The Tour des Monts d'Aubrac

The Aubrac, the Massif Central's forgotten steppe

Comparing the Aubrac to the Scottish Highlands or the steppes of Central Asia is no idle tourist cliché. This volcanic and granite plateau, sitting mostly between 1000 and 1200 metres in altitude — with a few isolated summits reaching around 1469 metres, such as the Signal de Mailhebiau — straddling the borders of Lozère, Cantal, and Aveyron, owes its wide-open horizon to a singular geological history: basalt flows planed down by erosion, then shaped over centuries by pastoral farming. Nothing like the jagged ridges of the Alps or the dense forests of the Vosges. Here, most of the relief has been smoothed away, leaving an ocean of grass where only dry-stone walls and burons — the old shepherds' huts once used to make fourme cheese — break the monotony of the view.

That apparent monotony is deceptive. The Tour des Monts d'Aubrac, a 152.5-kilometre loop marked out over seven days of walking (eight counting the arrival day), reveals a land shaped by transhumance: every spring, herds of Aubrac cattle, recognisable by their tawny coats and dark-rimmed eyes, still climb to the summer pastures along the drove roads that hikers now follow. The clanging of cowbells, the harshness of the wind, and the scarcity of trees combine into a landscape that is as unsettling as it is soothing.

"On the Aubrac, it isn't the silence that strikes you — it's the clanging of cowbells keeping time with a silence too vast for itself."

The loop of drove roads and burons

The route sets off from Aumont-Aubrac, a small town in Lozère served by the Cévenol railway line, making it accessible without a car. The first stage crosses stands of Scots pine before opening onto the vastness of the plateau, all the way to Nasbinals, whose Romanesque church watches over the village square.

The second day follows the old drove roads lined with stone walls, passes through the hamlet of Aubrac — which gave its name to the entire plateau, gathered around a former domerie founded in the Middle Ages to shelter pilgrims on the way to Santiago de Compostela — then descends into the valley bottom at Saint-Chély-d'Aubrac. The third day climbs steadily towards Laguiole, world-famous for its handcrafted knives and its pressed cheese, through beech woods and remote pastures: it's the toughest day of the route, the one where the seemingly flat plateau reveals its real relief.

Beyond Laguiole, the tour swings onto its quieter side. The fourth stage gently crosses into Cantal to reach Saint-Urcize, a large stone town set amid pastureland, where the horizon seems to pull back even further. The next day, the path drops down towards La Chaldette, tucked into a valley more enclosed than the rest of the plateau, before climbing back up to Fournels, a quiet town overlooked by the ruins of its castle, the tour's second-to-last stage.

The loop closes with a seventh and final stage, the longest of the route, passing through the hamlet of Fau-de-Peyre — whose 18th-century church offers the only architectural pause on an almost village-free plateau — before returning to Aumont-Aubrac.

Day-by-day itinerary

Spread across seven days, the elevation gain remains fairly moderate overall for a plateau known for being flat, but the third stage to Laguiole is the route's real challenge, with nearly 855 metres of ascent — a reminder that, for all its tabletop appearance, the Aubrac hides some genuine climbs.

In total, the loop covers 152.5 km over seven days of walking, making for an eight-day stay including the arrival day. These walking times are only indicative: the headwind, common on the plateau, can noticeably slow progress even on flat ground.

The practical spirit of the high plains

The best season runs from May to October. Spring brings the flowering of daffodils followed by gentians, which blanket the plateau in gold; summer brings a greater risk of sudden storms, common on these exposed expanses; autumn brings low, slanting light and fewer crowds.

As for gear, waterproof hiking boots are essential for crossing wetlands and peat bogs, as is solid protection against the wind, which is ever-present and sometimes fierce even in the height of summer. Trekking poles are welcome on the long stretches of thick grass, slippery after rain — and on the route's longest days, such as the third or seventh stage.

On the question of wild camping, caution is essential: almost all of the Aubrac plateau is privately owned, farmed by herders who use the summer pastures for their livestock. It's therefore advisable to seek local permission before pitching a tent outside designated areas — from a town hall, the Aubrac tourist office, or directly from a farmer met along the way. Rules can vary from one municipality to another and change from season to season, so it's best to check up-to-date information on the spot rather than rely on fixed guidelines.

For supplies, the villages along the route — Nasbinals, Saint-Chély-d'Aubrac, Laguiole, Saint-Urcize, La Chaldette, Fournels — and their hikers' lodges offer enough local shops to get through the seven days without carrying heavy loads. And no one can cross the Aubrac without stopping at a buron or inn to try an aligot (a stretchy potato-and-cheese dish) pulled thick on the fork, served with a local sausage — the meal that fed generations of shepherds before becoming the plateau's culinary emblem, and the fitting reward for a week of walking upon arriving in Aumont-Aubrac.