Puy Pariou, Ancient volcano in Chaîne des Puys, France.

Puy Pariou is a volcano in the Chaîne des Puys formed by two nested strombolian cones and a tuff ring. Its summit reaches 1,209 metres, 250 metres above the surrounding crystalline plain. The younger central crater is almost a perfect circle, 200 metres across and 90 metres deep. A wide patch of bare reddish earth and loose rock scars the upper slope, while a narrow path zigzags up the green left flank.

The volcano began with the old Pariou, a strombolian cone whose trachytic explosions were followed by a trachybasalt flow that ran almost 2 km to the site of present-day Orcines. A more explosive episode then buried that cone under a trachyandesitic tuff ring, whose ashes reached as far as Clermont-Ferrand. The new Pariou cone grew slightly to the south, and its trachyandesite flow, radiocarbon-dated to about 8,580 years ago, split at Orcines toward Nohanent and Chamalières.

The mountain paths lead visitors through a landscape of deciduous trees and juniper plants growing on volcanic stones containing augite and olivine minerals.

Marked hiking trails start from the Goules parking area and circle the volcano on a route of about 15 kilometers with 296 meters of elevation gain through volcanic terrain. The paths are well-marked and can be adapted for different fitness levels and time available.

The volcano is historically the emblem of Volvic mineral water, although it lies outside that spring's catchment area. Its owners, grouped in the GIE du Pariou, took a case to court claiming rights over the volcano's image; they were dismissed by the Clermont-Ferrand tribunal on 23 January 2002.