Circular route around La Palmyre and its magnificent zoo

A pleasant and easy circular walk exploring La Palmyre and its magnificent zoo, one of the finest and largest parks in France, home to 1,600 animals from every continent. After this short walk, don’t miss out on a visit to the zoo.

Details

n°108623960
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 4.89 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 13 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 13 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 36 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 13 ft
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Les Mathes (17570)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 45.687854° / W 1.169223°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 1332ET
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

The walk starts at the annex car park of La Palmyre Zoo, on Avenue de l’Hippodrome.

(S/E) Head north along Avenue de l’Hippodrome, running alongside the zoo.

(1) After about 500 m, turn right and follow Chemin des Cannes.

(2) At the junction with Line 10, keep right and you’ll arrive near the car park. Turn left and head towards the junction of Line 2 and Tranchée des Carreaux.

(3) Turn sharply right and continue along the straight track of Ligne 2.

(4) At the junction called “Canton des Petits Semis”, turn left and continue to Line 3

(5) Head right and follow the track leading to Avenue de Royan (D25).

(6) Follow it to the right, cross at the pedestrian crossing and go round the roundabout on the left. Follow the street and then the path running alongside the holiday village as far as the Promenade des Deux Phares, which runs along the coast.

(7) Turn right and walk along the coast at La Palmyre as far as the harbour.

(8) Go round the harbour on the right, then turn right. Take the Chemin des Boucaniers on the left, keeping as close to the beach as possible, then turn right at a 90° angle to cross the woods and join the Boulevard de Bonne Anse.

(9) Follow it to the right, then along Boulevard de Bonne Anse and Avenue d’Aunis in turn. At the end of this avenue, first turn right then left and continue along Avenue d’Angoumois. Cross Avenue de Royan (D25) at the pedestrian crossing set back to the right. Head slightly back to the left to take Avenue du Poitou, then, at the roundabout, turn right onto Avenue des Tradornes.

(10) When you reach the lake, turn right and follow Chemin des Eiders for 100 metres. Turn right again to cross the housing estate, then turn left to follow Avenue des Pétrels.

(11) Head right onto Allée des Hérons, take the cul-de-sac on the left and follow the path which joins Avenue de l’Hippodrome. Turn right to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 23 ft - Zoo annex car park – Avenue de l’Hippodrome
  2. 1 : mi 0.35 - alt. 36 ft - Chemin des Cannes
  3. 2 : mi 0.73 - alt. 16 ft - Junction
  4. 3 : mi 1.02 - alt. 23 ft - Crossroads – Tranchée des Carreaux
  5. 4 : mi 1.16 - alt. 20 ft - Junction – Canton des Petits Semis
  6. 5 : mi 1.29 - alt. 20 ft - Junction – Line 3
  7. 6 : mi 1.46 - alt. 16 ft - Crossing Avenue de Royan
  8. 7 : mi 2.15 - alt. 20 ft - Promenade des Deux Phares
  9. 8 : mi 2.99 - alt. 16 ft - Port de la Palmyre
  10. 9 : mi 3.71 - alt. 13 ft - T-junction – Boulevard de Bonne Anse
  11. 10 : mi 4.41 - alt. 16 ft - Junction – Chemins des Eiders
  12. 11 : mi 4.66 - alt. 23 ft - Junction – Allée des Hérons
  13. S/E : mi 4.89 - alt. 23 ft - Zoo annex car park – Avenue de l’Hippodrome

Notes

My hiking kit: a mobile phone with GPS enabled, and Visorando for viewing GPX tracks and recording the route.

Part of the route passes through wooded areas with unmarked paths, some of which are off-limits. Similarly, a large part of the route passes through urban areas. As a result, it is difficult to mention every junction or crossroads in the description; I recommend following the recorded track.

La Palmyre slideshow.

Worth a visit

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The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.