Laschamps - Orcines via Puy de Dôme

Departure from the Laschamps Église TAD stop.

(S) Set off along the main street, leaving the church on your right. At the fork in the road shortly afterwards, keep left, following the signs for D942.
Follow the red and white^GR®®4markings until further notice.
Continue along this street, passing the cemetery on your left, then the stopover lodge, until you reach an intersection with a path at a cross.

(1) Follow the path on the left and you will come to the D942.

(2) Cross very carefully and continue straight ahead. The^GR®® winds through a forest criss-crossed with paths, sometimes making sharp turns at certain intersections, so pay attention to the markings (which are very well maintained). You will arrive at the Col de Ceyssat.

(3) Follow the road to the left, then turn right just before the Auberge des Gros Manaux, climb a few steps and leave the memorial to the Ardents on your right. Follow the yellow directional signs (Col de Ceyssat marker) and head towards the summit of Puy de Dôme, which is the Chemin des Muletiers.

(4) Higher up, cross the old road and the Panoramique des Dôme railway line, continue on the path opposite which winds its way up to the summit and ends with a few steps. Continue straight ahead, leaving the station on your right, and join the small road and the bottom of the steps leading up to the temple and the antenna.

(5) Climb the steps, pass to the right of the Temple of Mercury, continue climbing and then go around the station and the antenna, either by taking the shortest path, as shown on the trail, or by taking a slightly longer route to visit the viewpoints via the Chemin des Curieux. Return to the small road at the bottom of the steps.

(5) Follow the small road and the signs for Sentier des Chèvres.

(6) Further on, leave the road for the Sentier des Chèvres, which branches off to the right and starts with steps. Further down, you will reach the Traversin crossroads (fountain).

(7) Leave the^GR®® trail^. Turn right (Chemin des Gravouses) and continue to an intersection (with directional signs).

(8) Continue along Chemin des Gravouses on the left and you will reach a four-way crossroads. Continue straight ahead (Chemin de la Roche Pertuisade), with the golf course on your left, and you will arrive at another four-way crossroads.

(9) Turn left, then take the first path on the right. Further on, ignore a path on the left, then two on the right.

(10) At the next fork, keep left, then ignore a path on the left, then one on the right (which climbs, for a short detour off the route, to a calvary with three crosses).

(11) At the T-junction, turn right and immediately pass three drinking troughs in a row. When you reach the village of Orcines, turn right onto the street that runs alongside the cemetery on your left and you will arrive at the church. Continue along the street that goes around the church on the right and you will come to another street. Walk a few metres to the left to find the Orcines Bourg TAD bus stop (E).

Difficulty: Moderate, the climb to Puy de Dôme is sustained but not difficult, standard hiking equipment with, perhaps, one or two walking sticks.
I recommend the Visorando app.

Outward journey: Yellow, line B (Royat Place Allard) => Royat Place Allard then TAD => Laschamps Église.
Return: Orcines Bourg, TAD => Gaillard then line A (La Pardieu Gare) => Jaude.
TAD.

Discover more hikes in this area with a description or the Visorando app here and more generally in the Puy-de-Dôme here

After leaving Laschamps, follow the well-marked^GR®®4trail through a beautiful forest to the Col de Ceyssat. The climb then becomes steeper, and certainly busier, to the summit of Puy de Dôme, via the Chemin des Muletiers. A few information panels are available at random points along the winding (numbered) bends, which also allow you to catch your breath.
The Chemin des Muletiers owes its name to the fact that, in the past, wealthy summer visitors were transported from Orcines to the summit of the Dôme by donkeys and mules. But long before that, in Roman times, it was the route taken by pilgrims to the Temple of Mercury.
From the summit, in good weather, there is a superb view of the city of Clermont-Ferrand, the Puys de Chaînes mountain range, the Combrailles, the Plateau des Dôme and the Massif du Sancy.
Trails circle the site, passing by several orientation tables.
Geological, ecological and cultural information about the Puy de Dôme and the Chaîne des Puys can be found here
Information about the Temple of Mercury here.
The descent to Orcines is easy, first along the beautiful Sentier des Chèvres (Goat Trail), then along the paths once used by the gouris (or shepherds) who spent the summer with their sheep on these mountain pastures.
The Sentier des Chèvres probably owes its name to the very steep slope of this access route as you approach the summit. The climb is made much easier by the installation of steps along this section.