Circular route starting from the Tour d'Avalon

A lovely start from the beautiful Tour d'Avalon, followed by a fairly varied circular route through forests and villages.
This route is difficult to describe due to the numerous roads and paths in this area, so a GPS and an online map (for example, downloaded via the Visorando app) are recommended. The Tour d’Avalon serves as a good landmark.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.96 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 30 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 341 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 347 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 594 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 341 m

Description of the walk

Park in the car park at the foot of the tower.

(S/E) Head to the base of the tower via the grassy path and then the steps to enjoy the view. Go back down the steps and go round the complex to the south (towards Grenoble) to reach the tarmac road heading due south before turning back towards the north-east (essentially a U-turn). You’ll arrive at a crossroads.

(1) Turn right and head towards the clearly visible church of Saint-Maximin, either via the road (see the route) or by skirting the cemetery.

(2) Leave the church on your right and continue slightly uphill, then pass between two houses on the right to reach the small tarmac road that runs beneath the church. Follow this road uphill alongside the stream.

(3) After crossing over the stream, head up to the right, following the stream, and join a path that climbs steeply and straight up to the hamlet of Varanger, where you’ll reach a tarmac road.

(4) Turn left onto this path, pass the next hamlet, Les Bruns, and continue in the same direction. The path climbs gently, then becomes a wide track that passes under a water intake, levels out again, and descends until it joins a small tarmac road at the hamlet of Le Couvat.

(5) Turn left then right and continue in the same direction (north-east). This road becomes a track, which climbs quite steeply to reach a Fork in the road (you will pass a group of large houses and barns on your left, marked ‘private property’, just before this).

(6) Turn left, heading north-east. The track climbs slightly and, 200 m further on, a path descends to the left towards the hamlet of Le Puillet.

(7) Follow this path, which branches off to the left and descends steadily to the hamlet of Les Bretonnières, where you join the D9 (which can take you directly back to the Church of Saint-Maximin).

(8) Follow this road to the left (south-west) to the hamlet of Les Ripellets, where the D9 crosses over a stream.

(9) Look for a flight of steps on the left-hand side of the road with hiking signs and head down to the right along the tarmac road that runs alongside the stream. It very quickly becomes a track and then a path overlooking the stream. Continue down to a junction with a path coming from the right (from Les Bretonnières, in fact).

(10) Turn left at the junction to use the footbridge, which is clearly visible on the descent. Climb up to the other bank, following the yellow markings (do not cross via thesecond footbridge further up or the small staircase visible there), but follow this other stream, keeping it on your right. Continue straight on towards the Tour d’Avalon, joining the junction of the circular road.

(1) Continue straight on to reach the Tower of Avalon (clearly visible) by following the route back in the opposite direction to the outward journey (or via the hamlet below the tower, as you prefer) (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 406 m - Avalon Tower
  2. 1 : km 0.9 - alt. 375 m - Crossroads of the circular loop
  3. 2 : km 1.07 - alt. 387 m - Saint-Maximin Church
  4. 3 : km 1.35 - alt. 407 m - Crossing the stream - Bréda (rivière)
  5. 4 : km 1.84 - alt. 518 m - Varanger
  6. 5 : km 3.23 - alt. 479 m - Le Couvat
  7. 6 : km 3.79 - alt. 521 m - Junction
  8. 7 : km 4.11 - alt. 567 m - Le Puillet
  9. 8 : km 5.53 - alt. 447 m - D9
  10. 9 : km 6.23 - alt. 446 m - Les Ripellets
  11. 10 : km 6.83 - alt. 347 m - Path junction
  12. S/E : km 8.96 - alt. 403 m - Avalon Tower

Notes

During our walk, the path between :7:: and Les Bretonnières was a small stream, perfectly passable with good shoes and walking poles.

Worth a visit

Reviews and comments

3.9 / 5
Based on 5 reviews

Reliability of the description
3.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4 / 5
Route interest
3.8 / 5
jluca
jluca

Thank you for this reassuring review. I personally really enjoyed this tour, despite the mud on certain sections and even some paths that had turned into streams... Indeed, there is a significant amount of tarmac. It's a somewhat unusual route. Kind regards.
JL

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User 17373407

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 10, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A nice little hike, quite rich and varied with sections through the forest but also a few viewpoints over the Granier and the Bauges... There are a few muddy sections but nothing impassable. The only slight downside is that you do spend a bit of time on concrete roads, but there is very little traffic except on the D9 departmental road. The route is easy to follow and I was alone the whole way, so I was able to enjoy the peace and quiet. I'll definitely be doing it again soon. Thank you for this simple but effective itinerary!

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User 17373407

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 10, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A nice little hike, quite rich and varied with sections through the forest but also a few viewpoints over the Granier and the Bauges... There are a few muddy sections but nothing impassable. The only slight downside is that you spend a bit of time on concrete roads, but there is very little traffic except on the D9 departmental road. The route is easy to follow. I was alone the whole way, so I was able to enjoy the peace and quiet. I'll definitely be doing it again soon. Thank you for this simple but effective itinerary.

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User 3641189

Overall rating : 2 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 01, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We kept getting lost because there were no clear explanations! There were no signs either, or very few!

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User 12860568

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Apart from the tower at the start, there are not many viewpoints or points of interest

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chantal.raffin
chantal.raffin

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 04, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Some sections are in the forest and along a stream. Avoid doing this route the day after rain or bad weather. It gets very muddy.

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