Rocher de l’Aigle.

(2) Turn right onto the D36 road and return to the lodge (S/E) via the outward route.

Waypoints

S/E : mi 0 - alt. 3,773 ft - Volcaflore Lodge
1 : mi 0.25 - alt. 3,780 ft - Junction of the D36 and D618 - Cascade du Cheix
2 : mi 0.79 - alt. 3,894 ft - Crossroads below the - Rocher de l'Aigle
3 : mi 2.26 - alt. 3,734 ft - Nature Reserve Centre - Couze Chambon (rivière) - Affluent de l'Allier
4 : mi 2.83 - alt. 3,927 ft - Cascade de Pérouse
5 : mi 3.39 - alt. 4,042 ft - Crossroads - Cascade de la Biche
6 : mi 5.34 - alt. 3,996 ft - Edge of the woodland and mountain pasture
S/E : mi 6.66 - alt. 3,776 ft - Volcaflore Lodge

Notes

You will no doubt be surprised by the road route taken and described in this itinerary. Please note that in winter, traffic on this road is very light, if not non-existent. However, you must take great care and walk on the left-hand side in single file. For snowshoeing, there’s no problem as the road is covered in snow.
In summer, you can visit the Nature Reserve Centre.
In winter, you can stop off at the Buron de Chaudefour opposite this house.

This route passes through a protected area, which may be subject to special regulations:

Réserve naturelle nationale de la Vallée de Chaudefour - more information

Worth a visit

Besse-en-Chandesse, a medieval village.
Chambon du Lac.
Saint-Nectaire, famous for its cheese and its petrifying springs.
Murol and its hilltop castle.

REGULATIONS: This route passes through the Chaudefour Valley Nature Reserve. Dogs are not permitted on certain sections of this route – they are allowed on a lead only on the marked^GR®® 30 andGR®® 4 trails. Mountain biking, wild plant gathering and camping are prohibited. Please stay on the marked paths. Full details at: ‘Chaudefour Valley Nature Reserve’

Reviews and comments

4.3 / 5

Based on 28 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.2 / 5

Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5

Route interest
4.4 / 5

User 24707591

29 Jun 2026 at 10:30 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 14, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant route, partly through woodland.

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karine37

18 Nov 2025 at 21:38 3600

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 18, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

So much tarmac, and a lot of it on a busy road! Next time, we'll park at the nature reserve car park and go further into the Chaudefour Valley (Cascade de la Biche waterfall, valley floor, Dent de la Rancune rock formation, etc.), which is what we did, but it added quite a few extra kilometres. The valley itself is magnificent!
The way back is lost in the meadows, fortunately without any livestock at this time of year.

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jjmanein@gmail.com

17 Nov 2025 at 14:07 3600

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Departure from Courbange.
A pleasant walk despite the gale-force winds! Soft light and ideal walking temperatures. Easy going, particularly for reaching the Biche waterfall. Interesting ferruginous source of the Pérouse.

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Archimede

08 Jul 2025 at 14:20 7200

I did the summer version: starting at the nature reserve, to the waterfall (steep climb through the undergrowth). So I'm not giving a rating for the snowshoe version. Not too many people at the end of June, except for schoolchildren playing truant during the heatwave (with their teachers).

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janb

21 Oct 2024 at 14:07 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 21, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

we chose this route knowing that it would be interesting, especially because of the nature. We were not disappointed.
Unfortunately, we couldn't get to the waterfall because there were pieces of wood across the path and it was dangerous.
A pleasant afternoon.

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J Rapin

21 Aug 2024 at 11:42 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 21, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

There were lots of people on this beautiful course, which meant lots of vehicles (in the paid car park) and it wasn't easy to find a space.
It's a shame that all the waterfalls aren't signposted
The end of the hike was a bit steep!

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Cat73110

05 Aug 2024 at 12:42 7200

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 01, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

A pleasant, enjoyable hike.
Pérouse waterfall, not signposted.
Cascade de la Biche waterfall, just a trickle of water, disappointing. A little difficult to access from the undergrowth for young children.
Paid parking, very crowded.

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belz

23 Jul 2024 at 18:51 7200

Departure from the forest house towards the Biche waterfall. We are a group of walkers aged between 60 and 80. Due to the difficulty of the path, which was too steep for the Biche waterfall, we turned back. However, we had already spent a week hiking in the area and were a little tired. Very beautiful landscape

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23 Jul 2024 at 18:07 7200 • Edited: 05 Aug 2024 at 13:22 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 23, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The hike starts on a fairly busy road. In summer, I think it's better to leave your car at Rocher de l'Aigle. We went to the bottom of the valley and the Moine waterfall, which adds about 3 km. The scenery is magnificent. The return route (around 6 p.m.) starts in the forest and then opens up into a more open area surrounded by flowers. Once on the ridge, it was impossible to follow the Visorando trail as there was no path and this would have meant crossing a fenced-off field. We followed the fence, through the grass and flowers. Not always easy... When we came to another fence (a single wire) just before the D36, we had two options: go under the wire and continue for a few metres, but this would take us to a high, very steep road embankment that would be very difficult to climb down, or decide to go over the barbed wire fence around the meadow that we had been following for a while (fortunately, there were no sheep in the meadow when we passed through), which we followed until we left the meadow and reached the road. I suppose that in winter, the route indicated is no problem with snowshoes, but Visorando should add a note to the details for passages on foot outside of winter.

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belz

17 Jun 2024 at 20:07 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 17, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike, a little challenging for the age of the group (400 m elevation gain)

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gerardluda

11 Sep 2023 at 12:15 7200

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 11, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

the Chaudefour Valley isn't as beautiful as advertised, or perhaps it's been somewhat neglected.

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Jmchvl

14 Aug 2023 at 12:02 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very pleasant hike, the waterfalls are worth seeing. I think it must be even more beautiful in spring than in summer when there is less water! The route is easy as long as you are well equipped with suitable footwear, as some sections are a little technical!

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PATAOUMEGNOL

09 Jul 2023 at 18:49 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 03, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

We combined this hike with the valley through the ridges. We started by climbing the
first hill on the ridge trail, the Puy de Champgourdeix, which offered a parish-specific to Brittany view from the top. After descending the same way, we continued on to the bottom of the valley.

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DR58

28 Mar 2022 at 12:36 7200

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 26, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Hello to all hikers

A very beautiful hike with magnificent views. Be careful at this time of year as some sections are still snowy and tricky. Walking sticks are recommended. At point 3, be careful on the climb not to follow the blue markings, which are for the waterfall and deer. Continue with the green and yellow markings.
On the way back at point 8, the path is no longer maintained and the markings become unclear.

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phil26d

04 Oct 2020 at 13:50 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A beautiful hike with the option of climbing Puy de Sancy in 15 minutes from Col de la Cabane (see Visorando guide "Le Puy de Sancy via the Chaudefour Valley"). Not to be missed.

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