Le Serre Pied de Boeuf and its hamlets

A lovely route at the foot of the Ardèche mountains with views of the Alps.

Details

n°9657

Creation:
21 Aug 2012

Last update:
31 Jan 2023

Last review:
08 Jun 2021

Activity: Walking
Distance: 19.94 km
Average duration: 8h 20
Difficulty: Difficult
Back to start: Yes
Ascent: + 922 m
Descent: - 921 m
Highest point: 923 m
Lowest point: 495 m

Country: France
Area: Massif central
District: Pourchères (07000)
Start/End: N 44.746999° / E 4.506649°
IGN map(s): Ref. 2937OT
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Description of the walk

Park in the hamlet of Pourchères near the cemetery.
(S/E) Take the road north-east towards Les Bois. Before the buildings, you will come to a crossroads of paths at Ravin de Bartas.

(1) Take the right-hand path and cross Bartas. Continue until you reach a large crossroads.

(2) Turn left to reach Les Colombières. First turn left then right to rejoin a track and you will soon come to another crossroads at the hamlet of Les Colombières.

(3) Turn left and walk along the hamlet. The track turns into a path. Continue along this path and climb up to the pylon at the foot of Serre de Pied de Bœuf.

(4) Begin a traverse followed by a short descent to reach a track before the place called Carteron.

(5) Take this track eastwards to the large crossroads at Col des Croix de Creysseilles.

(6) Descend the track opposite in a north-easterly direction. After a few bends and hairpin turns, you will reach the hamlet of Eyrebonne.

(7) Take the^{PR® trail} on the left^. Wind your way through the forest and head north to reach the hamlet of Magerouan.

(8) Turn 90° left, heading west, and follow a very slight descent to reach the Ravin du Fonlac.

(9) Cross it and continue on a slight incline to discover the hamlet of Mauves.

(10) Continue west at the exit of the hamlet and take the path on the left. Find the track that leads to Villeneuve and reach this new hamlet.

(11) Quickly leave this track via the path on the left to reach the hamlet of Ajoux.

(12) Take the path continuing west to reach the hamlet of Cros. Continue along this path, passing several springs before coming to the houses of La Pra. Change direction, heading due south. Find a new^PR®(marked trail), take it on the left and join a path after the hairpin bend.

(13) Take it on the left to rejoin the^PR® a few metres further on. Continue east on this new^PR® to reach the hamlet of Lavastret.

(14) Leave Lavastret by taking the track for a few metres, then turn right and start climbing the Côtes ridge, reaching it at altitude 819.

(15) Complete the circular by starting the descent to Pourchères and return to the car park at the cemetery (S/E).

Waypoints

S/E : km 0 - alt. 683 m - Pourchères cemetery
1 : km 0.59 - alt. 674 m - Bartas Ravine
2 : km 1.15 - alt. 693 m - Crossroads after Bartas
3 : km 2.04 - alt. 739 m - Les Colombières
4 : km 4.13 - alt. 923 m - Pylon at the foot of Serre de Pied de Bœuf
5 : km 5.1 - alt. 800 m - Carteron
6 : km 5.64 - alt. 759 m - Col des Croix de Creysseilles (759m)
7 : km 8 - alt. 620 m - Eyrebonne
8 : km 10.15 - alt. 556 m - Magerouan
9 : km 11.92 - alt. 495 m - Fonlac Ravine
10 : km 12.88 - alt. 566 m - Mauves
11 : km 13.66 - alt. 585 m - Villeneuve
12 : km 14.55 - alt. 718 m - Ajoux
13 : km 16.99 - alt. 591 m - Trail junction. Near the - Auzenet (cours d'eau) - Affluent de l'Auzène
14 : km 17.88 - alt. 676 m - Lavastret
15 : km 18.73 - alt. 822 m - Ridge altitude 819
S/E : km 19.94 - alt. 683 m - Pourchères cemetery

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5

Based on 11 reviews

Reliability of the description
4 / 5

Ease of following the route
4.1 / 5

Route interest
4.1 / 5

otumba

08 Jun 2021 at 17:10 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 07, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Varied landscapes, beautiful views
Pleasant walks
Reliable description including changes to the end of the route

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randonnée07

02 Mar 2021 at 20:44 3600

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 02, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Several disappointments:
To get from the crosses at Creysseilles to Eyrebonne (points 6 to 7), it's 2.5 km by road!
From Eyrebonne to Magérouan and up to the height of the Perrier farmhouse, the path is quite pleasant, but it quickly deteriorates. The path is narrow and there are many fallen trees blocking the way. The markers (although old) still allow you to find your way, but this part of the walk in the woods with no visibility is really not very interesting. And to top it all off, when you come out into the meadows before Mauves (point 10), there are electric wires blocking the path.
The arrival on the road before Villeneuve is also rough due to logging in this part of the terrain. Furthermore, when you pick up the trail again towards Ajoux, once again you mustn't miss the path that climbs up to the left, which is not very visible due to the opening of a track for logging that has broken the original path.
After that, the paths are quite pleasant and well maintained. The local signage (pretty little wooden arrows) overlaps with the PR signage, making it very easy to find your way around.

