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The village of Peyraud is located in the far north of the Ardèche department, on the banks of the Rhône and on the D86. Head to the village town hall and park in the car park opposite the building. The hike starts from this point.
(S/E) With your back to the D86, take the street opposite the car park. At the end, turn left onto Rue du Pont Romain. Cross the bridge over the Ruisseau de Crémieux. Immediately afterwards, turn right onto Rue des Cités. When the street turns 90° to the left, continue straight ahead on a dirt track. Follow the stream and climb steadily.
(1) At a fork, take the left-hand path uphill. Pass at the foot of a high-voltage pylon and continue uphill. Join a wider path.
(2) Continue to the right, pass under the high-voltage line and continue straight ahead. Reach a paved road and follow it to the right. Enter the village of Bogy.
(3) Turn into the second street on the right (Montée du Violoniste). At the next intersection, continue straight ahead onto Rue des Deux Églises, then straight ahead onto Rue du Lavoir. At the end, turn right onto Chemin des Jardins. At a fork, follow Chemin du Moulin to the right and continue straight ahead.
(4) At the three-way junction, leave Chemin du Moulin and continue left onto Chemin de Bogy. Pass a sewage treatment plant on your left and continue downhill.
(5) Ford a stream and climb up the other side. When you reach a tarmac road, follow it to the right for a few metres and take a dirt track that goes around the hamlet of La Fromentale on the right. At a crossroads, turn left and pass between the houses in the hamlet. At the next intersection, turn right onto Chemin des Grandes Bruyères. Descend into the undergrowth and ignore a path on the right.
(6) Cross a small bridge and continue on the other side. At a fork (elevation 346), turn left and pass under the high-voltage power line. At the crossroads (elevation 354), continue straight ahead.
(7) Pass a hiking signpost and continue straight ahead, ignoring the path that branches off to the left. Continue straight ahead, ignoring all paths branching off to the right or left, until you reach a small bridge.
(8) Cross the small bridge to continue on the other side of the stream. You will soon come to a fork in the path. Take the right-hand path, which climbs slightly. Continue along the main path for about 1.5 km, ignoring the paths branching off to the right and left. After passing over the top of the third gully (Vernat stream), you will come to a crossroads.
(9) Take the path on the right to continue towards the houses.
You will come to a tarmac road in the hamlet of Verlieux. Follow it to the left. After about 20 metres (cross), turn right and you will reach a chapel.
(10) At a hiking signpost, take the path on the left that runs alongside the chapel. Continue along this slightly uphill path.
(11) Pass under the high-voltage power line. Once you reach the vineyards, be careful not to stray: stay on the main path to avoid the various paths that lead into the plantations and go nowhere. Follow the yellow and white markings at this point to stay on the right path.
At an intersection, ignore the path branching off to the left and take the path on the right to walk alongside a vineyard. At this point, the path seems to disappear, but keep going downhill alongside the vineyard. You will come to a barrier that prevents motorised vehicles from passing but allows pedestrians to walk through.
(12) At a white cross standing on a cliff (view), continue down the path. Be careful, the descent is steep. At an intersection, turn right towards Peyraud (indicated on a small sign). Continue along a wire fence to reach the bottom of the descent and a barrier similar to the one seen at the start of the trail. Pass the cemetery, then the village church to reach the bridge used at the start. Return to the starting point via the route taken at the beginning of the hike to the town hall car park (S/E).
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Easy 
