Chaos de Montpellier-le-Vieux

Dolomite weathers unevenly, and on this part of the Causse Noir it has left a spread of about a hundred and twenty hectares of pillars, arches, corridors and blocks that look convincingly like a ruined town, which is why it is called ruiniform. Local shepherds long avoided the place and treated it as cursed or haunted, and it was only surveyed in 1883 by Edouard Martel, who established that it was natural rock rather than the remains of a city. Formations carry names such as the Sphinx, the Bear's Head and the Gate of Mycenae. Marked trails of different lengths run through it, and a small train covers part.

The landscape

• The ruiniform rock - pillars and arches resembling a ruined city.
• The named formations - the Sphinx, the Bear's Head and others.
• The marked trails - circuits from twenty minutes to three hours.
• The causse setting - dry limestone plateau above the Dourbie valley.

When to go

April to October; the site closes over winter. There is little shade and summer is hot. Spring and autumn are best for walking the longer circuits.

Practical notes

Paths are rocky and uneven with steps and narrow passages. The longer circuits take real effort in heat. The resemblance to a city is convincing from some angles and not from others.

Nearby

Millau lies southwest; Aven Armand is northeast.

Key facts