Disappointment for the named sections. I suppose this hike must have been collected some time ago.

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berbou

07 Jun 2020 at 18:43 7200

I haven't done this hike yet. On map 2937 E, the area appears difficult to find your way around.
Thanks to the hiker who provided a trail that will be useful to everyone.

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s010558

14 Jan 2019 at 16:02 3600

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 14, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A beautiful, varied winter hike with no difficulty. I rediscover the Ardèche through its hamlets and old stone buildings.

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Mamat97410

25 Jul 2018 at 07:55 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 25, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

We did it over two days, with a small camp after Majerouan in a meadow. Really beautiful, you oscillate between disconnecting from the world and arriving at magnificent little hamlets and amazing viewpoints!!!
The forest after Marejouan is not maintained, but it's passable. Be careful not to get lost when leaving the woods (l'auzenet); you have to head south.
Otherwise, fountains are rare, but the locals were very friendly and readily gave us water. There is a fountain in the Majerouan car park halfway along the route.
And the last climb after Lavastret is really tough...

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128 moulin de la dame

11 Dec 2017 at 15:19 3600

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 11, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

The hike took place in light fog, which detracted from the view of the pylon site at an altitude of 924 metres.
This was a shame, as there were no major difficulties apart from needing to be very careful on the way back after the hamlet of Vabre.

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PLANTIER Robert

07 Nov 2016 at 15:48 3600

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 04, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

The reliability of the route is good except before Eyrebonne (with a counter-clockwise route): in the hairpin bend about 500 m before this hamlet: is the route on the road or on the path 60 m further on? If it is the former, this would explain why we covered an extra 2 km and 80 m of elevation gain. The route would need to be revised.

Before reaching Mauves, the path has just been blocked by the fence around the horse paddock: cross this fence and continue straight ahead into the paddock before turning right onto a path to reach Mauves.

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delaye

18 Apr 2016 at 13:29 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 18, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Beautiful hike, but the final climb before the finish is difficult given the length of the route. Otherwise, the scenery is splendid.

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Jalu

01 Apr 2016 at 16:51 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 24, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A lovely walk starting from Creysseilles, with beautiful weather to boot.

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lezado

21 Feb 2016 at 22:15 3600

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 21, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

I did this hike yesterday (20/02/2016) starting from the village of Pourchères and had no trouble parking my car !
The route is fairly well marked (white on yellow). In good weather, the view from Serre Pied de Boeuf is interesting and you quickly understand why a watchtower (fire surveillance) was installed there.
At this time of year, the route crosses several streams with plenty of water. The hamlets dotted along the route reflect traditional Ardèche life and are well worth a visit.
A beautiful hike with no particular difficulties, except for the length of the route, which can easily be shortened by several possible variations.

See more details on my website Itirando Sud Est:

Lezado

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mido9

10 Jun 2015 at 15:31 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : May 26, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We set off from Mauves (very difficult to park a minibus!!!!!).
We encountered a few difficulties at the start: just after a sign pointing in the wrong direction, we arrived at an enclosed field (which we had to cross to the right, staying at the top), where we found ourselves in front of a collapsed wall, so the markings were not visible, and a wire fence to climb over. Then there was a "hunters' path" through the woods to Magerouan.
After that, the markings are very good.
We "cut" the walk short (due to threatening weather) from the summit to return to Ajoux via Pré Chevalier.
There is a lot of vegetation, but a path has been cleared.
A beautiful walk with lovely views and very varied vegetation.

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montanini

14 Mar 2014 at 19:37 3600

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 02, 2014
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Hello,

We used the hike on the website, but only part of it, starting from our lodge near the Creyseilles cross and climbing up to Pourchère via Serre de Pied de Boeuf.
For the part we used, the description was very good, and the signposting around Privas is also very good.
Thank you and happy hiking!
Christine and Daniel Montanini

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icare07
1 Walk

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