La Haute Dore
Start: Eglise de Doranges
From the Vernet mill to the Piers mill, by way of the old Aubapeyre quarry, go and find the many melancholy traces of the industrial past of the Haute-Dore.
- Distance
- 11.8 km
- Elevation gain
- +279 m
- Elevation loss
- -282 m
- Duration
- 3 h 30 min
Route on the map
Base map © OpenTopoMap (CC-BY-SA): route licensed under ODbL via Données : Parc Naturel Régional Livradois-Forez · rando.parc-livradois-forez.org — sous licence ODbL.
The feel of the route
Discover the captivating charm of a landscape taken back by nature, where the tree is king.
The route in detail
Start near the church: take the D 132 uphill, go past the cemetery and, 250 m further on, leave the tarmac on the right by a forest track.
(1) Level at first, the track then descends through the woods to the hamlet of Vernet, where you cross the D 260. Leave the tarmac 30 m further on and take, at a right angle, a track soon lined with hazel trees for 400 m.
(2) Turn left onto a track that goes down to the Moulin du Vernet and runs alongside a thick garden wall at the bottom.
(3) Cross the road and carry on along the tarmac lane. Cross a first stream, pass between 2 buildings, turn right and cross another stream on granite slabs. The path then climbs to the village of Chard, where you come out in front of a cross.
(4) Turn right onto the tarmac road (Viewpoint over Doranges). After 50 m, follow a grassy track straight ahead that goes down to the Moulin de Piers (Pierre), which you see from above.
(5) To the left of a parking area (car access via Besse de St-Sauveur) a wide forestry track climbs on the left up to the crossroads of the "Croix de Chard". Turn right at a right angle onto a forest track for 1,500 m, which leads to Aubapeyre (commune of St-Alyre d'Arlanc).
(6) In the centre of Aubapeyre, take a track on the right that goes down to the bottom of the Dore gorges as far as the ruins of the Moulin d'Aubapeyre. Cross the Dore on a footbridge and climb the path that reaches the D 999, above the village of Germalanges.
(7) Turn right and walk up the D 999 for 200 m and take a path on the left into a wood. At the first crossroads, carry straight on. At the fork, turn left. Turn right onto the road. At the second road leading to Coupanges, take the forest track opposite. Follow it for about 1,200 m, then, shortly after the meadow, take a path on the right that leads to Coust.
(8) At Coust, take a track on the left, to the right of a large building. Cross the D 999 level with the rest area and continue alongside the pétanque court. Turn right to reach Doranges (viewpoint over the Forez).
In pictures
Other hikes in the area
On foot
On foot
On foot