Lake Antre viewpoint

de fr

An easy hike around Villards-d'Héria with superb views of Lake Antre, the town of Moirans-en-Montagne and Lake Vouglans.
Please note that access is currently prohibited: following a landslide, access to the Lac d'Antre viewpoint is prohibited until further notice. From point (2), go directly to point (4).

Please note: there has been a forest fire between points (4) and (7) since 17/08/2025 at 7 p.m. Do not attempt this route

Details

n°1374574
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.58 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 490 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 495 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 959 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 592 m
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Photos

Accro-Pont de Villards d'Héria
Moirans en Montagne viewpoint
Gallo-Roman site
Lake Antre viewpoint

Description of the walk

Park in front of the Yassard furniture company, located on the D470 after the viaduct, towards Saint Claude.

(S/E) Follow the D470 for 200 metres and take the path on the left. Follow the path for about 500 metres until you reach a large bend to the right.

(1) In the bend, leave the road and take a small path to the left. At the end of this path, turn right, then left to join the forest road to Lac d'Antre. Stay on this road until you see the lake, then turn left. Continue to the crossroads with the Découverte trail.

(!) Due to a landslide, access to the Lac d'Antre viewpoint is closed until further notice.
=> From point (2), go directly to point (4)
(2) Take this path on the right to reach the Lac d'Antre viewpoint. Follow the path and turn right before the descent towards the Lac d'Antre viewpoint. The viewpoint is easy to find. View of Lac d'Antre, the viaduct and, on a clear day, the Jura mountains and Mont Blanc

(3) Descend from the viewpoint via the path behind the bench, or turn right facing the lake. Both paths will take you back to the forest road. Return to the forest road.

(2) Turn right onto the paved section for about 500 m, then leave the forest road onto the path marked with yellow signs. Follow the path downhill to the right, left, and right, until you reach the small bridge that crosses the Héria, then the forest road.

(4) Stop briefly to look at the Gallo-Roman excavations located 50 m to the left.
Retrace your steps and cross the road to take the path between the house and the vegetable garden. Follow the path for about 1,200 m until you reach a pine forest.

(5) Take the path on the left, in the pine forest, the small path marked in yellow. Follow it to the Moirans viewpoint and enjoy the view of the toy museum and Lake Vouglans in the background.

(6) Keep south on this path until you reach the Villards-d'Héria viaduct. Under the viaduct, you will have a view of the Accropont.

(7) Cross the viaduct and follow the D470 road (be careful of traffic). This will take you to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 674 m - Parking
  2. 1 : km 0.9 - alt. 739 m - At the bend, turn left
  3. 2 : km 2.53 - alt. 864 m - Lake viewpoint crossroads
  4. 3 : km 3.28 - alt. 959 m - Lake Antre viewpoint
  5. 4 : km 4.95 - alt. 725 m - Archaeological site, Gallo-Roman sanctuary
  6. 5 : km 5.79 - alt. 805 m - Fir tree crossroads
  7. 6 : km 6.39 - alt. 818 m - Moirans en Montagne viewpoint
  8. 7 : km 8.97 - alt. 645 m - Villards d'Héria viaduct
  9. S/E : km 9.58 - alt. 674 m - Parking

Notes

  • To see the car park and starting point: click here
  • I completed this route on a beautiful sunny day with good walking conditions (dry ground). I cannot guarantee that it will be passable when the ground is wet or snowy or obstructed by trees felled by foresters.
  • Beware of ticks

A major problem in the Jura forests, ticks are voracious and get everywhere.
Don't forget to check yourself after your hike.

  • There is no shelter or water source.

Worth a visit

Sights to see: the Lac d'Antre viewpoint, the white and black wells, the viewpoint overlooking the town of Moirans en Montagne.
Please note that access is currently prohibited: following a landslide, access to the Lac d'Antre viewpoint is prohibited until further notice. From point (2), go directly to point (4).
Places to visit: the Gallo-Roman excavations.
Try the Accropont at the Villards-d'Héria Viaduct.

Reviews and comments

4.2 / 5
Based on 14 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.1 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4.1 / 5
User 25540424

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 18, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Nice hike but lack of signposting between points 4 and 5

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alainc5939
alainc5939
• Edited:

Please note: due to a landslide, access to the viewpoint is closed until further notice. From point 2, proceed directly to point 4

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Dunbar
Dunbar

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 04, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Not a bad hike, but be warned: the view from the lookout point is worth it 🥵

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alainc5939
alainc5939
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 02, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Please note: forestry work is underway 300 metres from the start to point (1) and from point (4) to point (5).
The route is passable but muddy in places. Please take care!

