Between Brangues and the Rhône

A lovely, gentle walk, part of which is along the Rhone, which you can do as a family.

Technical sheet

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 15.28 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Return to departure point: Yes
  • ↗
    Vertical gain: + 30 m
  • ↘
    Vertical drop: - 30 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 230 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 204 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Leave your car in the car park at the main square, near the church, opposite Brangues town hall (Isère).

The entire route is marked by yellow PR® waymarks (Petite Randonnée – Short Hike) or black arrows on a yellow background. The first part takes you along some relatively quiet and pleasant little roads.

(S/E) Turn right (southeast) down Rue du Bourg and keep going until you reach a crossroads at the end of the village.

(1) Turn left down Rue du Pavé. Go past the houses in Le Martin and follow the road through fields of crops and orchards until you reach a small river, the Save (a tributary of the Rhone that is about 12 kilometres long).

(2) Cross over the river on a small bridge, and keep going straight on through the flood plain. The region was sadly in the media in 1990, when there was an impressive and memorable flood here. Keep following along the road until you reach another small river, the Huert, which is also a tributary of the Rhone.

(3) Walk along this river to the right for about 600 metres.

(4) Cross the river to your the left when you reach Pigner. Ignore a path off to your right and then another to the left. At the next crossing, take a 90° left turn to reach the dyke a few metres from the Rhone.

(5) Turn left to follow the dyke northwest to the hamlet of Isle.

(6) Just after Isle, turn right onto Grand Brotteau island, which you then follow all the way along its western shore.

(7) The island's fauna is rich and varied: herons, swans, cormorants, birds of prey, etc, together with many other more discreet species than those mentioned, of course.

(8) At the pumping station, which marks the end of Grand Brotteau island, turn right and keep going until you reach Grolée bridge.

(9) Don’t cross the bridge, but instead cross over the D60 and take the path on the right to continue along the river banks along a recent stretch of the Via Rhona which takes you along the shore for about 1km.

(10) Turn left and then left again into the small hamlet of Tours, then take the first right towards La Garenne.
Take a right and immediate left and continue along a footpath. Ignore a track off to the left, and then cross over the following track before reaching the wall of Brangues castle (XIV), which was purchased by the writer and diplomat Paul Claudel in 1927. The castle still belongs to the Claudel family and the writer’s tomb is located in the park. His tomb is visible when the door is open.

(11) The path continues along the wall of the estate and then joins the D60. Turn left and walk past the cemetery (12), then keep going until you reach Brangues and the car park opposite the town hall, where the walk ends (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 229 m - Car park near the church in Brangues
  2. 1 : km 0.61 - alt. 207 m - Left Rue du Pavé
  3. 2 : km 1.11 - alt. 207 m - La Save
  4. 3 : km 3.09 - alt. 206 m - L'Huert
  5. 4 : km 3.7 - alt. 206 m - Pigner, turn left to cross the river
  6. 5 : km 5.15 - alt. 207 m - Dyke
  7. 6 : km 6.29 - alt. 207 m - L'Isle
  8. 7 : km 7.73 - alt. 206 m - Grand Brotteau Island
  9. 8 : km 9.39 - alt. 207 m - Pumping station
  10. 9 : km 10.73 - alt. 207 m - Grolée bridge
  11. 10 : km 11.94 - alt. 206 m - Leave the banks of the Rhône and turn left
  12. 11 : km 14.31 - alt. 209 m - Castle wall at Brangues
  13. 12 : km 14.8 - alt. 221 m - Brangues cemetery
  14. S/E : km 15.28 - alt. 229 m - Car park near the church in Brangues

Practical information

(8) At the pumping station which marks the end of Grand Brotteau island, it is possible to make your way straight back to Brangues by turning left and following the road for a few kilometres, if anyone’s legs are getting tired.

In the nearby area

(S/E) N.B., in good weather, there are lovely views to the south and southeast: the Chartreuse mountain range and further in the distance the foothills of the Vercors.

Visit Brangues church with its pretty model of the castle.
The castle itself is not open to the public but is accessible on heritage days.
Beside the town hall is the Claudel-Stendhal exhibition space. The Berthet case is mentioned here, which inspired Stendhal's novel "Le rouge et le noir."
Visit the Association website

In the village and along the route, you will see some beautiful Dauphiné houses, often with remarkable barns with four-sided roofs and rounded roof tiles.

 Always stay careful and alert while following a route. Visorando and the author of this walk cannot be held responsible in the event of an accident during this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5
Based on 18 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.4 / 5
Clarity of route map
4.4 / 5
Route interest
3.4 / 5
VGMG38
VGMG38

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Apr 07, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : No

Easy for the family
Easy for children over 12 (over 15 km) - the terrain is virtually flat,
An excellent circuit for physical preparation, with some nice spots (by the water, in the woods, etc.).

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joel.jeannoutot
joel.jeannoutot

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of walk : Feb 26, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : No

Hello,
some marks (yellow) no longer exist!
thank you Joël

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Pascal.S
Pascal.S

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of walk : Jun 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Busy trail : No

There's not much point in this walk other than in terms of "preparation".

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bureno38
bureno38

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of walk : Sep 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Busy trail : No

parcour avec peu d'interet.
No view of the Rhone.
The only interesting views are of the orchards and the banks of the Rhone towards the pumping station.
and the view of the Brangues castle.
a faire plutot en velo

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P’tit Robert
P’tit Robert

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of walk : May 29, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Busy trail : No

It's a bit like walking for walking's sake, but I chose this walk because it's right on the banks of the Rhône, but you can't see much of the river and you walk through ordinary vegetation along long, almost straight lines of little interest. Nice orchards though!

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chelouche helene
chelouche helene

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of walk : Nov 24, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

In fact, it's more suited to cycling on foot, which is too tiring on the banks of the Rhône.
Hélène dolo

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la crique 69
la crique 69

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 31, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

Very little interest in this walk, lots of long distances through cornfields and along the dyke.
Only the view of the Rhône and the end of the route near Paul Claudel's château are worthwhile.
On the other hand, the walk is easy and suitable for everyone

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licence54
licence54

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of walk : May 15, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

Apart from the area with a view of the Rhône, the rest of the route is a bit monotonous, with large sections in the middle of fields or on the dyke. It's still a training ride because of its length (15km) before tackling the more challenging sections...
To be done on foot or by bike!

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pascalmorellon
pascalmorellon

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : May 12, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

bonjour , it is especially the area on the banks of the rhône which is of great interest with many swans .

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JLG38
JLG38

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Mar 30, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A variety of routes: alluvial plains, an island bordered by the Rhône, cycle paths and undergrowth. All flat

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fredericneyret
fredericneyret

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Jun 30, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A tour carried out by children on their own. They loved it.

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Geailu
Geailu

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : May 07, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very pleasant walk

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Geailu
Geailu

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Apr 15, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

It's a pity that the routes themselves are not signposted.

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fhmiaux
fhmiaux
• Last modified:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : May 03, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Clear information, but a mediocre ride in the rain. Thanks to those who took the time to share their experiences! The whole of the Brangues region is worth exploring for its habitats, geographical features and wildlife.

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oxygem
oxygem

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of walk : Mar 12, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing

too monotonous a walk, not enough on the banks of the Rhône

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