Around Sainte-Lheurine and at the Moulin d’Arthus

(S/E) Leave the car park in the space opposite the church, turning right onto Rue de la Motte heading south-west. At the next junction, turn right and, at the last building on the right, turn left onto a path that runs between two vineyard plots heading south-west. Follow the path to the Moulin d’Arthus (see the ‘During the walk’ section).
Make the most of being high up on the hill to take in the landscape with the help of the information boards.

(1) Continue along the path down the hill towards a dirt track. Cross it and carry on straight ahead until you reach the D50 road.

(2) Cross it carefully and take the path opposite, which continues to descend. Walk to the second T-junction.

(3) Turn left and cross the hill known as Trier de Bel-Air heading south-east, before descending towards a road leading to the hamlet of Chez Pelletan on your right. When you reach the end of the road, take the path heading north along the River Villier before turning off it to reach the D250E2 road, just north of Herbaud.

(4) Follow the D250E2 road to the right, passing Herbaud, and turn left onto a dirt track just before the bridge spanning a branch of the Villier. The track runs alongside a small rectangular pond on your right. Carry on straight ahead until you reach a T-junction. Turn right and immediately cross the two branches of the Villier via two bridges, then continue to the junction with a farm track on the left.

(5) Take the track on the left until you reach the next track on the right. Turn right and continue to the Route de Chez Févre.

(6) Cross the road carefully and continue straight ahead along a track leading towards Chez Jardonnet. On reaching this point, the track gives way to a road. At the crossroads in the hamlet, turn left onto the road that runs through the hamlet and heads towards a small road to the east.

(7) Carefully set off along the road to the right and immediately turn left onto the road heading towards the Grands Champs area. Carry on to the T-junction with the D251. Turn right and carefully follow the D251 for about a hundred metres to see, on the right in the copse, the Font Cluzac.

(8) Return to the D251 and follow it carefully to the left until you reach a crossroads at Chez Bouchet.

(9) Turn off onto the road on the right, known as Chez Bouchet, which descends towards Chez Lhoumeau. At the hamlet, the road runs alongside it before turning sharply left and heading north-west. Continue to the D50 and carry on straight ahead towards the north-west until you reach the nearby crossroads at a left-hand bend on the D50.

(10) Take the small road known as ‘Chez Genicot’, which climbs towards the hamlet of the same name. Follow it to the end, passing through the hamlet. Carry on straight ahead along the track that continues from the road immediately after the last house. The track climbs up the hill, running alongside a wood on the right-hand side.

(11) At the next junction, take the path opposite (slightly to the right) which leads downhill towards the hamlet of Chez Chambeau, continuing to follow the woodland on your right. The path passes to the north of Chez Chambeau and comes out onto Impasse Chambeau.

Take Impasse Chambeau, which climbs towards Sainte-Lheurine. Continue along Rue des Ecoles, which joins the D251. Carry on to the left and you’ll reach the car park when you arrive in front of the church (S/E).

The car park is opposite the church, on a square in front of the boundary wall of a large Charente farmhouse. A larger car park is situated at the start of Rue du Bois, behind the church’s chancel.

This walk across varied terrain requires suitable footwear.

This route is unmarked, but does not present any particular navigation difficulties. In places, it crosses marked trails. Consequently, it is advisable to follow the directions in the description and on the map provided on Visorando, whilst also paying close attention to the landscape. The waypoints (with their GPS coordinates and the distance from the starting point) serve as aids for walkers exploring the route for the first time.

Hike completed by the author on 30 November 2021

Sainte-Lheurine
Sainte-Lheurine Church
Visible from afar, this church stands on the highest point of a hill overlooking the Trèfle and Né valleys.
It is an ancient 12th-century building that was almost entirely rebuilt during the Middle Ages, in the 15th and 16th centuries.
Its west façade is rather massive and has few openings, designed to better withstand the elements. It features a pointed-arch portal with capitals decorated with oak leaves. The upper storey has just one window, and the whole structure is topped by a high gable. In the 16th century, a Renaissance basket-handle door was added to the façade.
The south wall, dating from the Romanesque period, has been altered and reinforced by numerous buttresses. Between each of these, large semi-circular arches on the exterior become pointed arches on the interior. They are set with windows featuring corner pilasters. The first two are adorned with diamond-shaped spandrels, whilst the last two feature a simple cornice.
The single-storey square bell tower features mullioned windows on each side.
The interior, comprising two naves, has retained on the south wall groups of round buttressed columns, whose capitals support the slender ribs of the vaults, which were rebuilt in the 16th century.
The other nave extends beneath the bell tower. The ribs of the vaults are set into the sides of the smooth columns.
A fine Renaissance arch precedes the square. The chancel has a ribbed vault. The ribs rest on groups of five columns and, at the corners, on groups of three columns.
The entire building: Listed as a Historic Monument on 4 December 1913.
Website: Eglises-en-Charente-Maritime.fr.cr

The Artus Windmill
The Artus Windmill, situated in the hamlet known as “La Motte”, dates from the 19th century. It is built of cut stone; this type of masonry only came into use in the 19th century. Inside the tower is a stone staircase. The three-storey “tonnelle” was built in a single continuous structure
At the foot of the mill, four viewing platforms offer a remarkable view of the vineyards and the surrounding countryside.
Source: websites, including that of the 129 municipalities within the Haute Saintonge Community of Communes.

The Old Cross of La Pierre Percée
The origin of the name ‘Pierre-Percée’ is unknown. However, around 1760, it inspired Simon Bouchet, Olivier Benoît, Pierre Biné and Jean Pelletan, who hollowed out a stone—soon topped with a cross that has since disappeared—and erected it by the side of the path. Local tradition holds that young people who pass through the hole will marry within the year. The cross, 1.4 metres tall, is made of 19th-century limestone.
Source: Wikipedia (excerpts)