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Access from Les Abrets on the D1006 or La Frette on the D1085 or the A48 motorway, exit 9. Take the D73 to reach the Château de Pupetières either from Châbons or from Virieu, following the Bourbre river. A small road leads to the Château near the hamlet of Malin (or Mallein).
(S/E) From the car park in front of the entrance, follow the Mallein track (suitable for vehicles) up towards the forest and, just after a left-hand bend, at a flat section, turn right heading due east onto the marked path which climbs up the Combe Férouillat.
The path climbs up the right bank, passes near the small Étang Bleu reservoir, then gradually veers south to go round the Pierre Bleue hill until you reach the first crossroads.
(1) Continue straight on until you reach a step before the path descends towards the Chapelle de Milin.
(2) At the flat section of this step, turn sharply left to climb steadily up the forest slope, ignoring the crossroads, until you reach the Croix du Moine Mort, a junction of six paths.
(3) Several paths lead to the Sylve Bénite via Combelière, but to enjoy a beautiful view, take the path—which is neither marked nor signposted—that climbs south-south-west: it follows a gentle ridge up to a timber storage platform at Les Montenvers, where the view is unobstructed.
(4) Head south down a path that becomes a road at the Ferme de Haute Blaune. The road descends through the Bois du Côtillat to the hamlet of Blaune (Oyeu).
(5) Turn left onto theGR® 65 as it leaves Blaune and then turn left again, staying on theGR®: after crossing some fields, the path enters the forest and leads to the old Carthusian monastery via a series of ups and downs through the Bois du Coquillard.
(6) At the last building at the end of the small road you have joined, head due north along a forest track. When it turns left to climb into the forest, continue straight ahead on the path that follows the valley floor and climbs up it, staying on its left bank (on the right as you climb) rather than at the bottom.
(7) After a short flat section, facing a fence, do not go up to the right towards Ripaillon (dead end) but veer left to follow the fence back up to the pass on the wooded ridge.
(8) Cross over to the other side towards Virieu and its castle. At the first junction, turn sharply left to take a level path at the edge of the forest which runs past the Frênes farm and returns near the ridge at the 704m junction.
(9) Leave the marked path which continues towards the Croix du Moine Mort and avoid descending into the Frênes pastures (fences) to take the path which descends south-west into the forest. It gradually levels out to cross the hillside, still heading south-west.
(10) As you cross a small valley, do not miss the path on the right which plunges into the valley floor, straight down the slope, which remains reasonably gentle.
At the bottom of the descent, it joins the path coming from Les Frênes: follow it to the right for a few metres and turn left for a shortcut that takes you back to the junction of the path taken on the way there.
(1) Turn right onto the Combe Férouillat, which leads back to the Château de Pupetières (S/E).
E lovely walk, but at the start of the season the paths are waterlogged. There are sections marked with a Yellow Cross which are normally off-limits – don’t pay any attention to them, as that’s exactly where you need to go; to do so, just follow the Visorando route closely. There are paths covered in lots of dead leaves with tree branches lying across them; this is perhaps due to the lack of foot traffic at the start of the season. Otherwise, everything’s fine. Thanks to the Viso trailmakers.
Visorando member
Easy 
