Along the Eau Blanche from the Lac Bleu de Léognan

Discovery hike along the Eau Blanche stream. It rises in Lipomey, south-southeast of Léognan. It winds through the forest before crossing Léognan and heading towards Cadaujac and then Courrejan, where it flows into the Garonne.
The hike runs along the left bank of the vineyards of the Châteaux de France, Fieuzal and Le Sartre, Pessac-Léognan grands crus classés. On the way back, it runs along the right bank, crosses Mignoy, and passes near Château Chevaliner, another Pessac-Léognan grand cru classé.

Details

2128153
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.48 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 05 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 20 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 21 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 58 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 33 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ District: Léognan (33850)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 44.723642° / W 0.621466°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 1537SB
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the Lac Bleu car park.

(S/E) Head north and turn right onto Chemin du Prieur. Follow it to the end, cross the Eau Blanche and arrive at the crossroads of a wide path between the vineyards.

(1) Turn right towards Château de France.
Pass under the château and continue straight on to Chemin des Bougès.

(2) Cross it, continue on the white path after the barrier for about a hundred metres until you reach the passage that allows you to cross the ditch on the right to reach the Eau Blanche, going around the vineyard on its right.

(3) Take the path that leads into the woods again. (See info section for details of the detour on the map)
Be careful not to miss this path that leads into the woods.
When you come out of the woods, walk along the vineyard again. Make a short turn to the right, then another to the left, still along the edge of the vineyard.
Then walk along the right bank of the Eau Blanche stream. Further on, you will reach the small Sartre stream.

(4) When you reach the gate, do not enter the fenced-off area. Instead, take the path to the left of the gate that leads between the fence and the stream.

(5) Cross it and continue along the Eau Blanche. When you reach a field, go around it. Enter a wooded area again, being careful not to miss the path that leads into it. Join the Eau Blanche stream.

(6) Ford the stream. It is difficult to cross without getting wet. Take the small path on the right, which will allow you to cross the stream on a wooden beam secured with bamboo as a guardrail.
Follow the left bank of the stream, staying on the path closest to the Eau Blanche. The path winds like the stream through the forest to the Piste des Bougès crossroads.

(7) Turn right onto this track and continue to the Caupey path.

(8) Turn left onto this path. At the next crossroads, you will reach the village of Caupey and the red and whiteGR®655trail. Turn right to reach the village of Mignoy.

(9) Continue along the road, leaving Château Chevallier on your left, cross the stream and turn left onto the Lac Bleu fitness trail, which you will follow around to return to the starting point at the Lac Bleu car park.

(10) Take one of the paths in this area to reach the Lac Bleu car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 54 m - Car park at - Lac Bleu (Léognan)
  2. 1 : km 1.49 - alt. 41 m - Crossroads between the vineyards, near the - Château de France
  3. 2 : km 2.62 - alt. 46 m - Chemin des Bougès
  4. 3 : km 3.23 - alt. 43 m - Entrance to the forest
  5. 4 : km 3.82 - alt. 45 m - Gate and fence
  6. 5 : km 3.97 - alt. 44 m - Sartre Stream
  7. 6 : km 4.92 - alt. 49 m - Ford of the stream - Eau Blanche (rivière) - Garonne
  8. 7 : km 6.66 - alt. 38 m - Crossroads of the Piste des Bougès
  9. 8 : km 6.99 - alt. 45 m - Chemin de Caupey
  10. 9 : km 7.67 - alt. 51 m - Mignoy
  11. 10 : km 9.49 - alt. 55 m - Lac Bleu fitness trail area.
  12. S/E : km 10.48 - alt. 53 m - Lac Bleu car park

Notes

Between (3) and (4), at the detour mentioned on the route, there is a footbridge over the Eau Blanche river allowing you to cross and rejoin the return route, upstream from the point where you can shorten the route if you wish.

Between point (2) and point (3), the route was modified on 3 April 2024 to avoid crossing a wood at the entrance to which a "private property, no trespassing" sign has recently appeared.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 21 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.2 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.1 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
bois
bois

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

I appreciate having these guides
Being from the region, we have many varied, pleasant paths: lakes, forests, vineyards, but few markings. Thank you, Thierry

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fredybd
fredybd
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 01, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

I'm cancelling my review, I got the wrong hike
Sorry

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MARATON
MARATON

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

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

hello
thank you for the route. We did the circuit early last weekend, with a few more people around by late morning.
the two points to note have already been mentioned by other people.
-when you leave the Bouges path and enter the small forest, there is a sign saying "Private property, no trespassing". The sign is at a fork in the path. we continued to the right, but someone said they continued to the left. Both paths lead to a field with a marked area for horses, which you can easily walk around. When there is a private property sign, I think it applies to both the forest and the forest paths; there is no distinction to be made.
-between points 3 and 4, at the metal gate, you have to go slightly down to the left to find a path that goes around the fenced field (i.e. to the left). Do not follow the GPX track at this point. After that, you will be back on the right track.
Thank you and enjoy your walks!

