Sources de la Vienne (Mont Audouze)

Saint-Setiers / Millevaches / Peyrelevade

At the foot of the Mont Audouze, on the Millevaches plateau, the Vienne is born from several springs, spread between the communes of Saint-Setiers, Millevaches and Peyrelevade. The number varies according to the texts: three for the Haute-Corrèze tourist office, four or five small streams for Wikipedia, which also hesitates between the foot of the Mont Audouze and the puy Lacaux. On the ground, a 3.7 km interpretive trail links these springs. The most visible ones were developed by people to water livestock and bear granite boundary stones engraved ‘Source de la Vienne’. According to the Visorando entry, however, the true springs are the peat bogs, and a sign points out the so-called ‘official’ source of the IGN. The route combines science and poetry: it explains how springs are formed and offers an imagined legend about three sisters of the Vienne, which is a creation of the trail and not an ancient tradition. The river's name is said to mean ‘white, shining’ according to the tourist office. At 372 km long, the Vienne flows into the Loire at Candes-Saint-Martin.

Getting there: Trail starts from a car park on the D 21 near the D 36, commune of Saint-Setiers. The coordinates are those of this starting point, not of a specific spring: the waymarking fades towards the end and a 2024 review notes that nothing indicates the second and third springs.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound