Circular starting from Col des Fans

de fr

A pleasant, fairly flat route with little tarmac and some lovely views in beautiful countryside. The natural surroundings are stunning and the route is varied.
The only downside is the 500 m stretch along the D533 at the end of the route to return to the starting point. It is possible to reach point 1 from point 8 to avoid the D533, adding an extra kilometre.
Up to (6), the signposting is adequate, but after that it is sometimes discreet, so pay attention. A map and GPS are useful on this section.

Details

n°21255285
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 16.02 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 233 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 240 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 823 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 682 m
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Description of the walk

Park at Col des Fans.

(S/E) Take the small tarmac road south. When you reach a fork, take a good dirt track on the right, then join a tarmac road much further on at the hamlet of Maga.

(1) Cross this road and then the Grozon, pass the hamlet of Temple, then cross the D268. Leave it and take a path on the right to reach the edge of a wood above the hamlet of Mantel.

(2) Walk along the edge of the woods, turning right, then veering left to reach the hamlet of Matras. Leave the road and take a forest path on the right, joining a tarmac road before turning left towards Matras.

(3) Follow the yellow-white markings on the left. Then take the road to the Serre du Turc valley. Leave it on the right to reach the Margier sign. Take the forest path on the right and follow the Fouillouse sign.

(4) Turn left and follow the red and yellow markings ofthe GRP® de Vernoux. Pass through the small hamlet of La Selle.

(5) Continue on theGRP®. At the Les Fanges sign, stay on the road towards Boffres. You will then reach a crossroads at the Font d'Uzon signpost.

(6) Leave theGRP® and turn left, following the yellow-white markings. Stay on this path at the following crossroads. Pass several signs, including those for Château des Faugs and Chateloup. You will then reach the hamlet of Chanas.

(7) Take the forest path on the left. Be careful, as the markings are difficult to see. Do not take the tarmac road that descends into the forest. Shortly afterwards, ignore a small path that descends to the right, then cross a tarmac road and immediately turn right at the next fork. You will then arrive at Noyaret.

(8) Alternatively, as indicated by the route, continue along a small tarmac road to the right until you see the Noyaret sign. Follow the signs for Gilhoc-sur-Ormèze. Climb slightly and continue on, crossing the village of Malpertuis before returning to the car park at Col des Fans. Alternatively, take the path opposite where you came from, marked in yellow and white, which will take you back to point 1, Maga, and turn right to retrace your steps. (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 759 m - Car park at - Col des Fans (758m)
  2. 1 : km 2.03 - alt. 691 m - Maga. Cross the - Grozon (cours d'eau) - Affluent du Doux
  3. 2 : km 3.23 - alt. 717 m - Forest edge
  4. 3 : km 4.51 - alt. 729 m - Matras
  5. 4 : km 6.49 - alt. 821 m - Fouillouse
  6. 5 : km 7.99 - alt. 766 m - La Selle
  7. 6 : km 10.23 - alt. 800 m - Font d'Uzon
  8. 7 : km 12.78 - alt. 763 m - Chanas
  9. 8 : km 13.83 - alt. 755 m - Noyaret
  10. S/E : km 16.02 - alt. 759 m - Car park at - Col des Fans (758m)

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 12 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.5 / 5
tatamousse
tatamousse

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 05, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Pleasant and easy hike

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helene.bernaldez
helene.bernaldez

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 22, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We enjoyed this very peaceful route, but there was a lot of tarmac, fortunately with little traffic.
There is a lack of signposting at important intersections, which makes it difficult to know which direction to take. A good sense of direction is essential! Our volunteer "signposters" should take another look at this.
On the last part of the road to Col des Fans, you really have to walk on the grass verge because there is much more traffic in the late afternoon.
Best regards

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Lena07
Lena07

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 23, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

This route, which is partly marked in yellow/white or red/yellow, is not necessarily marked at all the various junctions! Far too much tarmac for my liking. On the other hand, beautiful scenery on the Ardèche and Rhône Valley sides, very quiet, few vehicles. Hunters at this time of year.

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Jp 3011
Jp 3011

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 25, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful hilly route, a bit too much tarmac for my liking. Difficult to find the path at the end.
Completed in 4 hours 40 minutes. Easy overall.

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MPM
MPM

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

A lovely route that alternates between forest edges and meadows.
Very reliable signposting except at the end of the route (point 8)
Completed in 4½ hours with a picnic break
16km

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olsmang
olsmang

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 07, 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 with little elevation gain, accessible to all.

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caresse
caresse

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The beautiful landscapes of our Ardèche delighted us during the journey. We'll be back in the autumn.
Thanks to the author.

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gaygei
gaygei

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 20, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A magnificent hike on Sunday, 20 November, with splendid autumn colours, especially around the Château des Faugs. Very little elevation gain. Personally, I continued past point 8 until I reached the road. The path is beautiful, dotted with signs featuring drawings and a little poetry. The last part on the road takes just 10 minutes. Best to walk quickly and stay close to the edge.
The only downside that day was the hunters!
Thank you very much for this route.

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jluca
jluca

Nice, thank you for your comment.

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mandoline
mandoline

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 12, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant hike, mostly through woods with beautiful beech trees along the route.
No difficulty. At point 8, return to point 1 and go back to the starting point. Otherwise, you will end up on
the road, which is not interesting at all.
This is a hike we will happily do again.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful hike.

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bddp
bddp

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 16, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very easy walk (little elevation gain) with plenty of variety, alternating between woodland and quiet tarmac roads. We started the walk from Fond d'Uzon very early in the morning, taking magnificent photos of the sunrise through the sparse woods. We were surprised by a herd of wild boars that we heard sniffing around, scurrying into the woods a few metres from the small road we were walking on. At the crossroads before arriving at Noyaret, we saw a flock of rabbits scattering across the field in front of the first house. Instead of continuing along the road, we took the path on the right before the house and walked between woods and meadows before crossing the road to reach the woods. Similarly, when we arrived at the Malpertuis farm, we didn't want to take the D533 to reach the Col des Fans, so we extended the route by 2.5 km by taking the small road below the farm, which continued straight ahead along a path winding between woods and meadows, passing close to an isolated house undergoing renovation in a place called Boiron. When you reach a young apple orchard, at the end of it, take the path furthest to the right (yellow-white markings) which climbs gently into the woods and joins the Col des Fans, then continue the walk as described.

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jluca
jluca

Thank you for your comment, and also to DidierRando26.
Going from point 8 to point 1 is indeed a good idea, as the section on the road is awful.
But the descent after point 8 is nice too.

I'll see how I can update the description to include this alternative route.

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tronchenko
tronchenko

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 16, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

I agree with DidierRando26's comment. We almost missed the Font d'Uzon hairpin bend because it was so pleasant walking through this beautiful forest. At point 8, to avoid the final main road, we took a shortcut along a beautiful stony path that took us to Maga at point 1, via "Ravel".
A very pleasant walk for those who dislike steep slopes. Thank you!

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DidierRando26
DidierRando26
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 01, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hello,
A very beautiful hike with no elevation gain; the only difficulty is the length. The car park is large and accessible. Fifty per cent of the route is on tarmac, and it's true that the last 500 metres can be dangerous and uninteresting. However, it is possible to reach point 1 and return to the car park. The paths are often in the woods, which is superb and very pleasant overall. After point 6, follow the road as it bends sharply to the right, and after the bend to the left, take the path that immediately climbs to the left (be careful). At point 8, when you come out onto the road, do not take the path opposite. Take this road to the right for 50 metres and take the path on the left marked in white and yellow. The markings for this hike need to be refreshed and completed.
Thanks to the author.

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