The Bois de Barre and the Bois Vert

In Nadaillat, park in the car park near the cemetery, located at the bottom and south of the village.

(S/E) Take the road back towards the village, going around the cemetery, then immediately take Rue de l'Église, which goes up to the left. Pass below the old cemetery and then to the right of the church. At the fork, near the cross, continue to the left to reach an intersection near the fountain. Turn left and look for the yellow directional signs on your left, then continue straight ahead towards La Cassière. Ignore the first street on the left and, just after that, turn left onto Rue du Sabotier. Pass to the right of the fountain, then ignore all the paths on the left until you reach a fork at a cross surrounded by four beautiful lime trees. Continue to the left, then turn left again at the next fork to reach Route de la Serre (D145).

(1) Turn left onto this quiet road to leave the village. Further on, ignore a private road on the left (post box) before passing a cross on your right. At the crossroads with a blue-marked path (plus a green no-vehicles sign), continue straight ahead on the road for about 50 metres.

(2) Turn onto the path that branches off to the left. Continue straight ahead on this path until you reach a wider path. Turn left to arrive immediately at a four-way crossroads with yellow directional signs (Tertre de Fontarbre marker). Turn onto the first path on the right, towards Pré Montrand. After about 300 metres, you will reach an intersection at the Pré Montrand signpost.

(3) Turn left (towards Les Varennes), pass some farm buildings on your left shortly afterwards and begin the long descent from Montagne de la Serre through Bois de Barre. About 300 metres further on, at a fork, continue to the right.

(4) At the T-junction with another path, turn right. At the next junction, look for the yellow signs for Les Varennes. Continue left towards Saint-Saturnin. Further on, the path makes a wide right turn and then comes to a junction.

(5) Turn left and continue down this beautiful path for about 1100m. Start climbing again shortly before an intersection with another path.

(6) Turn right to leave the Bois de la Barre. About 100m further on, ignore a path on the right and then, a little further on, another path on the left. Further on, continue straight ahead, ignoring a path on the right, and you will finally arrive at a crossroads with several paths at the Chapelle Sainte-Anne and yellow signs.

(7) Turn left to continue climbing towards the Observatoire de la Serre. Further on, ignore a path on the right, then you will arrive at a crossroads with a road, the D96.

(8) Cross and continue straight ahead towards the information sign for Montagne de la Serre, a prime spot for observing migratory birds. Continue straight ahead for a few metres until you reach a crossroads with paths and yellow signs (Montagne de la Serre marker). Turn left towards Nadaillat and, 100 metres further on, you will arrive back at the D96. Continue a few metres to the right and then, at a yellow sign (Chagourdat signpost), take the lane on the right towards Moulin de Fligny. You will see an iron cross on your right. Continue straight ahead along this beautiful lane lined with magnificent trees, which were once pollarded. At the end of the lane, you will see another iron cross at the entrance to the Chagourdat estate, which is now a horse boarding facility.

(9) Continue along the path that branches off to the left of the cross and descends, skirting the estate, then enters the Bois Vert.

(10) Further on, the path turns right, then continues downhill until it reaches a bridge over the Auzon river at a place called Moulin de Flory. There is no longer a mill here, but many structures for diverting the Auzon and a tributary stream remain.

(11) Just before the first bridge, near a beautiful tree (unfortunately threatened by the stupidity of motorised individuals who enjoy driving around it), at the yellow signs, take a short detour the path on the right along a small canal to the Chaos de Flore, a pile of rocks on your right, in the centre of which is a kind of dolmen. Return to the tree.

(11) Cross the bridge over the stream. On the other side, you will find more yellow signs. Without crossing the second bridge, turn left towards Nadaillat. Ignore the path that branches off to the right just after this and continue uphill alongside the stream.

(12) Further on, the path moves away from the stream and begins to climb towards Nadaillat, with a few hairpin bends, finally leaving the Bois Vert.

(13) At the intersection, ignore the path on the far left (which is not shown on the map) and the path on the right to continue straight ahead on the path that veers slightly to the left and continues to climb. You will soon reach the first houses of Nadaillat and come to a road at a crossroads.

(14) Take the road on the left, towards the cemetery. Pass below the village to reach the cemetery car park (S/E).

Moderate difficulty hike, standard hiking equipment required

Discover more hikes in this area with a description or the Visorando app here

Photo albums here and here

Stretching 10 km from west to east, the Montagne de la Serre is a model of the relief inversion characteristic of volcanic regions. It owes its relief to a large lava flow from the Monts-Dore. Protecting the underlying sediments and granite bedrock from erosion, this flow (which poured into a valley) now overhangs, due to the combined action of the Auzon and Veyre rivers, which flow on either side.
Beyond this unique geological feature, the Montagne de la Serre is a very important bird migration corridor.

The Sainte-Anne Chapel can be considered the symbol of the heart of the Montagne de la Serre. Originally, it was probably a large milestone on the ancient Gallo-Roman road that linked Saint-Nectaire to Clermont-Ferrand. It became the Sainte-Anne milestone after the Crusades, and then a small religious building was constructed: the Bonne Sainte-Anne.

The Chaos de Flore is a beautiful granite pile, in the middle of which stands a dolmen, which is thought to have been used for worship by our Neolithic ancestors.