The Créneau balcony

Several car parks in the town (see Practical Information).

(S/E) Take the Solsac road (D27) to the police station.

(1) Turn right towards the Loyes housing estate. Note the old locomotive by the side of the road, a reminder of a bygone industrial era. Take the next left turn (no vehicles over 6 tonnes). After the bend, leave the tarmac road at the fork and take the path on the left heading south-east. Drive alongside the Cité Roquevert and its water reservoir. At the fork, continue left between the vineyards on the hillsides. Watch out for the numerous terraces for other vineyards. After a hairpin bend, you will arrive at a track.

(2) Take it to the right, continuing along the balcony above the Créneau valley. Reach the plateau and return to the tarmac road at an intersection. Go straight ahead between the meadows to a crossroads in the hamlet of Malviès.

(3) Head opposite towards Baulès, then turn left onto a sometimes muddy path bordered by a hedge of shrubs. Follow it north-east to an intersection (IGN elevation 464). Turn right towards a farm shed. Continue south-east then south before joining the Alseroques road.

(4) Turn left onto this road and continue for 20 metres, then turn right onto a new path lined with hedges. Pass a fork in the road on the right coming from the hamlet. Head south-east, then turn right.

(5) Turn left at a crossroads near some ruins and follow a track above Fontcoussergue (IGN elevation 517) towards the east.

^GR® 62 (white-red) markings

(6) You will come to the^GR® 62 trail as you reach a tarmac road. Follow it to the right for a few metres, then look for the^GR® markings which invite you to leave the tarmac road and take a path on the left which turns east and leads to a place called La Roque Haute. Pass between the more or less ruined houses, abandoned after the phylloxera invasion at the end of the 19th century which destroyed the entire vineyard, then descend to the Route du Puech.

Follow the PR "les Corniches du Créneau" trail in the opposite direction (yellow markings), turning left and passing in front of the Roque waterfall, which has not been the same since its collapse in 2003.

(7) Head south, then turn south-east and pass the Domaine de l'Albinie. Walk alongside the vineyards, then turn south at an intersection. Return to the tarmac road near the entrance to a house. Continue along the balcony overlooking the Créneau valley and arrive at Saint-Laurent via the Chemin de l'Albinie. Ignore the side roads and descend this narrow road through the Saint-Laurent district of Salles-la-Source. Pass the entrance to Château de la Calmontie and continue along Rue de la Cascade, turning right to admire the waterfall.

(8) After taking the obligatory photos (or even enjoying a picnic), walk a few metres and then turn right onto a staircase that leads to the D901. Follow it to the right for a few dozen metres, then turn left onto Chemin de la Scierie. At Place du Créneau, you can admire a^third waterfall via Chemin de la Crouzie (please respect private property). Walk back up to the square, then turn right onto Rue Saint-Paul, which passes in front of the church of the same name.

(9) Turn right onto the narrow Chemin des Jardins and join a small road. Turn right and cross the Faby, a tributary of the Créneau. At the fork, go left towards the last houses.

Leave the^GR® 62 - Continue on the^PR®

(10) Leave the^GR® when it turns completely left. Continue on the^PR® (in the opposite direction), which climbs uphill. Enjoy the view of the valley from the opposite balcony before beginning the descent towards Montredon.

(11) As the path on the left no longer connects with the path on the right that runs alongside the Créneau, descend to the hamlet of Montredon. Turn left after crossing the Créneau and climb back up to the D901. Leave the^PR® and stay on the left-hand side of the road for 500 metres, taking care. Arrive at Pont les Bains.

(12) At the crossroads, cross the stream again on the left and climb the Côte de Cormouls. At the end of the tarmac road, turn right onto a path. You will come out onto a small road connecting Cougousse to Cormouls, near a water tower. Turn right under the cover of the trees and then into the open. Pass the houses of Gourjean (new bridge on the right). Continue along this small shaded road to Cougousse.

^PR® "Des Moulins aux Vignes" (yellow line)

(13) Do not be distracted by the bridge over the Créneau when taking the Chemin du Mas. Cross a tributary of the river via a small bridge and join the^PR® in the opposite direction for approximately 3 km. After La Bissoulie, a dirt track replaces the tarmac.

(14) Go around the Tennis Club du Vallon sports facilities, then follow Chemin de Banes, running alongside the Kervallon secondary school football pitch. Pass to the left of the Roque property and you will reach the access point to Pont Rouge.

No more signposts

(15) Take this viaduct, which is open to pedestrians, to cross the wide Créneau valley and come out on the Loyes road, bypassing the old ore transhipment station. Turn left and retrace your steps from the morning to descend to Marcillac-Vallon (S/E).

Please note that all car parks in the town centre are in the blue zone (disc required - 20 min duration).

The circular route is clockwise: the valley is always on your right except for the section after (11) because a closed path forced the author to fall back on the D901 (right bank) to Pont-les-Bains.
A mountain bike trail marker (Yellow Triangle No. 13) serves as a guide for a good part of the way.
Picnic area in the village of Salles la Source on the edge of the D901.

(7) La Roque Waterfall
The magnificent La Roque waterfall flows over three levels, surrounded by greenery and moss on the edge of the Causse Comtal.
(8) Salles-la-Source Waterfall
Unusual, though not unique, the Salles la Source Waterfall is notable for its location in the middle of the village in a landscaped area. Take the time, even if it means getting a little wet, to visit the cave behind the waterfall, which contains magnificent travertine formations (calcareous tufa).
(15) Pont Rouge Viaduct
Formerly part of the railway line that transported coal to Decazeville: 150 metres long, 15 metres high, with 15 very elegant arches... The Pont Rouge is a magnificent structure that majestically spans the Rodez road and the Le Créneau river. Built of brick and red sandstone, it dates from 1855-1856. It is the last vestige of a railway line that marked the birth of the industrial and steel-making era in the mid-19th century in Aveyron.