Above Lathuile

An interesting and relatively easy circular walk, with unusual passages and beautiful panoramic views over Lake Annecy.

Details

754874
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.62 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 50 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 581 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 575 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,049 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 499 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Departure from Lathuile church.

(S/E) Head west and climb to the right of the church, towards Saury. Take the first road on the left (Chemin de la Mine) and keep to the right. After passing under a high-voltage power line, the road climbs in a hairpin bend to the right.

(1) Continue straight ahead. The road climbs gently and steadily with hairpin bends, paved with stone. You can clearly see the ruts made in the stone by the wheels of the carts that used to serve the mine. You will reach a crossroads marked "Puits de la Mine", the former mine shaft (the entrance is not far away, off the path).

(2) Turn right (north-west) and continue uphill. Continue north on fairly flat ground, passing through small hamlets. Panoramic views of the valley and lake. Follow the signs to Entrevernes and Membert.

(3) After Les Bochettes, turn right. Continue on flat ground then descend towards Membert.

(4) At Membert, join a tarmac road, which continues on flat ground or gently downhill.

(5) Shortly after passing under the high-voltage power line, as the road turns right, take a path at a right angle to the left and head across the meadows towards the hamlet of Frepperet.

(6) At the hamlet of La Planche in Entrevernes, with its well-preserved and technically interesting watermill (sawmill), turn right onto the tarmac road, signposted "Membert".
At a house, take the path that leads across the meadows at a right angle to the left, signposted "Oratoire".

(7) At the oratory, there is a magnificent view of Lake Annecy. Descend towards Lathuile by following the path to the right (narrow and a little steep, with hairpin bends). When you reach a track (spring), turn left (east) onto a path. Continue along a small road to the church (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 499 m - Church in Lathuile
  2. 1 : km 0.61 - alt. 567 m - Continue straight ahead on flat ground
  3. 2 : km 3.24 - alt. 933 m - Mine shaft
  4. 3 : km 4.16 - alt. 1,048 m - Descending to the right - Views of the - Lac d'Annecy (Haute-Savoie)
  5. 4 : km 4.88 - alt. 919 m - Membert. Tarmac road
  6. 5 : km 5.37 - alt. 884 m - Path on the left at a right angle across the meadows
  7. 6 : km 5.9 - alt. 821 m - Water mill: take the tarmac road on the right
  8. 7 : km 6.36 - alt. 842 m - Viewpoint - Oratoire de Lathuile
  9. S/E : km 7.62 - alt. 499 m - Church in Lathuile

Notes

Fountain in Lathuile.

Reviews and comments

4 / 5
Based on 23 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.2 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.9 / 5
Route interest
3.9 / 5
Bernard ROUSSEL
Bernard ROUSSEL

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 09, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful route that could be even more interesting if a few explanatory signs were placed at locations where heritage features still exist. I followed the route as described, except for the shortcut after point 2, which I think should be reserved for a few adventurous wild boars. In addition, this shortcut avoids the area known as Puits de Mine, where a ruin still appears to be standing.
On this beautiful winter's day, it would have been better to start at the other end. Fortunately, I am good at descending, as the shiny rock and wet leaves made the descent after the oratory very challenging.
In summary, follow the main path, take into account the wetness of the ground when deciding whether to go clockwise or not, and don't get your hopes up if you want to learn about the heritage. Make the most of the beautiful landscapes and views.

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User 26428211

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 07, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Hello, beautiful hike, moderate difficulty. But lack of signage. We took the hike backwards. As a result, the elevation gain was greater and we turned back when we reached the oratory. Too bad.

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quicky2000
quicky2000
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 08, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant hike with plenty of shade, which is appreciated when it's hot.
We decided to do it in reverse given the heavy rain the day before.
The climb to the oratory was easy, but the descent would certainly have been slippery and difficult. In the end, the return via the mine path, which was quite long and monotonous, allowed for a peaceful descent, but the children had fun looking for cart tracks.
The paths are quite varied, but several times the trail disappeared, so we stayed on the paths (with OpenStreetMap we could see them clearly and the trail rejoined them).

