Circular route in the Pontarmé Forest in Senlis

Hike in the Pontarmé woods to discover the beech, hornbeam and oak forests, as well as the beginning of a sea of sand. After this hike, you can explore Senlis, a historic town.

Details

33946259
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.54 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 50 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 40 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 41 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 103 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 58 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ District: Senlis (60300)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 49.191475° / E 2.572145°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 2412OT
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Description of the walk

From Senlis, take the D107 towards Orry-la-Ville. At the first roundabout at the exit of the town, turn right towards the school and park opposite it.

(S/E) Opposite the school entrance, exit the car park on the right and cross the D1017 roundabout on the same side (heavy traffic). Turn right onto the first track called Chemin de la Muette (there is a chapel at the start of the track). Continue to the forest house.

(1) Leave the forest house on your left and continue along the path on the right. Shortly afterwards, ignore the first path on the right. Continue straight ahead at the next crossroads to reach a junction of five paths.

(2) Take the second path on the right to continue along Layon de Franlieux for approximately 2.4 km, ignoring the first crossroads. You will come to a second crossroads (Carrefour de la Fosse aux Cerfs).

(3) Continue straight ahead and ignore the next two crossroads to reach a third.

(4) Turn left onto Chemin des Grés and continue to Carrefour des Charmes.

(5) Turn left onto Vieille Route, cross Carrefour du Bu and continue straight ahead. Ignore two crossroads and then keep left until you reach a large sand hill. Climb up to the left to reach the top. This is Butte aux Gens d'Armes.

(6) At the top of the mound, continue to the left on Route du Jardin Sarrobert and arrive at the Carrefour (star-shaped) du Poteau Neuf.

(7) Continue straight ahead until you reach the next star-shaped crossroads, Carrefour de la Muette.

(8) Turn right onto thesecond Chemin de la Fosse au Cerfs and continue along the track until you reach the first Y-junction.

(9) Continue straight ahead on Chemin de Senlis. You will come to a four-way junction located almost at the edge of the forest.

(10) Turn left to join the D1017. Cross it carefully to return to (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 63 m - School car park
  2. 1 : km 0.74 - alt. 60 m - Forest house
  3. 2 : km 1.19 - alt. 60 m - Crossroads of five roads
  4. 3 : km 2.24 - alt. 61 m - Carrefour de la Fosse aux Cerfs (Forêt de Pontarmé)
  5. 4 : km 3.14 - alt. 65 m - Chemin de Grès
  6. 5 : km 3.64 - alt. 64 m - Carrefour des Charmes
  7. 6 : km 5.46 - alt. 102 m - Butte aux Gens d'Armes
  8. 7 : km 6.79 - alt. 65 m - Carrefour du Poteau Neuf
  9. 8 : km 7.64 - alt. 62 m - Chemin de la Fosse aux Cerfs
  10. 9 : km 8.16 - alt. 60 m - Chemin de Senlis
  11. 10 : km 8.76 - alt. 59 m - Towards the D1017
  12. S/E : km 9.54 - alt. 63 m - School car park

Notes

Car park opposite the Amyot d'Inville vocational school, 10 Avenue de Reims, Senlis.
The D1017 is very busy, so take care when crossing.

Worth a visit

(1) Forest house
(6) Sea of sand
Remarkable oak tree

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5
Based on 9 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.1 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.1 / 5
Route interest
4 / 5
User 15662871

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 23, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, varied circular path that’s also suitable for children. It can be a bit monotonous at times, but I’d still recommend it.

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dominique landwerlin
dominique landwerlin

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 02, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Route taken during the February holidays. We encountered about ten people over 10 km. Very flat route, not too wet, with lots of daffodils on the first half of the route.

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Clovis5793
Clovis5793

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 02, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An easy and pleasant hike done on a Friday, which may explain why there weren't many people around. The only drawback is that at the start, you have to cross a roundabout with heavy traffic and no pedestrian crossing. With a little resourcefulness and a lot of caution, you can still get across. After that, the walk is entirely in the forest.

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MariaP
MariaP

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 03, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The route is quiet, pleasant and easy to access, with ample parking.
I don't have a great sense of direction, so in some places I would have liked a little more detail to reassure me as I walked, but in the end we completed the circular route without too much trouble in 2½ hours, with a short break in the sun at the top of the hill.

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mattmeunier
mattmeunier

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 22, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk! Take 2 hours at a good steady pace.

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Fanny_Ml
Fanny_Ml

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 14, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The information was quite clear and, with the map, we managed very well. The variety of landscapes is really nice, and we also really appreciated the peace and quiet. The only downside was the long, slightly monotonous straight stretch.

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legodvicien
legodvicien

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 18, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Access from the car park is via a fairly busy and somewhat dangerous roundabout, so watch out for children. Long straight stretches make the walk rather monotonous for my taste. The forest is quiet and the Butte aux Gens d'Armes is picturesque and pleasant. There are no other notable difficulties.

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akita
akita

Overall rating : 2.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

At point 5, it seems that it is not to the left but to the right.
At point 9, turn left and not go straight ahead.

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Penmarch77
Penmarch77
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 06, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, with no significant difficulties.
Regarding the description, I got a little confused at point 5 and the instruction to "cross
The forest offers a variety of different landscapes and is very pleasant.
Don't hesitate to take a detour at the sign for Chêne des Grès. You have to go a little way into the forest to reach this oak tree and its information board.
I really enjoyed the section after the Bu crossroads, which gave us a view of a forest of impressive pine trees and ferns. The light and brightness were incredible. To enjoy it a little longer, I decided to take a slight detour by taking the PR on the left at the Chemin du Plâtre (before plot 200) to descend to the next hairpin bend (71) via the Route Mesureur. This brought me back to the Butte des Gens d'Armes.

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