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phd39
phd39

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 10, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Difficult navigation at times

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alainc5939
alainc5939

Please note: Tree clearing work is currently underway along the route

  • Between the start and the point (1), the road is quite rough for 200 metres as soon as you leave the D470. Passable in dry weather, but you may encounter logging equipment and loading cranes. Please be careful. In wet and rainy weather, this section may be muddy and slippery.
  • After the point (2), the logging work appears to be finished, but the wood is waiting to be loaded. The road is damaged for 200 metres from the point (2). It is passable in dry weather

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Fluryjc
Fluryjc

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 17, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

I followed the GPS route without any problems.
I left before the viaduct, where there is a large car park for carpooling.
That way, the road section is done right from the start.
three stars for the Antre Lake viewpoint: because of the heat, we couldn't see Mont Blanc, but the view was magnificent.
Another beautiful view of Moirans.
A very beautiful, uncrowded hike

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alainc5939
alainc5939

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 02, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello, I redid this route this morning (2/8/2020) to refresh the markings (white dots)

Be careful between points (4) and (6). The hot weather has led to an increase in bark beetles. The bark beetles have attacked the spruce trees, making them fragile. Do not linger in these areas.

Be careful, again between points (4) and (6), I encountered caterpillars on the trail. They are harmless to humans but annoying for hikers who have to zigzag between the hanging caterpillars and regularly remove those that are stuck to their clothes. Bring sticks to knock them off!

Finally, a quick rant: the Antre Lake viewpoint is a superb spot. In this heatwave, it's not normal to see campfires lit, risking setting the forest alight, which is already in a bad way due to the drought, and then to see people who have had the strength to climb up to the viewpoint with their packs of beer but don't have the strength to carry the empty cans back down

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alainc5939
alainc5939

Hello Galip25
Thanks for your comment.
The hike is definitely more enjoyable in good weather, and you can see the Jura mountain range and the peak of Mont Blanc.
Have a nice Sunday
Alain

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Galip 25
Galip 25

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 09, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The route is great, with narrow paths and woodland...
The weather is awful, so I can't see anything from the viewpoint, but it looks nice

I'll do it again when the weather's better on my next trip to the Jura

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einnag
einnag

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 14, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We did this walk on 14 August. The blue dots are sometimes difficult to find at intersections where recent logging has created paths that are not shown on the map. Once you join the yellow-marked path and then the GR, there are no more problems. The viewpoint over Lake Antre is superb. The walk passes close to some Roman ruins, but these are not always open to the public. If you are interested, please contact the tourist office before setting off.

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alainc5939
alainc5939
• Edited:

Hello.
Thank you for your comments.
On Sunday morning, I redid the blue markings because I noticed that some had been hidden by forestry work and nature. So you now have freshly painted blue markings.
There are indeed about ten metres of brambles to navigate, but the path is still passable and the markings are visible as I have reinforced them (I find it difficult to understand how to use a compass!). I will try to make this section more passable, but it is a hike after all, and this is nature!
I hope you were still able to see the summit of Mont Blanc from the Belvédère du la d'Antre because on Sunday morning at around 10 o'clock, it was clearly visible, which is quite rare to have such a clear view.
Best regards and happy hiking in the Jura!

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Jidéka
Jidéka

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 04, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

between points 1 and 2, the path is almost impossible to follow: it is overgrown with brambles and other weeds, and the tree trunks make it difficult to follow. I managed to find the route further on by using a compass.
after the lake, continue to follow the blue dots and arrows, which are fairly well marked.

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alainc5939
alainc5939

Good evening.
It goes without saying that in snowy weather, the ground markings are covered, and with snow on the trees, the trails are no longer recognisable.
Despite this, I went snowshoeing on this trail four days ago. So my tracks are still visible in the snow, as it hasn't snowed since. I also used my smartphone to help me find my way back.
I rediscovered this superb walk with the snow and the beautiful views with the snow and the sun.
With a little more preparation, you could have had a great walk. Too bad for you!

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Deplae
Deplae

Overall rating : 2 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 08, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing

Unable to find the trailhead in snowy conditions.
Colours on stones on the ground?

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