Breeds of The Aubrac
A high granite plateau in the Massif Central where decorated cows walk up to summer pasture at a festival in late May.
Breeds of this place
Best time: Late May, for the transhumance festival.
The Aubrac is a high plateau in southern France, at more than 1,000 metres, of open grassland, granite boulders and stone walls. Its cattle, the Aubrac, are wheat-coloured, with dark-rimmed eyes and lyre-shaped horns. For centuries herds have been driven up to the plateau in late spring and down again in autumn, and the spring climb is now a festival.
The transhumance
On the weekend closest to 25 May, the feast of Saint Urbain, herds walk up to the summer pastures. The cows wear flowers, flags and ribbons on their horns, and large bells on leather collars. Crowds line the roads around the village of Aubrac to watch. In autumn, the herds come down again to the valleys.
Burons and cheese
In summer, herders once lived in stone huts called burons, making large wheels of cheese from the milk of the cows on the plateau. The Laguiole cheese, protected by a designation of origin, is still made from the milk of local herds, and the plateau dish of aligot mixes potato with fresh cheese. The Aubrac breed itself is now raised mainly for beef.
A trail idea for The Aubrac
- Aubrac village The hamlet at the centre of the transhumance festival.
- Laguiole The plateau's main town, known for cheese and knives.
- A buron Stone huts where herders once made cheese in summer.
- Open plateau Walk among boulders and grazing herds.
Written by the EveryCow desk with AI assistance. Background: "Aubrac" on Wikipedia. Fair dates, markets and visiting rules change; check locally before travelling, and keep a respectful distance from working animals. If something is wrong, tell us.
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