Circular Boissy-lès-Perche in the footsteps of a "Fauve"

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The painter Maurice de Vlaminck lived here, near Rueil-la-Gadelière, from 1925 until his death in 1958. This year marks the centenary of his arrival. A three-day itinerary already allows you to cross his country from the Verneuil-sur-Avre station to the La Loupe station. Walkers who are unable to undertake this crossing can take one or more of the short circulars "In the footsteps of a Fauve". These allow you to discover, in detail, the landscapes that inspired the painter.
This one, starting from Boissy-lès-Perche, follows the valley of the Ruisseau de Buternay. After crossing the ponds near the Chapelle de Réveillon, it flows towards the Avre, joined by other streams. Their courses, partly underground, reappear at the source of the Vigne, where their waters are collected and carried to Paris via a 100 km aqueduct.
Landscapes of cereal fields cut by the stream, wide horizons from which you can soon see the bell tower of the church of Verneuil.

Details

n°80038583
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.38 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 20 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 21 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 193 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 170 m
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Photos

Church of Boissy-lès-Perche

Description of the walk

Car park near the village hall, Rue Jean Ganivet.

No signposts

(S/E) From the car park, turn left onto Rue Jean Ganivet. Turn right onto Rue de l'Arsenal and you will arrive in front of the former presbytery (a visit to the gardens is recommended - free entry). Then continue to the right towards the church.

(1) Cross the Rue de l'Église crossroads with caution and follow Rue Gaston Goussard D 177.7 opposite. Pass Place de la Gare and continue to the crossroads with the D 117.10 at the village exit.

(2) Take the path on the left and cross the Ruisseau de Buternay. At the next crossroads, continue straight ahead. Pass Vau Renard and arrive at a small road. Turn left towards the Perthuis farm.

(3) Leave the path that leads there and turn right onto the straight path along the buildings and a hedge. At the entrance to the hamlet of Les Loges, it turns left and becomes paved (Rue du Perthuis).

(4) In the hamlet, turn right. Pass near Place des Tilleuls (spacious bus shelter). Turn right again onto Rue des Peupliers.

(5) Cross the D117.7 carefully, near an old gatekeeper's cottage, and descend opposite towards the Ruisseau de Buternay. Cross it and climb up to the left to Les Harangères.

(6) After the houses, turn right onto the road, which becomes a path. After the Bois de la Conrière, continue straight ahead until you reach the D117.10.

(7) Turn left onto it and continue to the Bois Josse manor house.

(8) At the manor house, turn right onto the D117.b. Pass by the silos and behind the old La Loupe - Verneuil-sur-Avre railway station. It is a reminder that until 1924, the village was called Boissy-le-Sec. You will come out onto the D155 - Rue de l'église. Turn right to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 189 m - Church of Boissy-lès-Perche
  2. 1 : km 0.29 - alt. 186 m - Crossroads of Rue de l'Église
  3. 2 : km 0.92 - alt. 182 m - Crossroads with the D117.10 - Buternay (rivière) - Affluent de l'Arve
  4. 3 : km 2.8 - alt. 190 m - Le Perthuis
  5. 4 : km 3.82 - alt. 186 m - Les Loges
  6. 5 : km 4.18 - alt. 181 m - D117.7
  7. 6 : km 4.85 - alt. 183 m - Les Harangères
  8. 7 : km 7.17 - alt. 183 m - D117.10
  9. 8 : km 7.58 - alt. 193 m - Manoir du Bois Josse
  10. S/E : km 8.38 - alt. 189 m - Church of Boissy-lès-Perche

Notes

Avoid this route in strong winds or high temperatures.

Exercise caution during hunting season and follow the instructions of hunters.

Worth a visit

Verneuil-sur-Avre, 7.5 km away (recently renamed Verneuil d'Avre et d'Iton): this small town of character, where Vlaminck was a regular visitor, is well worth a thorough visit: La Madeleine Church, Grey Tower. (Visit - Game area) Numerous old residences. Temporary exhibitions at Saint-Laurent Church - Former Saint-Nicolas Abbey. You can tour the town by following the moats.
Tourist Office https://www.normandie-sud-tourisme.fr/

Rueil-la-Gadelière, 10 km away: bust and tomb of Vlaminck, "La Tourillière", Vlaminck's house. Visits possible on certain dates.
Château de la Gadelière - Visits during the season.