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MAILLARD.HERVE
MAILLARD.HERVE

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 08, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The hike is not easy for hikers from flat countries. The descent to Lathuile, especially after a rainy day, is particularly difficult. The route would be more manageable in the opposite direction. We also did not understand the measurements, as we covered 8.77 km and 655 m of elevation gain.

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17bibi74
17bibi74

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Enjoy a pleasant hike away from the crowds, not too difficult, even stopping at a chalet where the owner allows picnics halfway through the route. Thank you for the trail

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mfab1971
mfab1971

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 28, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

This hike has a significant elevation gain, so avoid taking young children. The trail is difficult to find in some places and it is easy to miss it before being alerted by the app, but you still have to find it when it disappears into nowhere. It is better to stay on the main trail, which is much more obvious, but be careful ⚠️ as this will make the hike longer in terms of distance and time.
Otherwise, it is well shaded, so pleasant when the sun is out.
You can stop for a drink at the Pontgibaud farmhouse inn just above Lathuile on your way back

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waiwaite
waiwaite

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 27, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike with some slightly tricky sections, especially on the descent after the oratory. There was quite a bit of shade, which we really appreciated. Lovely views of the valley

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krisV
krisV

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 11, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant and easy hike. Be sure to stop at the little chalet at the top of the hill: benches are available for hikers, it's the place with the most beautiful view, and there's a little notebook where you can leave a note to mark your visit.

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Montagnes74
Montagnes74

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : May 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Route completed clockwise. A pleasant off-season walk, with an easy route to follow. Lots of mud and very slippery path on the descent from the oratory to Lathuile (it had rained the day before). No point mentioning the Entrevernes mine, as all you can see is a small building that is soon to fall into ruin. (To see more, you would need to make a detour to Saury).

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Vab007
Vab007

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : May 09, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

Hello.
Nice hike. The climb up to the mine is not particularly interesting, but it has the advantage of being in the forest, so it's shaded when it's hot.
There's a lovely view of the lake from the chapel. The descent that follows is magnificent but quite technical and slippery if it has rained in the previous days.
We couldn't find the path at point 2, despite turning back and wasting 15 minutes, so we finally decided to stay on the main trail.
In several other places, the trail also seems to veer off the path. Each time, we stayed on the path, which eventually rejoined the trail a little further on, but added distance.
In the end, it was a trail that raised a lot of questions for what was supposed to be a leisurely walk...
My Garmin watch shows 10.66km, 613m of elevation gain and 4 hours 20 minutes in total (including a picnic)....

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Julesb
Julesb

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 11, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Superb hike, but be careful with the route. I couldn't find the fork on the right before the mine shaft, so I ended up doing the circular.
I took the wrong path twice more because the route doesn't exactly follow the correct path (after the house at the highest point of the hike)
Magnificent viewpoint

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chacat
chacat

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 28, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant, mostly shaded walk with lovely views.

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adenozine
adenozine

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 06, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hike done in winter conditions, with a little snow above 900 metres and quite a bit of mud due to melting. Honestly, the sign for "Puit de la Mine" was not at all obvious (sign torn down?). It is better to continue on the main path to climb to the highest point of the hike than to follow the north-west fork at point 2 of the description: we found ourselves on a very steep slope in the middle of the woods, very muddy and slippery, making progress very difficult and borderline dangerous. Barbed wire fences in the middle of the climb made the route even more difficult. In my opinion, it is better to continue on the main path and make a small detour along the mine stream to catch up with the circular loop just below the high-voltage power lines. So be careful at this "fork" at point No. 2 on the map.

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BaBaTz
BaBaTz
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 27, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

For me, having just arrived in the area, following a pre-recorded route made the (short) hike feel safer. One downside: towards the end of the climb, the route cut across a large circular loop of the "track/paved road", but I couldn't see where I was supposed to turn off. No big deal, I just extended the route a little by following the wide path...

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Charles7374
Charles7374

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 26, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Very satisfied with this hike

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