Around Tincry via its "Roman Camp"

This walk takes place on wide, often shaded paths. It plunges us into the heart of history as we traverse the hill crowned by a forest known as the ‘Camp des Romains’. This is a protohistoric oppidum. There are many traces of it to be seen. We owe much of the discovery of the cave to Régis, our fellow explorer. He is the great-nephew of Jacques Marsal, one of the three discoverers of the Lascaux cave. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree...

Details

16460725
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.64 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 443 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 443 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,230 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 758 ft
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Tincry (57590)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 48.902767° / E 6.410179°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 3414E
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

Parking is available along the Grand Rue on the small square.

(S/E) Walk up the Grand Rue towards the church and turn right onto Rue du Mont until you reach a wayside cross.

(1) Turn onto the wide path on the left. After 330 m, take the path on the left (Revers du Mont).

(2) After 380 m, at the fork, take the path on the right which continues as a narrower track.

(3) After 780 m, at a fork, turn onto the path that heads back towards the rear. You will feel as though you are retracing your steps (the path is not marked on some maps but is definitely there). Continue along this path until you reach a wider track.

(4) After 380 m, you will see a path leading into the forest towards the Rouge Crayon cave. It is just 200 m further on. Take care to follow the trail closely as the path can be difficult to find at times.

(5) After passing a bunker halfway along, you’ll reach the cave (cavity). Then turn back to return to the previous point.

(4) Turn right, continue along the path and, at the end of it, after about 200 m, turn right for about 750 m.

(6) At the fork in the road, turn left and come out onto the D74, which you follow to the right. After about 140 m, take the first path on the left and, at the Fork in the road ahead, continue straight on for about 400 m.

(7) Turn left onto a track that enters the Bois Jacquin towards the Ruisseau de la Lampe. Make a circular loop to the left to come out onto a wide track.

(8) Take this path to the right, then continue left along the Ruisseau de la Lampe until you reach a tarmac road.

(9) Turn left onto this road and you will reach a junction after the sewage treatment plant.

(10) At the junction, turn right to return to Tincry and the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 876 ft - Car park on Place de Tincry
  2. 1 : mi 0.25 - alt. 965 ft - Calvary
  3. 2 : mi 0.7 - alt. 1,155 ft - Bifurcation
  4. 3 : mi 1.22 - alt. 1,220 ft - Hairpin bend
  5. 4 : mi 1.57 - alt. 1,217 ft - Path to the Grotte du Rouge Crayon
  6. 5 : mi 1.71 - alt. 1,220 ft - Rouge Crayon Cave
  7. 6 : mi 2.57 - alt. 1,106 ft - Junction with the departmental road
  8. 7 : mi 3.34 - alt. 1,037 ft - Haut de Foug (elevation 314)
  9. 8 : mi 4.37 - alt. 814 ft - Junction with wide path
  10. 9 : mi 4.94 - alt. 761 ft - Tarmac road
  11. 10 : mi 5.35 - alt. 830 ft - Turn-off towards Tincry
  12. S/E : mi 5.64 - alt. 876 ft - Place de Tincry

Worth a visit

  • The protohistoric oppidum:

The hill crowned by a forest overlooking the small village of Tincry is known as the "Roman camp". It is a protohistoric oppidum of roughly oval shape. The large enclosure, approximately 2 km in length, encloses some 16 hectares. The rampart surrounding it has a base of 20 to 25 m and now rises 3 to 5 m above a ditch 12.5 m wide and over 3 m deep.
These fortifications are thought to have been built around 625 BC, given that an unfortified Celtic settlement existed there previously.
The peaceful dismantling of these fortifications is thought to have taken place between 450 and 400 BC. This site is believed to have been the centre of power during the Hallstatt and early La Tène periods, a princely site given its location, its funerary context (400 graves in necropolises), its economic importance (Marsal salt), and its commercial significance. These findings are the result of ongoing archaeological research, which should be continued to provide further information on the settlement, its economy and its relationship with the environment. A smaller circular enclosure, tangent to the interior of the first, is erroneously attributed to the Middle Ages.

Reviews and comments

4.3 / 5
Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4 / 5
Route interest
4.3 / 5
Hm57
Hm57

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 27, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Route created with Visiorando
The only downside is that points 4 and 5 are more difficult to navigate, as mobile phones do not provide accurate tracking, but it still works
Otherwise, it was a wonderful discovery of this mountain range with some historical traces of wars, including a few bunkers from 1914-1918 and some trenches
This is our history, which we are forgetting too much at the moment.

Machine-translated

OHU
OHU

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

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

The walk was very pleasant up to point 6. Then, between points 7 and 8, the going was much tougher because of the ruts left by forestry machinery; we often had to leave the path to avoid getting bogged down. Yet the weather had been fine for several days. There are two sections where a GPS is absolutely essential: at point 3 and the bend between points 7 and 8. A lovely walk nonetheless. We took a shortcut between points 8 and 10.

Machine-translated

pclop
pclop

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An interesting route, but quite muddy over a large section following the rain of recent weeks, and particularly due to the ruts left by forestry work. Best tackled in dry weather, or after several days without rain, or on a hot summer’s day, as a large part of the route is through woodland. The section at point 3 is a bit tricky to find; you need to turn left along the mound. The left-hand bend between points 7 and 8, not far from the stream, is also tricky to spot, especially as the path isn’t really visible.
The section at the “cave” (which looks more like the entrance to an underground passage) isn’t worth the detour unless you want to see the bunker, which is largely hidden by vegetation.
GPS and VISORANDO recommended.

Machine-translated

ACKET
ACKET

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 19, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk on 14 April 2023. A very varied route; the forest is quite open and the wide paths are perfectly passable despite the previous days’ rain. At point 3, make sure you follow the directions (and/or your GPS) carefully so as not to miss the path. At point 4, the detour to the cave isn’t worth it: the bunker is just a simple block of concrete barely visible, and the cave is a cave in name only; what’s more, it’s practically impossible to find without a GPS. At point 6, before turning left, continue straight on for about 100 metres to see two very well-preserved old lime kilns on your right (two red-brick towers about ten metres high), then return to point 6. Between points 7 and 8, just after the circular bend to the left, don’t miss the path and, above all, don’t head straight down towards the stream (a GPS is very useful). Towards the end, you can take a shortcut directly from 8 to 10, as the path between 9 and 10 is of little interest.
Thanks again for this lovely walk

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.