The historical heritage of Neussargues en Pinatelle

There is a small car park near the church in Chalinargues. You can also find a few parking spaces near the town hall, on the D23, north-east of the village.

(S/E) From the south side of Saint-Barthélémy Church, follow the street to the left of the church, which heads north-west. At the junction between the D23 and D39, take the D23 on the right for about 60 metres. Look for the chess tower logo, which marks the "Sentier des Vieilles Pierres" (Old Stones Trail) that you will follow throughout this route. Turn onto the first street on the left and continue straight ahead on the path that extends from it to reach the D39. Continue on the side of this quiet road for about 500 metres.

(1) Turn right onto a path that leads to some meadows. At the crossroads with a small road, continue straight ahead. You will come to a small road in the hamlet of Mons, where you will see a small cross on your left (you can buy cheese from a farmer on your left).

(2) Turn right and then immediately left to see the beautiful 15th-century Mons Cross. Next to the cross, you will see an old shoeing rack, which was used to lift large animals, such as oxen, in order to shoe or treat them. Go behind the cross and turn right to reach the drinking troughs. Walk alongside them and continue on the path opposite, heading east-south-east.

(3) When the path turns right, continue straight ahead on a narrower path. When you reach the edge of the plateau, facing the Rocher de Laval, follow the path that turns right and winds down towards Moissac.

(4) At Moissac Castle, turn left, cross the disused railway line and continue straight on towards the church to find the communal oven, which is in perfect condition and still in use. Continue along Rue du Four, then turn left to visit the beautiful church with its 12th-century bell tower. This "privileged altar" is visited by pilgrims on the Way of St James. Inside, just to the right of the door, you will see an ancient pilgrim's tombstone. You can climb a few steps on the outside of the bell tower. Leaving the church, continue south for a few metres to reach the D23.

(5) Shortly afterwards, on leaving the village, you will see a stone shelter on your left protecting Carolingian and Merovingian sarcophagi from the 6th and 7th centuries. Continue along the D23. Ignore a path on the right and then, a hundred metres further on, take a small road also on the right.

(6) Cross the railway line via a high bridge and continue along the railway line on your left. Further on, the path veers off to the west.

(7) Ignore the small road on the left that descends towards Neussargues. Further on, at a fork, continue to the right and you will arrive at the Prehistoric Caves of Cuzers. A stepladder on the right-hand side of the path allows you to climb up to the caves via a narrow path. These caves are actually rock shelters that were used by prehistoric hunters. Back on the path, continue to the right to enter the Bois du Cheylat woods further on. In these woods, follow the signposts carefully.

(8) A sign indicates that you are on a medieval path. And indeed, this beautiful, enclosed path, lined with mossy stones, seems very old. You will come to a track, which you should follow to the right (signposted "Cascades"). At the next crossroads, continue straight ahead. At each intersection, follow the markings indicated by the chess tower logo or the "Sentiers des Vielles Pierres" signs. At the next intersection, the only one without markings, ignore the path that branches off to the right and backwards. Just after this, at the entrance to a meadow, at a fork, the paths to the left and right join further on. Shortly afterwards, a sign indicates the direction of the "waterfall (15 min round trip)" on the left.

(9) Descend a few steps and a path to a picnic area, from where you can already see the waterfall above. Then climb the stairs to the foot of this beautiful waterfall. Return to the previous crossroads.

(9) Continue to the left, still in the Bois du Cheylat. On your right, you will see a sign indicating the medieval tower (which probably inspired the logo for this hike), the ruins of which can be seen a few metres away. Leave the woods and you will come to the D40. Follow it to the right for about 300 metres.

(10) At the path that branches off to the right, signs indicate that a hundred metres further along the D40, there are tumuli mounds in a field just to the left of the road.

(10) On the way back, continue along the path and, at the next crossroads, turn left towards Freissinet. At the fork in the hamlet, turn right to join the D40. On your right, a few metres from the road, you will see a beautiful wash house. Follow the D40 (a quiet road) to the right for about 300 metres.

(11) At the cross, take the path on the left. At the junction with a small road, continue straight ahead.

(12) At the crossroads with the D39, continue straight ahead. You will come to a small road; follow it to the right until you reach the D23 at the entrance to Chalinargues. Follow this road to the right, towards the village. Pass a wash house and you will arrive at the junction between the D23 and the D39. Continue along the small road opposite to reach the church (S/E).

Moderate difficulty hike, standard hiking equipment required.

Thanks to the Pays de Murat community of communes for the quality of the signposting on this route.

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

The new commune of Neussargues-en-Pinatelle comprises several villages, including Chalinargues, Mons, Moissac and Freissinet, which this route passes through.

(S/E) The village of Chalinargues and the Church of St Bartholomew with its 12th-century bell tower, which is a "privileged altar" on the Way of St James.

Although the first and last kilometres of this route are a little monotonous, there is plenty to discover between (2) and (11): In Mons, the monumental basalt cross, the blacksmith's workshop and the drinking troughs.
In Moissac, the castle, the communal oven, the church, the sarcophagi, the prehistoric rock shelters, the waterfall and the Freissinet wash house.

(4) The volcanic complex of the Monts du Cantal is the largest stratovolcano in Europe. Eruptive phases occurred between 9 million and 10,000 years ago. The Cantal volcano forms a star-shaped complex, each arm of which represents a planèze, an immense straight plateau resulting from the outpouring of fluid basalt lava, separating two valleys. The Rocher de Laval is a ledge of the Saint-Flour planèze exposed by erosion.

(6) Sarcophagi were a very common form of burial during the Early Middle Ages and were always associated with places of worship. They fell out of use at the end of the Romanesque period. The sarcophagi of Moissac date from the 8th and 9th centuries.

(8) Rock shelters were used seasonally as hunting lodges by Upper Palaeolithic reindeer hunters (35,000 to 9,000 years ago), who were Homo sapiens hunter-gatherers. They did not use metals to make their tools, but stones, especially flint, and organic materials such as bones, reindeer antlers and ivory.

(10) The tumulus is a type of burial mound dating from the Bronze Age and the early Iron Age. The cremated remains of the deceased were placed in the ground or in a casing under a mound of earth surrounded by a circular ditch. Here, the eroded summit has more or less filled in the ditch.