Cycling in the Massif Central

try google/ amazon search around "walter judson moore"

you catch me in the massif central and the first thing i'm riding is this:

http://www.leviaducdemillau.com/english/index.html

Can't offer too much help other than to say that a couple of years ago I did a charity ride which finished at the foot of the Puy de Dome. It's normally closed to cyclists with the exception of Sunday(?) mornings, but we were allowed to ride up it. 6km at an average of 12% which corkscrews up the mountain was a bit of a battle after 3 days riding, but the views from the top were great.

Most of the roads around there were great for riding, so don't think you'll be able to go far wrong and you'll never be far from a climb or two!

It's beautiful and it's tough round there. If you want to stay in the heart of it, I'd look to stay somewhere like La Bourboule, Mont Dore or Chambon. Super Besse is a bit further south but as a ski resort might have more camping.

From Mont Dore you can ride le tour des Volcans route which basically takes you round all the major climbs in the area. There's also the Tour d'Auvergne. Main climbs I'd recommend are Puy Mary, Super Besse, Mont Dore, Croix Morand, Puy de Sancy.

You can probably make it as far as St Flour and Mende in a day.

The wine round there isn't amazing, but the cheese is: St Nectaire, Fourme D'Ambert, Bleu D'Auvergne, Cantal.

Other things worth doing:
visit Puy de Dome. Can't ride up it anymore as far as I'm away (except possibly Wednesday and Sunday before 9am?) Just walk up it, it is incredible.

Go to Clermont and visit Michelin factory, also see if you can track down Rapha Geminiani who still lives there. Man is a legend.

Visit the Charade race circuit, one of the most insane in the history of motorsport. Like Brooklands, most of what was isn't any more, but you get a sense of how insane it was.

Worth looking at routes that take you round some of the spectacular 13th century churches, like Orcival. and visiting the spa towns like La Bourboule.

The great thing is most of the routes are on near deserted D roads where there's only one road between two towns. Very few cars and spectacular scenery, also some great mountain lakes. Essentially you can pick and choose loops from one central base.

Weather: it can come in fast and heavy, so take wet weather gear. It's also surprisingly chilly at times.

Gear: roads tend to be chip seal and heavy, like the Pyrenees. Go for a reliable tyre rather than a light one as it can get a little flinty.

Enjoy it, it's a much under-rated area for riding.