A long-distance hiking trail should be marked in 2025 in the Monts et Barrages region. A 175 kilometer loop which will sting the legs, but which promises great discoveries.
It is a loop which unites the different territories of the Monts et Barrages country and which restores its richness: the medieval towns of Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat and Eymoutiers, the Maule valley and its dams, the Vassivière lake, the Vienne gorges, or even Mount Gargan.
If it obtains approval next June, the Monts et Barrages long-distance hiking trail could be marked in yellow and red during the summer of 2025, and become a lovely playground for seasoned hikers, with its 175 kilometers of trails, for no less than 3,900 meters of elevation gain.
No private roads
“It’s not the tour of Mont Blanc or the GR 20 in Corsica, but we have things to highlight,” promises Aurélien Clavreul, project manager within the Monts et Barrages country, in charge of the project since 2019 “We are trying to have 100% public roads, which explains the time it took to build it, but this will allow us to make it last,” he emphasizes. It is now possible to pass on 98% of the roads, with land acquisitions still in progress, he adds.
A Himalayan footbridge of around a hundred meters
As part of this project, the Monts et Barrages country is considering the opportunity to create a Himalayan footbridge 90 to 120 meters long, which would allow crossing the Vienne to connect Vervialle (municipality of Augne) to La Forêt Chabrouty ( Eymoutiers).
“A GR country of Monts et Barrages was created in the 1980s, but it lost approval in the 2010s. For this new GR, we are going to work on overnight accommodation offers, which does not exist not necessarily today, and think about baggage or meal delivery services. The loop could be done in nine stages of around twenty kilometers,” explains Aurélien Clavreul.
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Small curls
The Monts et Barrages region is also carrying out the project of creating three smaller loops of 80 to 100 kilometers, the paths of which will be used for the grand tour: the first on the Saint-Léonard side, the second between Eymoutiers and Lake Vassivière, and the third around Mount Gargan.
If the approval of the French Hiking Federation occurs in June, it is this last trail which could be marked as early as this summer.
A network of accommodation about to be created in the Monts et Barrages region in Haute-Vienne for seasonal workers and young employees
Guillaume Bellavoine
[email protected]
