In the land of the Marquis de la Rouërie

The route is fully signposted in yellow

On arriving in Saint-Ouen-la-Rouërie via the D15, take the small road running alongside the church on your right. The school car park is a few dozen metres further on, on the left.

(S/E) Turn right to rejoin the D15. Follow this road past the town hall and continue until it meets another road. Turn left and, after 50 metres, carefully cross the D296.

(1) Take the path on the right. Before it curves to the left, turn right after the row of trees. This new path first turns right and then left, leading onto the access road to Le Plessis.
Turn left to cross Le Plessis and ignore the roads on the left.

(2) At a left-hand bend, turn right onto a very beautiful sunken lane that descends towards the river. Cross the Tronçon (the natural border between Brittany and Normandy) and continue uphill to reach Launay-Mellier. (see note below). Carry on straight ahead until you reach the departmental road.

(3) Follow it to the left for 200 m, then turn left onto a path that runs alongside the woodland. This path veers to the right and joins the D97 departmental road. Cross it carefully and continue straight ahead for a few tens of metres.

(4) Next to the gate, a footpath leads into the Bois de Banières (private property – passage permitted). Continue to the left and follow the path which leads to the edge of the woodland. Carry on to the right until you reach a small road.
Turn right and follow the road as it bends to the left. Further on, cross La Pentière. You can see the Château de la Rouërie on your left. On the road, turn right.

(5) After passing the Ferme de la Lande, turn left onto the path heading south. Pass through the hamlet of La Hautière and continue straight on downhill. Follow the path as it bends to the left and you’ll reach the Moulin de la Vallée.

(6) Walk alongside the Tronçon stream, which flows below on your right. Ignore a road on the left and you’ll reach the D296 county road.

(7) Please note that this road is quite busy and vehicles travel at high speed. Follow it to the right for a good hundred metres and turn left at the^first road.

(8) As you round a left-hand bend, look out for the wayside shrine dedicated to Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours on the right, by the source of the Fontaine à Guillaume. Continue to the right and you’ll soon enter Saint-Ouen-la-Rouërie, where you’ll find the car park on your right (S/E).

Route inspired by route No. 18 proposed by the Val Couesnon Tourist Office

In Launay-Mellier, note the door lintels: carved in a semicircular arch, they are characteristic of traditional local architecture.

But who was this Marquis de la Rouërie?

He was born in Fougères in 1751 and, at a very young age, set sail for America to take part in the War of Independence, where he distinguished himself at the Battle of Yorktown.
Welcomed as a hero on his return to Brittany in 1789, he became a champion not only of Breton freedoms but also of the monarchy. His counter-revolutionary movement would form the basis of the Chouannerie.