In the footsteps of our Gallic ancestors: Bibracte and Mont Beuvray

At a height of 821 metres, Mont Beuvray offers a wide range of activities, including a visit to the archaeological site of the Bibracte oppidum, the Bibracte Museum dedicated to Gallic civilisation, and numerous walking opportunities such as the ramparts tour or long-distance hiking trails such as theGR®13orGR®131.
And if, by chance, mist descends on the area at the end of your hike, the atmosphere it creates is sure to give you goose bumps.

Details

931166
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 19.10 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 7h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 654 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 651 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 813 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 333 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the car park to the south of the archaeological site.

(S/E) Leave the car park heading south. At the crossroads, take the left-hand path to the orientation table. Then turn left to descend towards the forest.

(1) Cross a path and enter the forest. Continue downhill on the main path (marked), ignoring all paths on the right and left. Reach a road and follow it to the left for about 600 metres.

(2) At the crossroads, turn right towards Les Jours. Pass a few buildings and take the path on the left. Continue to a T-junction: turn right, then left. Continue along this path and join a road at a place called Le Carrage.

(3) First turn right then left and take a path heading south. Join Route de Saint-Léger and follow it to the right. Cross the bridge over La Braconne stream. Ignore a road branching off to the right.

(4) At Le Colombier, leave the road and take a path on the right, going around the farm on your left. Continue along the main path heading east-southeast until you reach the Ancien Moulin du Gué.

(5) At the crossroads, turn right. Cross the Étang de Cognières pond and continue along the path.

(6) At the next crossroads, turn right. Ignore the paths on the right and left, pass the hamlet of Corcelles and continue to a Y-junction.

(7) Turn right and follow the Route de Saint-Léger for about 2.3 km, leaving the ponds on your right.

(8) Shortly before Château de Concley, turn left. Pass a path on the left, then another on the right. Climb through the forest until you reach a wider path. Take this path on the left and continue to Croix de Meux.

(9) Follow the small road opposite downhill to a Y-junction.

(10) Turn right, go around a pond on the right and pass Pierrefitte Castle. Continue along the small road and cross the La Goutte Renard stream.

(11) Just after the bridge, leave the road and take a path on the right. At the next fork, go left. Follow this path and climb up to a place called Les Praies.

(12) Turn right (north-west then north). Pass a path on your right and go past the hamlet of Montaudué. Continue through the forest, passing two paths on your right. Cross the Malvaux stream and continue along this path until you reach an intersection just before a road.

(13) Turn right onto a path that climbs towards Mont Beuray, reaching an intersection of paths.

(14) First turn right then left and continue climbing. Leave a path on your left.
Please note: the route of some paths may vary depending on the needs of timber harvesting. The main path is recognisable as it climbs continuously and, from its appearance, it is clear that it is used more than the others, with the logging paths converging on it.

(15) At a fork, take the path on the right. At the next fork, take the path on the left. Continue climbing, leaving all paths on the right and left.

(16) Pass Le Fou du Loup and then make a few sharp turns. Arrive at Bibracte by crossing the rampart path and continue climbing.

(17) Turn right to rejoin the road. Cross it and follow the path opposite. Walk along the terrace on the right, pass the Chapelle Saint-Martin and continue towards the viewpoint and orientation table.

(18) Turn left to reach the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 806 m - Car park
  2. 1 : km 0.3 - alt. 780 m - Cross a path and enter the forest
  3. 2 : km 2.14 - alt. 525 m - Crossroads
  4. 3 : km 4 - alt. 398 m - Le Carrage
  5. 4 : km 5.25 - alt. 371 m - Le Colombier
  6. 5 : km 5.99 - alt. 339 m - Former Moulin du Gué
  7. 6 : km 7.62 - alt. 381 m - Crossroads
  8. 7 : km 8.39 - alt. 360 m - Y-junction
  9. 8 : km 10.74 - alt. 360 m - The path starts on the left.
  10. 9 : km 11.91 - alt. 450 m - Croix de Meux
  11. 10 : km 12.85 - alt. 390 m - Y-junction
  12. 11 : km 13.63 - alt. 378 m - The path starts on the right
  13. 12 : km 14.53 - alt. 445 m - Les Prairies
  14. 13 : km 15.72 - alt. 382 m - Intersection before a road near the - Roche (cours d'eau) - Affluent de l'Alagnon
  15. 14 : km 16.03 - alt. 440 m - Intersection
  16. 15 : km 16.56 - alt. 539 m - Fourche
  17. 16 : km 17.23 - alt. 658 m - Le Fou du Loup
  18. 17 : km 18.36 - alt. 788 m - Crossroads
  19. 18 : km 18.63 - alt. 803 m - Belvédère de la terrasse
  20. S/E : km 19.1 - alt. 806 m - Car park

Notes

An easy hike, only the last 3 kilometres may be a little tough on the legs.

