You have a wanderlust mood and a thirst to discover surprising landscapes, the Velay Volcanoes Tour is made for you! It will allow you to place your feet on the basalts, mountains and juices of the Velay region. The variety of landscapes due to the ancient volcanic activity will impress you.
The recommended steps of the GR®40 Velay Volcanoes Tour:
- Stage 1: from Vorey to Céaux d’Allègre, 21 km
- Stage 2: from Céaux-d’Allègre to Siaugues-Saint-Romain, 21 km
- Stage 3: from Siaugues-Saint-Romain to Montbonnet, 21 km
- Stage 4: from Montbonnet to Goudet, 30 km
- Stage 5: from Goudet to Freycenet-la-Cuche, 19 km
- Stage 6: from Freycenet-la-Cuche to Saint-Front, 16.5 km
- Stage 7: from Saint-Front to Queyrières, 24 km
- Stage 8: from Queyrières to Blanlhac, 20 km
- Stage 9 from Blanlhac to Vorey, 10 km
TECHNICAL SHEET
GR®40 TOUR OF THE VELAY VOLCANOES
- Departure/Arrival: Vorey-sur-Arzon
- Distance: 182km
- Duration: 9 days
- Means of transport for departure/arrival: Puy-en-Velay or Vorey-sur-Arzon SNCF station
- Website for more information: www.rando-hauteloire.fr
Learn more la Land of Velay
The GR®40 Tour des Volcans du Velay is a 182km loop, which can be covered in 9 days. Its diagonal, from Vorey-sur-Arzon to Goudet, passes through Le Puy-en-Velay. It is 61km long and follows the route of the GR3 and GR3F.
The walker is always surprised by the landscapes that reveal themselves. But what can we say about the successive plans available across all of the Velay Volcanoes.
Mont-Mézenc raises its two-pointed silhouette above the volcanic plateaus which extend as far as Puy-en-Velay. Mont-Bar and Mont Baury, emblematic volcanoes of Velay, sit in Allègre and their perspectives open onto the vast granite plateau towards La Chaise-Dieu. The Durande rises above the Allier valley in the commune of Vernet while the Suc de Ceneuil dominates the Loire plain in Saint-Vincent...
The rocks of Puy-en-Velay and Aiguilhe, shaped by intense erosion, are the result of the meeting of water and fire and today constitute the backbone of the city, with the statue of Notre Dame de France and the Saint-Michel d'Aiguilhe chapel.
Volcanism shapes la beauty of the route
Le Velay offers a range of breathtaking volcanic landscapes and fans of Lac du Bouchet will not say the opposite. A vast expanse of water nearly 50m deep in a crater 800m in diameter, formed 300.000 years ago. The Beaume valley is home to its famous waterfall which offers the spectacle of a high basalt cliff.
And what can we say about Peyramont, an old cone of slag which rises towards Saint-Geneys-près-Saint-Paulien; the Sauvetat maar, the lava flows of Goudet, the Tourte rock, the Saint-Front lake, the summit of Testavoyre, the Orgues of Queyrières, Mezères…
PRACTICAL TIPS
Plotting on an IGN map, description of the route, references to accommodation, restaurants, more generally all practical services, presentation of emblematic elements and reading of the landscapes, the Topoguide, light and easy to slip into the bag, is the tool essential to ensure peace of mind!
