Circular route through the Cheverny vineyards starting from Chitenay

Start at the car park near the church and town hall in Chitenay.

(S/E) From the town hall, head parallel to the Grande Rue, passing between the church and the houses, then continue towards the junction of the Grande Rue and Rue Saint-Selommes. Turn right onto Rue Saint-Selommes. Ignore a turning on the right. At the next junction at Trou aux Clercs, leave Rue Saint-Selommes by turning left.

Yellow-red markings (^GRP® des Châteaux)

(1) Ignore the turn-off to the right. At the Fork in the road, turn left onto the “^GRP® des Châteaux”. The tarmac road leads to a second Fork in the road formed by two paths: take the one on the right. At the junction with Route de Seur, continue straight on along the small lane running alongside a vineyard, signposted “la Maltraitée”, then keep heading south-west. The lane eventually bends to the right.

(2) Turn left at the first junction onto a grassy path bordered by a living hedge. Keep left at the Fork in the road. Continue straight on at the next junction onto the path called Les Grands Veaux.

(3) At the crossroads, leave the tarmac lane and take a grassy path on the left. Pass the Chemin des Vaux on your left. Turn right onto Rue du Colombier. This road curves sharply to the left before joining the Route de Chevenelles, onto which you turn right. Pass Rue du Puits Geson, then turn left at the next street, turning your back on the Château de Chevenelles, which is barely visible from the road. Turn right onto the lane at the junction with Rue du Puits Geson.

(4) At La Savaterie, turn right onto Rue des Souchettes, a side street, then immediately left onto the grassy path. At the next hamlet, turn right then immediately left onto the grassy path, ignoring the private farmyard entrances.

(5) Turn left onto the cross-country path, following the yellow markings and the sign for “en Passant par les Bois”. At the next junction, continue straight on along the CR3 “^GRP® des Châteaux” in the opposite direction to Chitenay. Pass the dovecote. Keep right at the junction, then ignore the various turn-offs until you come to a wide cross-path.

(6) Turn left onto the lane. At Le Veillou, veer left between the farmhouse and the shed, then immediately right, following the best-defined path, the Chemin des Deux Clos signposted “Loire à Vélo”. Cross the Route de Chitenay towards “Les Sables” and stay on the best-defined path.

(7) Ignore the road on the left when the lane turns right towards La Tranquillité, then immediately take the grassy path on the left. This joins a narrow street just before La Baillioterie. Ignore the first turn-off on the left, then, once past La Baillioterie, keep right at the Fork in the road. Take the first path on the right at La Maison de Feings.

(8) Turn left at the Fork in the road marking the end of the tarmac lane. Follow the^GRP® which becomes branching and winding, but which cannot be confused with the other, less-used paths. To do this, veer right at the first junction, then left at the second and right at the next crossroads. The grassy path widens as it runs alongside two vineyard plots on either side before crossing a less-used path.

(9) To go round a vineyard plot, turn left at the crossroads onto a grassy path. This meets a busier lane heading north-east then north (an anti-frost system consists of a propeller at the top of a mast, on the right-hand side). Ignore the side paths and stay on the best-defined track until you reach a small cross street as you approach Petit Malabry; turn right onto this street.

(10) Leave the tarmac immediately by taking a grassy path on the left, marked by a yellow marker indicating the presence of a gas pipe. Follow this straight path until you reach a Fork in the road marked by a yellow marker that explicitly indicates the presence of the underground gas pipe.

(11) Keep to the right at the Fork in the road. The path becomes busier as you approach La Tranquillité.

No signposting

(12) Turn left immediately after passing La Tranquillité. The hard-packed track leads onto a grassy path heading north-west. You will soon come across a yellow marker indicating the presence of a gas pipeline. Ignore the left-hand turn off towards Les Gros Dussons.

(13) Keep left at the Fork in the road, still heading north-west. At La Croix du Buisson, the path eventually crosses the Route de Cormeray, which you join on the left. This quickly becomes the Grande Rue, leading to the church and the town hall, the starting point of the walk (S/E).

As some paths are muddy in winter, avoid hiking during this season.

It is in Chitenay that the house of Danis Papin’s grandmother, the famous inventor of the steam engine, is located; he was born there on 22 August 1647 at a place called ‘Les Coudraies’.