Introducing Allègre
Allègre, county town of department Haute-Loire (height 1050 m, 1000 inhabitants) was built on the southern slope of the extinct volcano Mount Baury. Its houses are built on semicircular terraces at the foot of what remains of an old castle. Allègre is situated 15 miles away from Le Puy-en-Velay and about 10 miles from La Chaise-Dieu.

Thanks to Mount Bar and the remains of the castle, Allègre offers both natural and historical wealth. Mount Bar (1175 m) is one of the strombolian volcanoes of the "Devès" range. Its crater is the only one in France where you can find a peat-bog. This land of tales and legends is now a Natural Park where you can discover a rich and varied flora in wooded lands.

Allègre is an old feudal city built at the foot of "La Potence" (the gallows), a big castle whose only remains are two battlemented towers linked by a machicolated wall. Within the precincts of the fortifications you can still see eight noble family mansions and remains such as "La Porte de Monsieur, la Chapelle Notre-Dame de l'Oratoire, la Porte de Ravel etc.". After hearing of the legend of the "biting devil", tourists can enter the historical part of Allègre through the impressive "Porte de Monsieur". This ancient gate was one of the main entrances to the old castle. It is flanked by two towers still in a good state of preservation. It looks on the "Place du Marchédial".

In the historical setting of Allègre, tourists can find what they seek : pure air, quiet nights, mysterious forest, cool lakes… Allègre provides holiday makers a wide range of leisure activities. Hikes can climb Mount Bar, admire the over-7-acre-peat-bog, walk along the "Chemin des Dames" that leads to the slopes of Mount Baury crater. From there they can enjoy a magnificent view over the volcanoes of the "Massif Central". When the weather is clear and still, one can see the Alpes mountains, located 125 miles from Allègre ! Lots of forests trails allow mushroom and berry picking and anglers can go fishing for trout in the peaceful rivers and lakes of the area.

 

HPV week in Haute-Loire
Last year, we organised the first HPV week in Haute-Loire. We had very pleasant rides in a wonderfull friendly mood (see pictures).

Allègre is the place we chose to organise the second HPV week. The aim of the HPV week is to spend holidays in a very nice place, touring altogether or in small groups, visiting the castles, cathedral, churches, tiny villages of the area. We will offer you a wide range of cycle tours, from 30 to 177 km (200 m to 1900 m to climb), some of them having gastronomic halts. You will be free to go for any of these tours, as the whether and the legs permit, and also just as you like.

You can also choose you accommodation in Allègre. There are a camp site (2**, 35 places), hostels, Bed & Breakfast (chambres d'hôte), guest houses (gîte rural), gîte d'étape... Nothing is really expensive in Allègre.

If you wish to come, we can help you to find a place to sleep : contact-us.

Accommodation
Camp site "La Pinède" (1 km from the centre of Allègre). +33 (0)4 71 00 76 79 or +33 (0)4 71 00 72 52.
Hôtel des Voyageurs (2** Logis de France, 25 rooms, 3 bungalows, swimming pool, recommended). LEYDIER. 7 rue du Fangeas. +33 (0)4 71 00 70 12.
Hôtel de la Gare (3 rooms). 6 avenue de la Gare. +33 (0)4 71 00 77 47 or +33 (0)4 71 00 70 70.
B&B. Chambres et table d'hôtes de l'ancienne baronnie (recommended, good comfort). Stéphanie et Fabien CHARREYRE, 5 place du Marchédial, F-43270 ALLEGRE. +33 (0)4 71 00 22 44. (35 to 45 Euros per night for 2 or 3 people and 1 or 2 rooms). Already booked from July 27th to 29th.
Gîte de groupes (16 beds). +33 (0)4 71 00 43 34.
Gîte d'étape. 15 rue Porte de Monsieur. +33 (0)4 71 00 76 88. 4 people rooms, intended for a few nights (less than 10 Euros per night).
Appartment 24 rue du Mont Bar. 3rd floor, 2 rooms (4/5 people) + a place for your bicycles. 115 Euros per week. Contact : Mme Simone FARIGOULE. +33 (0)4 71 00 71 54 ou +33 (0)4 71 02 85 84 (not sure that English be spoken).

For further details, you can contact the Tourism Office, rue du Mont Bar, F-43270 Allègre. +33 (0)4 71 00 72 52. (open Monday to Saturday, 9-12 AM and 3-7 PM).

