GR 400 (Cantal volcano) on foot

A GR 400 signpost on a cairn, looking across the valley to the Puy Griou

Photo: MartinD, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Distance
about 140 km (87 miles)
Country
France
Difficulty
Moderate to challenging
Type of trip
Hiking trail

The GR 400 goes round the Cantal volcano in Auvergne, which the département's tourist board calls the largest stratovolcano in Europe. The main loop is 140 km and takes 7 to 10 days, along ridges, glacial valleys and summer pastures between 750 m and 1,855 m. It's also split into five shorter loops, each starting from a village: the Cère from Super-Lioran, the Claux from Le Claux, the Cirque du Falgoux from Le Falgoux, the Jordanne from Mandailles and the Alagnon from Murat. You can do most of them in two or three days, and the Claux in one. You sleep in gîtes, refuges and hotels, which can be booked online through Cantal Destination. Trains stop at Murat and Le Lioran.

It's waymarked red and white, like every GR. The tourist board says any good walker used to mountain ground and carrying a rucksack can manage it, but there are steep climbs and descents, about 4,635 m of climbing on the main loop, and the ridges are exposed to wind and quick changes in the weather. It isn't a high-mountain route, though. The top is 1,855 m.

Highlights along the way

  1. Plomb du Cantal: At 1,855 m this is the top of the GR 400 and the highest point in the Cantal. The Alagnon loop from Murat climbs to it after passing the ski resort of Super-Lioran.
  2. Puy Mary: A pyramid-shaped peak of 1,783 m and a Grand Site de France. The Jordanne loop from Mandailles follows the ridges past the Brèche de Roland, the Puy Mary and the Puy Chavaroche.
  3. Puy Griou and Thiézac: The Cère loop from Super-Lioran gives you views of the Puy Griou, 1,690 m, follows cols and ridges down into Thiézac and comes back over the Plomb du Cantal.
  4. Cirque du Falgoux: This loop from Le Falgoux goes round a glacial cirque, from the Puy Violent to the Puy Mary, above the valley of the Mars, which rises at the foot of the Puy Mary.
  5. Vallée du Claux: The shortest loop, done in a day from Le Claux. It follows the ridge of the Puy de la Tourte, by the Suc de la Blatte and the étang de Lascourt.

Distance

About 140 km (87 miles) in all for the main loop round the volcano, with about 4,635 m (15,200 ft) of climbing. The five smaller loops are 38.5 km (Cère), 22 km (Claux), 39 km (Falgoux), 34 km (Jordanne) and 45 km (Alagnon) by the Cantal walking committee's count, or 24, 14, 24, 21 and 28 miles. FFRandonnée's own route pages give slightly different figures, and some loops share stretches of ridge.

Best time to go

The tourist board gives mid-May to mid-November as the time it can be walked, and the local shuttle buses only run in season. Check the forecast before you go up, because the ridges catch the wind and the weather can turn quickly. The FFRandonnée topo-guide Volcan du Cantal (ref. 400) has the full route. For current information, see cantal-destination.com (read for this guide on 3 November 2026).

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