GR40 Tour of the Velay Volcanoes
Start: Vorey-sur-Arzon
The Tour of the Velay Volcanoes is a 185 km loop around Le Puy-en-Velay that lets you discover this secret territory of Auvergne and its multitude of volcanoes. On this GR40, every day reveals a surprising landscape. The very varied volcanism of the Velay, this small region in the heart of the Massif Central, has shaped a kaleidoscope of different micro-regions: the volcanic plateaux of the Devès and the Mézenc, the sucs (volcanic peaks) of the Meygal, the gardes of the Velay, the sub-lacustrine volcanoes (formed under lakes) that gave Le Puy-en-Velay its so characteristic relief... an invitation to discover volcanism.
- Distance
- 189 km
- Elevation gain
- +5100 m
- Elevation loss
- -5096 m
- Duration
- 216 h
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
Volcanoes by the dozen!
Do you have a wandering spirit? A thirst to discover something other than ordinary landscapes? Strong legs and plenty of stamina? The “Tour of the Velay Volcanoes”, in Haute-Loire, holds out its arms so that you can put… your feet in the footsteps of the first 18th-century naturalists! Mounts, sucs, gardes, dykes will not evaporate when you arrive, they have been part of the landscape for millions of years! But, shh! don't repeat it: this grand tour and its Puy-en-Velay diagonal is the bomb, with no risk of your emotions eroding!
The route in detail
The stages below are only suggestions.
In pictures
Other hikes in the area
Cycling
Cycling
Cycling