Around Olhain

Park in the square near the church in Gauchin-Légal.

(S/E) With your back to the Chaussée Brunehaut (D 341), turn left to reach Rue Bocquet. Follow it to the right, then turn left onto Chemin d'Héripré. Cross the Ruisseau de Caucourt and you will reach a T-junction (castle on the right). Turn left, then immediately right onto Rue Petite, which is a good climb. You will reach a T-junction.

(1) Turn right onto the small road and continue for 1 km until you reach a fork.

(2) Turn left to walk along the Bois de Gauchin (before that, you can make a short detour to the ford). The path eventually slopes to the right and heads south. After 250 m, it turns 90° to the right.

(3) See practical information. Take the narrow path opposite (difficult path, especially in wet weather). You will reach a small road. Cross it and follow the path opposite (also difficult). You will soon reach a crossroads.

(4) Take the tarmac road opposite. After a good hundred metres, turn right onto the path. It turns at a right angle and joins a T-junction. Turn right and you will reach a T-junction with the D73.

(5) Turn left to reach the village of Caucourt. You will arrive in front of a chapel.

(6) Go around it on the right to find a pretty grassy path that joins Rue Fidèle.
Follow it for about a hundred metres on the left, then turn right. Cross the Ruisseau de Caucourt (footbridge) and you will reach a T-junction. Follow Rue du Moulin on the left. At the fork, go straight ahead to reach the church.

(7) Turn right and, immediately at the T-junction, take the small street on the left, which quickly becomes a path that is sometimes quite wet. You will reach a crossroads.

(8) Turn right onto the right path under the trees. After a short climb, you will reach a T-junction.

(9) Turn left onto the wide path. After 800 metres, you will reach a fork.

(10) Turn right to reach the plateau and the wind turbines. At the T-junction, turn right and you will reach another T-junction (wind turbine just to your left).

(11) Turn left. At the first fork, turn left and at the second fork, turn right. You will reach another fork, opposite a wind turbine.

(12) Continue straight ahead and stay on the path to reach and cross Hermin. At the church, continue straight ahead (D72) and arrive at a fork.

(13) At the exit, turn right onto Rue de Barafle. You will reach Chaussée Brunehaut (D341). Cross it carefully and descend to the hamlet of Barafle. A short steep climb will then take you to the D57.

(14) Cross it carefully and take the path opposite (cemetery). Climb up to reach the edge of the Bois d'Olhain. At the top, turn right to enter the woods. You will immediately reach a fork.

(15) Turn left onto a slight incline. Stay on the path, which eventually joins a wider path marked with yellow signs.

(16) Follow this path to the right (caution: limestone area, sometimes very slippery!). You will arrive in front of a tree marked with a yellow cross.

(17) Turn left (steep slope). You will arrive within sight of the buildings. Take either the first (unmarked) or second (yellow marked) path on the right to reach the large plain of Olhain.

(18) Cross diagonally to the right (you can enjoy the view from the southern tip) and reach the edge of the woods.

(19) Enter the woods and keep to the right along the barbed wire fence (a few GR® markings). After a descent, you will reach a large crossroads opposite the golf course.

(20) Take the GR®127 and Via Francigena on the left, which we will follow to the Verdrel exit. Stay close to the golf course and be careful as this path is seriously lacking in maintenance! The most difficult sections can be avoided by taking side paths.
Start with a nice climb, followed by a flat section with a beautiful path (yes, it's possible in Olhain!) and finish with a steep descent (a little difficult) to reach the D57E3.

(21) Cross with caution and take the path opposite. Ignore the first path on the left, but don't hesitate to take the second one, which is more pleasant than the road. Still following the red and white markings, and trying to avoid the most difficult sections, you will eventually reach the D57 at the exit of Verdrel (beautiful sandstone cross on the left).

(22) Follow the departmental road on the right and you will reach an isolated house at the top of the hill.

(23) Leave the tarmac road and take the narrow path (artistically lined with barbed wire) on the right which descends to Fresnicourt. At the bottom, follow Rue d'En Haut (!) to pass in front of the church and reach the war memorial (castle on the right).

(24) Cross the D57 (watch out for bicycles coming downhill) and take the path opposite. After crossing a stream, you will reach a T-junction.

(25) Follow the path on the left uphill to reach the top of the hamlet of La Pauvrelle.

(26) Turn right to join the D73.

(27) Follow it to the left to reach Brunehaut. Cross it and return to the crossroads you passed on the way there.

(1). Then turn right and, following the same route in reverse, return to Gauchin-Légal, Place de l'Église (S/E).

The paths can be very muddy, so be sure to wear appropriate footwear.

At point (3), it is possible (reasonable?) to continue on the good path that branches off to the right. At the T-junction, turn right, then very quickly left to reach the D73. Follow it to the right to reach point (5).

It is possible to start (and the hike is a little shorter) from Fresnicourt or Hermin, but parking is not easy.