Circular route north of Saint-Maurice-sur-Moselle

Head to Saint-Maurice-sur-Moselle (Vosges). Park in the large car park behind the bakery on the main road (RN66), roughly opposite the junction with the Route du Ballon d’Alsace.

(DA) At the back of the car park, walk down the small slope to join the greenway. Turn right until you reach the first junction with Rue des Ajols.

(1) Turn left, then immediately right to cross the Moselle via a footbridge (follow the Green Rectangle GR® 533 markings to the Col de Lait). The path leads to Rue du Tertre. Turn right to the junction and continue straight on along Rue du Lait for about 100 m.

(2) Turn left onto a small road that climbs and becomes a path. Before a house, climb the embankment equipped with a few steps to rejoin a good path. Turn left, then a few metres further on, rejoin the path on the right.

(3) In a bend to the right, you’ll find the Visée marker. This large block, shaped like a truncated pyramid, served as the sighting marker for the construction of the railway tunnel that was to be dug beneath the Col de Bussang (A).

(4) A little further on, the path opens out onto a lovely open space with a table and benches , offering a first view of Saint Maurice, the Charbonniers valley and the Rouge Gazon. From here, you can make a return trip to the Croix Perrin, signposted at 80 m. Continue along the path and you will soon reachthe Col du Lait.

(5) Leave the GR® and take the track to the left; fifty metres further on, turn right and follow a lovely track (marked with Yellow Triangles) towards Abri du Vallon, signposted as 50 mins away. (Don’t panic: the markings are virtually non-existent except at junctions.) Pass by the chalet known as Maxéraumont, a meeting point for hunters but always closed, then past a fountain made from a hollowed-out tree trunk, and you’ll reach the Abri du Vallon – a lovely spot for a break.

(6) Opposite the chalet, turn left onto a grassy path heading west (now marked with a Blue Triangle),

(7) At the first junction, take the unmarked path on the right towardsthe Croix du Voissé (B), which you reach after 300 m , offering a view of the hamlets of La Dennerie and La Black Drop. Continue along the path, which leads onto a lovely forest road.

(8) Turn right and a few dozen metres further on you’ll findthe Fontaine du Wallon (here with a W), which is a pale imitation of the Manneken-Pis. Continue along the road for 80 m.

(9) Turn left (eastwards) onto the forest track that climbs up the hillside.

(10) At the first junction, on a flat stretch, turn right and, after a short climb, you’ll reach a lovely straight path. Turn left and follow this pleasant path, which is covered in a thick layer of leaves in autumn. At the end of it, the Three Communes Marker (C)appears on the ground, which is a bit of a let-down as it is actually just a large, roughly engraved stone.

(11) Turn left and follow the GR®533, which offers a very pleasant route (marked with Green Rectangles) with lovely views of the mountain range opposite. At a fork, ignore the Red Ring path which descends to the right and continue straight on the GR® along a lovely flat, straight stretch.

(12) At the next fork, you’ll come to a lovely road which you must quickly leave, letting the GR® head off to the left, to take an unmarked path that climbs straight ahead. Walk north-east with fresh views over the valley until you reach La Croix de Fresse. (D).

(13) At the large crossroads nearby, head down to the right for 200 m (marked with a Green Rectangle for the GR® + Red Ring) to reachthe Chalet de la Croix de Fresse (ideal for a midday snack).

(14) Return towards the Croix de Fresse crossroads.

(15) Just before you reach it, turn left onto the path leading down to Bussang (Red Ring and Red Disc) and go through a gate in the fence. Enjoy the view of Bussang from the pass of the same name and of the Drumont. The descent is steep through the pasture, with a few slightly damp patches. Go through a second gate to emerge onto a tarmac road leading towards an isolated house.

(16) Do not go down onto the road but stay on top of the embankment (Red Ring only). The grassy path is lined with broom and follows the contour line fairly closely, at an altitude of 790 m. At the next junction, follow the path (marked with a Red Ring and Blue Cross). Pass by the edge of an old small farm and continue up the path.

(17) At the first crossroads, do not be tempted by the gap in the fence on the left but continue climbing, following the Red Ring markings only. Cross a small pasture.

(18 ) At the edge of the woods, turn left onto the path leading downhill beneath the conifers and follow the Blue Cross markings, which lead tothe Roche du Frey,a new and final viewpoint over the valley, the Ballon d’Alsace and the Ballon de Servance.

(19) With your back to the rock, take the path on the right that winds down in hairpin bends to a small track. Turn right (Yellow Ring markings), pass a group of houses and join a tarmac road.

(20) Continue along the path known as the Chemin des Chèvres, still marked with Yellow Rings, to reach the tarmac road after a difficult section of steep descent covered in scree.

(21) Turn right towards the hamlet of Le Tertre.

(2) Return to the route taken at the start and head back to the car park (S/E) by following the GR® 533 (Green Rectangle) again, in the opposite direction to the outward journey.

Along the route, there are two well-equipped chalets open to the public (Refuge du Vallon and Chalet de la Croix de Fresse) as well as two picnic areas (Croix Perrin and Roche du Frey).

Two drinking fountains and numerous streams for our four-legged friends to quench their thirst.

On the route

A – Sighting Marker

This sighting marker, or ‘direction pillar’, was used to align the axis of the western end of the ‘Saint-Maurice-sur-Moselle–Urbès Railway Tunnel’; the ‘tunnel’ is also known as the ‘Bussang Pass Underground’ or the ‘Vosges Tunnel’. Work began in October 1932 and was abruptly halted at the end of 1935 for reasons that remain somewhat unclear, even though it was due to be completed in 1937 and around 30% of the work had already been carried out! This project involved a straight, double-track tunnel 8,287 metres long, the longest in France at the time. At Saint-Maurice, ‘only 300 metres’ of the main tunnel were completed. In addition to the tunnel, there were 4,636 metres of open-cut track comprising several engineering structures. On the Alsatian side, a viaduct was built in 1933–1934; at Urbès, the tunnel entrance was concealed by an imposing bunker built by the Nazis in 1944, by which time they had turned the ‘tunnel’ into a labour camp

B - The Cross of Voissé

It was in 1963 that this cross was discovered in the attic of a farmhouse in the valley. Its owner then decided to restore it and erect it on the hill overlooking his property to protect his family, his farm and his animals. After being vandalised, it was restored to its original state in 1999 by volunteers from the ‘La Voye’ association, who gathered information through oral history.

C – Boundary stone of the three parishes

A simple large stone of little interest marking the boundaries of the communes of Fresse-sur-Moselle, Saint-Maurice and Bussang.

D – The Cross of Fresse

The French Campaign was the final phase of the war waged by the Sixth Coalition against the French Empire. It took place from late December 1813 to April 1814. Despite several victories, Napoleon was unable to prevent the coalition armies from entering via the northern and eastern borders and converging on Paris. The first month of the campaign was marked by a slow but steady advance by the allied troops. In Alsace, too weak to resist the invaders’ advance, the French troops, commanded by Marshal Claude Victor Perrin, known as ‘Victor’, withdrew to the foothills of the Vosges. It was whilst defending this small pass, known as the Col de Fresse, that four Grognards were killed by Cossacks.

Off the route

In Bussang, do pop in to see the Théâtre du Peuple (listed as a historic monument) and the source of the Moselle.