The mountains of Mialanes and Les Ducs

A walk in Margeride, Europe’s largest granite massif, taking in the villages of Mialanes and Les Ducs on the heights of Malzieu-Ville.

Details

4381631
Creation:
Last update:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.86 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 318 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 314 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,368 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,127 m

Photos

Description of the walk

From Malzieu-Ville, take the D4 towards Saint-Alban-sur-Limagnole, then the D14 towards Lajo.
Pass through Montruffet and then the Trincal hut.
Then turn left towards Mialanes.
Park next to the church.

(S/E) With your back to the church, cross the small stream on the right then turn left onto Rue de l’École at the corner of the Gauzy restaurant. Walk between the houses.

(1) Before the bend that crosses the stream again, continue straight on along a small path that climbs steadily through the coniferous woodland. Continue to the right on the main path, ignoring the tracks on either side.

(2) About 1 km from the start, turn left into the woods. The path is barely visible at first but becomes clearer as you go on. Head towards Mialanes Pond.

(3) Facing the small pond (picnic table in the meadow on the right), turn left onto a wide track. Ignore the successive paths on either side. You will then reach a crossroads of tracks.

(4) Continue along the track on the right, passing the water tower a few metres further on to your right.

(5) Head left, staying on the main track, until you reach Les Ducs.

(6) As you approach the village, leave the path on the left and continue straight ahead on the path that climbs between the pastures to the junction withthe GRP® Tour de la Margeride.

(7) Continue left along thisGRP® until you reach the road.

(8) Cross carefully to join the signpostedGR® Tour de Margeride Le Malzieu-Paladines. Reach the junction with theGR®4.

(9) Take the gently sloping track opposite, signpostedGR® 4 Lajo-la Roche. After 500m, turn left into the woods onto theGR®4, following the red and white markings carefully. Reach the edge of the woods.

(10) Leave theGR® straight ahead and take the path on the left. Begin an easy descent to reach the Ruisseau des Ducs.

(11) Cross it and start a gentle climb here. Cross the road carefully and take the path opposite, which leads to the village of Mialanes and the church car park (S/E)..

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,152 m - Mialanes church car park
  2. 1 : km 0.24 - alt. 1,174 m - Astronomical telescope in the wooded area
  3. 2 : km 1.1 - alt. 1,279 m - Path on the left
  4. 3 : km 1.86 - alt. 1,368 m - Mialanes Pond
  5. 4 : km 3.22 - alt. 1,254 m - Track on the right
  6. 5 : km 4.42 - alt. 1,258 m - Turn left
  7. 6 : km 5.27 - alt. 1,197 m - Village of Les Ducs
  8. 7 : km 6.26 - alt. 1,246 m - GRP Tour de Margeride junction
  9. 8 : km 7.01 - alt. 1,185 m - GRP sign
  10. 9 : km 7.61 - alt. 1,182 m - GR 4 junction
  11. 10 : km 9.06 - alt. 1,184 m - Path junction
  12. 11 : km 10.09 - alt. 1,128 m - Ruisseau des Ducs
  13. S/E : km 10.86 - alt. 1,152 m - Mialanes church car park

Notes

Between (9) and (10) Walk through the woods, taking care to avoid the herds of cows that may be present.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 5 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
Pierre 13
Pierre 13

In response to Caro 12, I agree with her: what’s described as a ‘water tower’ looks more like a small hut

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Pierre 13
Pierre 13

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 04, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The signposting is old.
The fork to the left (marked as difficult to spot on the map) is really not easy to find, especially as it is indicated that the path crosses a forest of thorny bushes, which is only the case after walking 800 metres.
At this point, the markings are partly hidden by branches

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Caro12
Caro12

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 17, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

At point 4: this isn’t a proper crossroads, but a junction on the right. If you don’t have the app but only the map, make sure you’re on the right track by looking out for the water tower on the right, 100 or 200 metres after taking the junction.

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coquelicots
coquelicots

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 17, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely circular walk in the Margeride. The paths are varied and offer some lovely views. Mialanes Pond is small, but it’s nice to stop there; the flora and fauna are remarkable… and it’s so peaceful!

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Tourestafer
Tourestafer

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 09, 2022
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We walked this circular route on a gloomy day, but this did nothing to detract from the beauty of the scenery. Most of the route runs through woodland, along paths lined with flowers. The detour to Les Ducs is not essential. What we particularly enjoyed was the final section of the route, as the path descends towards Mialanes: the valley unfolds before our eyes, forming a remarkably harmonious scene.

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REDONDIE ARLETTE
REDONDIE ARLETTE

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 05, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A wonderful walk in glorious sunshine; the route through the woods was brilliant; we met a group of 10 people who had come from Marvejols and were walking from Fraissinet
A superb route, thank you

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