CyclingModerateBoucle

38 - The chapel of Notre Dame de Lorette

Start: Place de la terrasse à Saint-Pal-de-Chalencon

Here is a “rollercoaster circuit” made of a succession of climbs and descents. Between forests and pastures, over 11 km flat stretches are rare, and the total ascent is close to 260 m. You will need good legs to tackle, at the hamlet of La Rochette, the long climb up to the highest point at Méalet, at nearly 1,000 m above sea level. A fine reward awaits you here: a vast 360° panorama over the Monts du Forez, the Mézenc and, in clear weather, even Mont Blanc. From there, all that is left is to let yourself roll down to Saint Pal!

Distance: 11.3 km
Elevation gain: +260 m
Elevation loss: -260 m
Duration: 1 h 30 min

Route on the map

Base map © OpenTopoMap (CC-BY-SA): route licensed under ETALAB-2.0 via Données : Comité Départemental Randonnée Pédestre Haute-Loire · FFRandonnée · sportsnature.hauteloire.fr — sous licence ETALAB 2.0.

The feel of the route

Saint Pal de Chalencon, a Petite Cité de Caractère (small town of character) that surprises! This commune lies on the borders of the Loire and Puy-de-Dôme départements. Occupied since prehistoric times, Saint-Pal-de-Chalencon turns out to be a real find. Coming from the west, you can see the château and the church from afar, standing apart from the medieval village. 3 fortified gates open onto the village. The U-shaped feudal château, built between the 12th and 15th centuries, houses Gothic fireplaces, a French-style ceiling, mullioned windows, gargoyles, coats of arms, etc. and above all a fine grand staircase in a hexagonal tower. You have to take the famous steep “Montée des cloches” to reach the church of Saint Paul, which you really should visit. There you will find a few fine pieces: a polychrome wooden pietà from the 15th century, a Descent from the Cross painted by a pupil of Delacroix and a very beautiful 18th-century Black Madonna.