At the confluence of the Seine and the Marne

Starting point and access: Maisons-Alfort Les Juliottes station.
- Metro - Line 8.
Take Exit 2 onto Avenue du Général Leclerc (on the right after the turnstiles).

No signposting
You will cross a signposted route once or twice. In the description below, signposting is only mentioned where necessary.

(S) Upon exiting the metro station, go straight along Avenue du Général Leclerc. You will pass Rue Marc Sangnier and Avenue de la République on your right. Then take the next right onto Rue des Champs Corbilly (not signposted here). At the next junction, turn left into Rue de Grenoble. At the end, opposite the Church of Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Coeur, turn right onto Rue Cécile.

(1) At the^first junction, turn left onto Avenue Georges Clemenceau. Continue straight ahead along this wide avenue until you reach the quay on the Marne. After crossing Avenue Gambetta, you can walk along the avenue on the left through Square René Coty (of moderate interest). At the end of the avenue, cross Quai Joffre and take the Passerelle de Charentonneau to cross the Marne.

(2) As you leave the footbridge, turn left at a right angle (ignore the red and yellow markings that suggest taking a more diagonal route to the left, uphill). Follow a tarmac path shared with cyclists between the Marne, below on the left, and the A4 motorway noise barrier on the right.

Go round the buildings of a leisure centre on the left and, at the next fork, veer left to stay along the river. Walk past a football stadium, rejoin the other branch of the previous fork and continue along the banks of the Marne.

(3) At the Saint-Maurice lock, take the footbridge to cross the Marne again. At the other end, follow the quay to the right for about twenty metres and go down a flight of steps on the right leading to the towpath. Follow this dirt track (Promenade Paul Cézanne) with the Marne now on your right. Take the narrow passage under the Pont de Charenton and then under the metro bridge.

(4) Shortly afterwards, at a fork, there are two options that join up further on: (a) turn right and stay as close to the water as possible on the towpath, which resembles a wooden jetty (option marked on the map), or (b) turn left to go back up onto the quay, follow the Quai du Docteur Mass then the Quai d’Alfortville (the route you must take in the event of flooding). In both cases, pass under the railway bridge.

In option (a), after the bridge, the towpath becomes paved. Ignore a flight of steps leading up to the left onto the quay and go under the Passerelle d’Alfortville. At the end of the towpath, climb the steps opposite.

(5) Cross Rue de la Marne on the left-hand side, pass through a metal gate (yellow and blue marker) and walk along the left-hand side of the Hôtel Chinagora (a large building resembling a huge pagoda). Then pass under the Chinese restaurant to reach the confluence of the Seine and the Marne. Turn left and follow the Seine from here. At the Alfortville-Chinagora river stop, climb the steps on the left. Go past a large gate with Chinese motifs, turn left and go through a metal gate.
See an alternative route for this section in the practical information.

(6) At the traffic lights, turn right to cross the Pont d’Ivry over the Seine.
N.B. In February 2019, the right-hand pavement of the bridge was under construction; it was therefore necessary to cross Rue Charles de Gaulle (with caution) before taking the bridge on its left-hand pavement.
As you leave the bridge, continue straight ahead along Boulevard du Colonel Fabien. At^{the first set of} traffic lights, cross Rue Jean Mazet on the left-hand side. Then continue straight ahead until you reach a roundabout.

(7) Go round the roundabout on the left, cross Avenue Jean Jaurès and take the next left onto Rue Pierre Rigaud. At the corner by a nursery, opposite No. 13, turn right into Square de la Minoterie. At the end, turn left.

Cross Place de l’Insurrection d’Août 1944, either directly onto Boulevard de Brandebourg or via the square on the left. Continue straight on along Boulevard de Brandebourg and cross Rue Molière. At the end of the boulevard, first turn right then left to take the underpass leading to Ivry-sur-Seine station (E).

To get back home:
- RER - Line C, towards Massy, Étampes or Dourdan (^1st exit), or Paris then Versailles or Pontoise (^2nd exit).

Good walking shoes are sufficient for this route, which is mainly on tarmac, concrete or gravel paths.

Bars, restaurants and shops near the starting point (S), along Avenue Georges Clemenceau, between (1) and (2), and in Ivry, between (7) and (E).

Detailed map required (at least the one accompanying this description).

Alternative route:
At point (5), if you do not wish to walk at the foot of Chinagora (although the route is signposted), turn left onto Rue de la Marne and rejoin the route at the entrance to Pont de Charenton (6).

Hike completed by the author on 26 February 2019.

- Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Coeur Church (20th century), just before (1).
- A pleasant walk along the Marne, between (2) and (5). The traffic on the A4 motorway is not entirely inaudible, but the noise barrier is quite effective.
- Saint-Maurice dam and lock on the Marne (3).
- Confluence of the Seine and the Marne, between (5) and (6).
- Industrial heritage in Ivry-sur-Seine, between (6) and (E).