Going to Allègre
By bicycle, tricycle...
Wherever you are, you can ride your recumbent to Allègre (see below : ride from Paris) ! Last year, there was a start from Belgium organised by Michel Lemaitre (150 to 200 km stages) and another from Avignon organised by Marc Leonetti.

By train
Due to the increase of road traffic, small towns like Allègre have closed their train stations. The closest station is Darsac, only 8 km from Allègre but only slow trains stop there. The closest big stations are Le-Puy-en-Velay (alt 630m, 25 km) and Saint-Georges-d'Aurac (alt 600m, 30km through St-Pal-de-Senouire). The two main lines are (Paris) - Lyon - St-Etienne - Le Puy and (Paris) - Clermont-Ferrand - St-Georges-d'Aurac - Le Puy. The train from St-Etienne to Le Puy goes along the river Loire and is very scennic.
If you have a lot of luggage, you may need a taxi. Here are the phone numbers of the two taxi companies of Allègre :
Taxi CATHAUD - 04 71 00 70 21.
Ambulances du Mont Bar - Taxi - 04 71 00 75 39.

By car
From the north, the easiest and the fastest is to reach Paris then
Paris -A71- Bourges - Montluçon - Clermont-Ferrand -A75- Brioude -N102- Fix-St-Geneys -D40- Allègre. It takes 4h30 and some 20 Euros of "Autoroute" charges. The shortest and also cheaper route is
Paris - Nevers - Moulin -Vichy -D906- Ambert - La Chaise-Dieu -Sembadel (gare) -D13- Allègre but it is 1h30 longer.

From the east, join Lyon then
Lyon -N88- St-Etienne - Le Puy -D906 -St-Paulien -D13- Allègre. The N88 is a fast highway. Lyon-Allègre takes around 2h30.

By plane
Small planes can land at the Loudes - Le Puy-en-Velay airport which is 15 km from Allègre. There are regular flights from Paris.

Rent a Recumbent for the event !
We would like to offer the possibility to rent recumbent (to be defined...)If you can not take your recumbent with you or if you don't have any recumbent but would like to try them in "real like" conditions. No problem ! Jeffrey Sparling is a Canadian-American living in Champagne who organises recumbent tours in France on Bike E. As he is participating to the HPV week in Haute-Loire, he offers to take with him several Bike E and rent them for the week. If you are interested, please contact Jeffrey Sparling BEFORE the event.

You can also rent upright bicycles (road, MTB) in Allègre.

Is it a mass event ?
Last year, 60 people joined the HPV week in Haute-Loire. We could be between 60 - 80, maybe more... So we hope have time to know very well one each other at the end of the event. In order to create a friendly atmosphere, you can come with friends.

For those not riding the bicycle, it is possible to do a lot of things in Allègre : lots of very enjoyable pedestrian tours, mushroom and berry picking, tennis, "pétanque", swimming (lakes in Malaguet, Céaux d'Allègre and water park in St-Paulien), water sport (canioning and rafting on the Allier river at 25-30 km) visiting the area (Le Puy-en-Velay is a 3 stars city in the Michelin touring guide, it was a start to St-Jacques-de-Compostelle), cooking good meals for the cyclists...

People who has registered for 2005 :
Nobody yet but people were pleased in 2004 and saying they come back.

I can not stay for the whole week but I would like to come
No problem. Feel free to come and leave when you want. If you can choose, we suggest you to come for the first week-end in order to ride the altogether tour planned on Sunday. Usually, this ride is not too difficult and on very quiet roads.

How to register ?
Please send us an email with your name, address, eventualy telephone number, recumbent make, date of arrival / departure in Allegre, the place where you will stay or the accommodation you are looking for. Register-now !

There are no organising fees. We may ask you a little something for an altogether meal we might organise after the first altogether tour and maybe to cover the printing expenses of the "Recumbent cycle tour guide around Allegre".

Recumbent ride from Paris to Allègre
Some people will ride from Paris to Allègre. Departure from Malesherbes. 90 - 120 km stages. You can have a look at the route (in French) : detailled and graphic version. If you want to join them, contact us.

Contact :
France-HPV
Jean-Charles Gosselin
24 rue Gabriel Péri
F-94000 CRETEIL

Updated on 18 septembre 2004

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