If possible, take a tour of Pierrefitte Castle.

Worth a visit

High-quality archaeological sites on the heights of Mont Beuvray have uncovered the Oppidum of Bibracte.

Numerous trails allow you to explore the entire site.

Don't miss a visit to the Bibracte Museum.

Outside of peak season, you can drive up to a car park on the heights of Mont Beuvray. During busy periods, a shuttle service is available.

 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

4.4 / 5
Based on 16 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.4 / 5
Route interest
4.5 / 5
mabiche
mabiche

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

very beautiful hike, but the route is unpredictable at times

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Emmanuel 71
Emmanuel 71

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful hike, but some paths no longer exist due to lack of maintenance/frequent use.
By following the route, you can find your way around.
The comments could be better because you pass through a hamlet (Pierrefite) where there is an abandoned castle and you don't know about it. I saw it afterwards when checking the hamlet on maps.
Still a beautiful hike, though. The best place to start is from the museum car park (26 km).
👍

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Anne NLG
Anne NLG

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 14, 2024
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Route covered from 4 to 9. Very good.

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buissart therese
buissart therese
• Edited:

Did this route in the rain!! I wouldn't do the same hike again

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Kroesus
Kroesus
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 20, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

I did this route on a beautiful Saturday in May and hardly saw anyone: just two hikers, four cyclists and two cars during the entire trip! Hard to understand, but whatever, I love it!
I started a little lower down at the Museum of Civilisations, so there are a few extra kilometres and a few metres of elevation gain. In total:
- 25.02 km
- 860 m elevation gain - including 300+ m of continuous climbing between points 13 and 17 - Those looking for a bit of a challenge will love this last part! I reached a heart rate of 155 bpm.
- 5 hours 6 minutes in total with a short break.

A very "trailable" route! In fact, I would like to come back with just water to do it as a trail run.

Magnificent scenery!

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crevette1
crevette1

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 17, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

We did the hike in beautiful weather, which allowed us to stop longer at certain places to better understand the history of this site. Don't forget to take a detour to the museum, which is well worth a visit.

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Gerard DAUTEL
Gerard DAUTEL

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We followed this circular starting from the town of Poil, at a place called Corcelles, waypoint 7. This allowed us to tackle the slightly difficult section (between waypoints 13 and 17) well warmed up, but not yet tired. it's a beautiful circular, with quite varied sites, ponds, streams, castles, mills, forests, archaeological sites, breathtaking views over part of the Eduins region...
It's true that the route takes in a few tarmac sections, but they are so little used that grass sometimes grows in the middle of them...

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Netra
Netra ★

Hello ropiga, and thank you for your comments.

Good point! The framing of the line was a bit tight around point (11)... I reframed the line, and the problem is now solved.

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ropiga
ropiga

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 07, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Lovely walk, just one small downside at point 11 where the route disappears from the map

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orba41
orba41

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Difficulties finding the departure point.
We parked in the Bibracte car park, but you actually have to take a road just inside the museum entrance, near the Gaulois restaurant, which is closed in July and August and only accessible by free shuttle bus, which only runs during museum opening hours.
Unable to find the starting point and the orientation table, we continued by car to the south of the route and parked at Poil.
A little too much tarmac road for my liking, but nevertheless a very beautiful hike, especially at the top of Mont Beuvray and the Bibracte site, which is worth spending some time exploring.
The advantage of starting from the southern end of the route was that we had the ascent and descent in the middle of the route.

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slailheugue
slailheugue

Because you run the courses, it is easier to hear the voice prompts

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henri57
henri57 ★

Hello,

I followed the route using Ridebot's voice GPS after downloading the GPX route from Visorando, but we got lost several times because the GPS sent us on a route that didn't exist.

Why not use the free Visorando GPS app? It's perfectly suited to hiking.

With the description + the route map + the app, it's impossible to go wrong.

See you soon!

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slailheugue
slailheugue
• Edited:

I followed the route using Ridebot's voice GPS after downloading the GPX route from Visorando, but we got lost several times because the GPS sent us on a route that didn't exist.

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henri57
henri57 ★

Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to give your opinion.

You rated:

Reliability of map route: Average

"Map accuracy" refers to the accuracy of the route shown on the map in relation to the actual terrain.

The route seems to have caused problems.
Did you follow the route with a GPS or a GPS app?
Is there a discrepancy between your route and the marked route?

Kind regards

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slailheugue
slailheugue

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 18, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing

Not much to see, far too much driving

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