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Garrigues
Garrigues

I am having difficulty understanding your comment. In point 7, you mention a private passage. I do not see where it could be. From point 7, would you have gone straight to point 5?
So you did the circuit in the opposite direction to the description?
Please clarify.
Kind regards

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Ludivine6433
Ludivine6433
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

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

Hello, I would just like to warn future hikers that when entering the forest after leaving the Bougès path, there is a "PRIVATE PROPERTY" sign, so it is now impossible to follow the marked hiking trail. A gentleman even told us so.

So we continued straight on to (7) and from there we went to (5) and then retraced our steps, but the path was not well used and even invisible in places. But it was still enjoyable. Just be careful.

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Patclaire
Patclaire
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 24, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful, pleasant walk through the woods along a stream and in open areas.
One tricky point, however: between markers "3" and "4", the description is very vague.
If you follow the directions carefully, you will come across a vineyard completely surrounded by wire fencing, making it impossible to continue the walk.
We hesitated a lot about which direction to take, then improvised by going outside the wire fence, where we were able to find the path again.

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Jean CESTER
Jean CESTER

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 04, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very interesting discovery trail, but only suitable for experienced hikers.
A pleasant route that takes you through the vineyards of some of the châteaux in Pessac Léognan.
You have to follow the map carefully to avoid getting lost.
Thank you to the people who created this trail.

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Cris33
Cris33

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 31, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant walk
Beautiful route through the vineyards of the grands crus.
It's not easy to see the Eau Blanche at times, with the vegetation and the lack of water given the season.
There are a few passages through large ferns, but the path is well marked with red ribbons on the trees in some places.
The section through the forest between 5 and 6 was very pleasant given the heat.
Thank you

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jcblanche
jcblanche

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 24, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant walk, especially along the Eau Blanche. On the grounds of Le Sartre Castle, when the path takes a first turn right then a first turn left, do not enter the vineyard as it is fenced off. Walk along the left side of the fence. Walk taken in glorious weather on Thursday, 20 May 2021.

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Garrigues
Garrigues

Thank you for these very pertinent comments, which enrich the initial description.

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bx86
bx86
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 01, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello
walk taken on 1 May. Quite cool weather (and even rain at the end of the walk).
The route alternates between hamlets, rustic houses, forest paths, beautiful châteaux, some of which are very famous (Domaine de Chevalier), and the Blue Lake in Léognan.
No difficulty, few people.
A few details:
Note the small grey-black boxes in the vineyards of Château de France and Château Fieuzal. They are designed to release pheromones to protect the vines from insects through sexual confusion. Boxes can also be seen at Château Le Sartre in part of Léognan.

The "private property" sign noted by some does not refer to the path, but to the woods on the left. This is quite common when walking in the region, so there is no need to worry.

Just after taking this path (500 metres into the woods), you can walk down a few metres to reach the Eau Blanche and see what are certainly the "remains" of a small mill or a site designed for a water wheel. There is a clearly visible abée (a type of water channel), a leat and a sluice gate, as well as a solid structure crossing the stream bed. A small bridge has been built (do not take it if you want to complete the entire circuit). At this time of year, wild garlic fills the air with its scent.

The vineyard mentioned in some comments is particularly well protected (certainly against the raids that wild boars make on this very isolated plot). So take the route on the right (be careful, recent rains have eroded the path in a tricky spot) or on the left.

At 5, when returning and crossing to the left bank, do not worry if the ford is too wet. The small path on the right leads 30 metres further on to the bridge, which can be crossed without any problems.
The rest is simple, just stick close to the stream. The return journey takes you across the Chevalier estate and its famous warming towers.

Thank you for this route.

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AnnickM
AnnickM

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 22, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pretty walk, intimate and wild atmosphere along the white water, lots of flowers.
At Les Bougès, at the "private property" sign, go left.
The path around the fenced-off vineyard on the right is clearly marked (there is a collapsed section but it is easy to get past, just one step)
Thank you

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randotitou
randotitou

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 22, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

hike completed yesterday, Sunday 21 March 2021, very enjoyable. At Les Bougès, at the entrance to the woodland path, there is a sign saying "private property, no trespassing" which made us hesitate for a moment... but we went ahead anyway.

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Garrigues
Garrigues

Sorry about the fenced-off vineyard. It wasn't fenced off when I recorded this route. However, you just need to follow the fence on the outside to rejoin the route at the other end without having to cross the stream. It's narrow in places, but you can get through.

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Trainiot
Trainiot

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 13, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The fenced vineyard requires crossing a stream, which can be a bit tricky for hikers who are not particularly agile, and then it is not easy to find the bridge. Once you have crossed the bridge, there are no more problems.
The good thing about this hike is that even at this time of year, there is no mud on these gravelly grounds.

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