Prades / Saint-Privat-d'Allier

The Allier Gorges narrow and the Via Allier cycle route forces you to climb. This stage involves quite a shift in altitude, as you ride through demanding terrain, but the reward is magnificent views over the Allier, the Devès Mountains and the summits of the more distant Margeride. Great piles of rocks resembling castles oversee your progress. Make the most of a well-deserved stop at Saint-Privat-d'Allier, a village looking down on the Allier Gorges that epitomizes the stage. You may well meet different travellers in this village, in the form of pilgrims following the way to Santiago de Compostela. Note that this stage is only suitable for seasoned cyclists or those using e-bikes.

The Via Allier cycle route from Prades to Saint-Privat-d'Allier

At the start of this Via Allier stage, there’s a long climb along the D48 road. Once you’ve reached Vergues, you join the D301 road, still looking down on the river up to Saint-Privat-d'Allier, providing a mix of climbs and descents of varying length. The accumulated shift in altitude is significant.

Don't miss

• Saint-Privat-d'Allier: a perched village overlooking the Allier Gorges. It lies on the first stage of one of the great French pilgrimage trails to Santiago de Compostela (in northern Spain), the Via Podiensis. Look out for: the Romanesque church; the vestiges of the Château de Rochegude.
• Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage route (or Chemin de Compostelle): the Via Podiensis is an historic pilgrimage route through France, linking the Auvergne’s religious city of Le Puy-en-Velay to Saint-Jean-Pied-de Port near the Pyrenean border with Spain and one of the best known and still most followed pilgrimage routes across France. 
   

Railway station

Monistrol-d'Allier : Ligne TER Clermont-Ferrand <> Langogne