Saint-Guiral from the Col de l'Homme Mort

Date of your route : May 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Done on this day, 13 May 2025, starting from the Col de l'Homme Mort, after 2 km I turned back because there was a dog belonging to the woodcutters. Being alone, I did not attempt to pass because I did not know how the dog would react.
Returned to the pass and headed towards Arisgas along the track, where I found the path to Saint Guiral.
Magnificent view on the way back along the same route.
Just as I reached my car, there was a heavy downpour with impressive hailstones in the rain.

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12/11/24
We only did the first part of this superb hike to the peak. A real peak, with a 360° view, a little bit of climbing (you have to use your hands) and a magical view with the sea sparkling in the distance... Given the comments about the return journey, and as we only had intermittent mobile coverage, we cautiously opted for the GR route. (It was also quite cold, 2.5°C.)
Please note: the path from point 11 is currently impossible to find, as it is completely destroyed and tree felling is underway.
Thank you for this wonderful hiking suggestion!

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Date of your route : Sep 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Car park destroyed by forestry machinery at the Col de l'Homme Mort.
We set off on our hike in a biting north wind all the way to St Guiral. Two friendly goats kept us company
accompanied us during our snack break and the climb up St Guiral.

From the shelter, the magnificent forest protected us from the wind. We got to know the
Coudoulous and followed its course to the Grandesc haute farm, where the GPS came in very handy.

A few cep mushrooms picked in the forest made our day even better!

Thanks to the author of this enjoyable hike.

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Thank you, HRECH31, for your feedback.
Indeed, along the stream, you leave the beaten track and there are no more markings, so you have to use GPS or navigate by sight, but you appreciate the wild and rural side of the forest. Did you find the magnificent abandoned farm? In any case, you were rewarded by picking cep mushrooms.
See you soon on the trails!

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Date of your route : Sep 19, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

This is a magnificent hike, well described by the author Kris.teyran.
The paths and trails are very shady, but you can discover magnificent landscapes along the forest path or from the summit of Saint Guiral, particularly over the Languedoc plain.
From the St Guiral shelter, you walk through the forest on a poorly marked or unmarked trail. Then, along the river (the Crouzoulous), you have to stray a little from the path or you risk getting stuck.
After crossing the stream for the second time, we couldn't find any markings. Sometimes a path allows you to get back on the route. This last part is beautiful, but you need a GPS to find your way.
This stream is home to trout and minnows. The water is clear, but due to the presence of animals in the vicinity (cows, goats), it is not advisable to drink it. We found two magnificent cep mushrooms!

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Date of your route : Aug 07, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, in our opinion, mostly shaded (pleasant in summer).
Worth doing for St Guiral, of course, but also for the trails, some of which are very beautiful, and for the off-trail sections.
I rated the description as "average", but this is not a criticism of the author: the route, especially in its second part (after St Guiral), is difficult to describe as it is partly "off-road" and seems to me to be impossible to follow with just the description.
I downloaded the route beforehand (area with poor coverage) with an IGN map and had no problems.

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Hello,

It appears to me that the two forest tracks starting from the Col du Minier are closed (barrier). Could you please confirm this for me? I need this information as I am planning this hike (the approach to Saint Guiral is long, the peak is well worth the effort!). Thank you.
Cyril GOUSSAKOWSKY

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fcourtois

The Visorando app also allows you to download maps and use them offline.

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Date of your route : Aug 20, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Please note: there is no network coverage on this route, so we were unable to use the VisoRando app. Fortunately, I had offline maps and the GPX track on my smartphone (Osmand app) so we didn't get lost off the trail. Without GPS, you can avoid getting lost on 7-11 by following the stream, but it's difficult going in places.

The main attraction of this hike is the ascent of Mont Saint Guiral, which offers a superb 360° view. In our case, we met two charming goats there!

Apart from Saint Guiral, it's a walk along a forest track of limited interest. The return trip, with its off-trail section (starting at point 7), amid fallen trees and, above all, piles of branches littering the ground, was at once pretty, fun (you often have to find your way) and difficult (you have to go around fallen trees and/or piles of branches). Just before this section 7-11, there is a beautiful oasis of greenery and freshness under the woods with a waterfall and a pool... probably a nice spot to take a break.

Note that there is a third, more direct forest track from the Col de l'Homme Mort to St Guiral. This could be an alternative route.

Thanks to the author of this route. I think that originally, on section 7-11, there weren't all these fallen trees and branches and it was a very pleasant undergrowth.

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Date of your route : Oct 11, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

The two points of interest on this walk are the forest road at the start, with its magnificent view of the southern foothills and the sea, and the viewpoint at the top of Guiral.
We didn't get to enjoy the first viewpoint because we drove up the forest road, but the speed limit on this road meant we had plenty of time to admire the scenery.
For the second point, it should be noted that access to the summit is somewhere between hiking and rock climbing. Personally, I abandoned my walking sticks and used my hands instead. The view from the summit was well worth the effort, especially as it was a very clear day.

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Date of your route : Oct 11, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful circular, with a good variety of wide paths and trails, and a finish with no obvious route.
The view from the top of St Guiral is worth the trip!
GPS watch highly recommended for the end...

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Hello George
I see you enjoyed a lovely, refreshing day in the Aigoual forest.
I deliberately spiced up the return leg of this hike by suggesting we go "off-piste". I thought it would be interesting to follow the charming little Crouzoulous stream and discover the old abandoned farmhouse at Grandesc Haute, relying on the hiker's geolocation skills rather than returning via the GR trail.
Best regards
Christian

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Date of your route : Jul 19, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful weather and a temperature of 23°C. Magnificent route to the waterfall at point 7. Then on to point 10, as warned in the description, you need a GPS to follow the route as there is no path or signposting. Section to be avoided after rain.
In conclusion, from the Col de l'Homme Mort to the waterfall (point 7) it's pure bliss. Beyond that, it would be good to have at least some signposts and, ideally, a path to point 10.

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Date of your route : Jun 14, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike on the way to Saint Guiral with splendid views. We missed the trail to go around Sr Guiral via the south, so we made a round trip via the east and north. For the return trip to Col de l'Homme Mort, given the previous comments and the fact that it had rained heavily two days earlier, we preferred to take the GR (forest track with only a few small gaps for the view).... This made the walk shorter (about 8 km), so we completed it with a visit to the Lac des Pises tower.

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Date of your route : Sep 15, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Magnificent views all the way to the St Guiral rock. The hike is through the woods.
The GPX track (hyphigénie) is really useful at the end, starting from Radier.In the end, we just had to follow the little Crouzoulou stream from one bank to the other as best we could, as there were no marked paths... We didn't see the ruins of La Grandesc Haute! The Crouzoulou crosses the path that took us back to the Col de l'Homme Mort.

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