La Ferté-Vidame, 9 kmaway : park and ruined château of the Marquis de Laborde - Maison Saint-Simon.

Senonches, 22 km away: Forêts d'Histoire castle museum.

Other walks in the area

Walking Circular Rohaire in the footsteps of a "Fauve"

Visorando member
Boucle de Rohaire sur les traces d'un "Fauve"
↔6.38 km ↗+21 m ↘-20 m ◔1h 55 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Rohaire (Eure-et-Loir)
The painter Maurice de Vlaminck lived here, near Rueil-la-Gadelière, from 1925 until his death in 1958. This year marks the centenary of his arrival in the area. A three-day itinerary already allows you to cross his country from Verneuil-sur-Avre station to La Loupe station. Walkers who are unable to undertake this crossing can take one or more of the short circulars "In the footsteps of a Fauve". These allow you to discover the landscapes that inspired the painter."I love the countryside, not by accident, but continuously, and I spend my life there" This route, around the village of Rohaire, mainly crosses farmland. It partly follows the Buternay stream, coming from the ponds near the Chapelle de Réveillon and heading towards Rueil-la-Gadelière. After a stretch that is sometimes underground, it reappears at the Sources de la Vigne, where the streams from the vicinity of La Ferté-Vidame converge. Their waters are collected there and piped to Paris.

Walking Tour of the Bois de la Noë

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Tour du Bois de la Noë
↔7.13 km ↗+30 m ↘-32 m ◔2h 05 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Rueil-la-Gadelière (Eure-et-Loir)
Beneath the seemingly peaceful surface of the Baine (or Benne) pond, there is a whole world of plants and animals. The route, which starts in this hamlet in the commune of Rueil-la-Gadelière, takes you around the Bois de la Noë, passing by the farms of Bois Normand and Rueil. It is located south of Verneuil d'Avre et d'Iton, at the gateway to Normandy. Return via the hamlets of Les Bruyères and Le Canada.

Walking Chapelle-Fortin loop via La Ferté-Vidame

Visorando member
Boucle de la Chapelle-Fortin par La Ferté-Vidame
↔11.51 km ↗+27 m ↘-27 m ◔3h 20 ▲Moderate
⚑Departure from La Chapelle-Fortin (Eure-et-Loir)
This loop, on the edge of the Perche region, leads from La Chapelle-Fortin to La Ferté-Vidame. Close to the Perche, it is divided between two types of landscape, both of which are represented by the painter Maurice de Vlaminck: vast expanses of crops under cloudy skies and woods with gnarled trees. Living in La Tourillière near Rueil-la-Gadelière from 1925 to 1958, the artist frequently visited the neighbouring villages in search of inspiration: churches, villages buried under snow, paths lined with bare trees. The circuit leads to La Ferté-Vidame, a town with a rich historical past: a medieval fortress where the Duke of Saint-Simon wrote his memoirs, which became the palace of the Marquis de Laborde, Louis XV's wealthy banker, a small château converted by Louis-Philippe into outbuildings and recently restored by the Eure-et-Loir Departmental Council, the new owner of the site. La Ferté-Vidame is also home to horse races held in summer at the Pipe-Souris racecourse.

Walking Memorial loop for those shot in Morvilliers

Visorando member
Boucle Mémorielle des fusillés à Morvilliers
↔8.37 km ↗+22 m ↘-20 m ◔2h 25 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Morvilliers (Eure-et-Loir) (Eure-et-Loir)
Starting from Morvilliers, this loop takes you to the sites where a tragic episode unfolded during the final days of the Maquis de La Ferté-Vidame in August 1944.It first leads to the farm of Mary Thibault, the instigator of the Maquis. It then crosses the Bois de Malassis, where the Maquisards hid after machine-gunning a German car, killing the driver and the secretary of the Kommandantur of La Ferté-Vidame This action triggered the fury of the SS, who, after searching the neighbouring farms in vain, arrested three young members of the Maquis in the hamlet of Les Rayers. They were taken to the nearby Château du Gland, where they were tortured. The first man was shot on 11 August in front of his comrades. The next day, the other two were also executed. They had to dig their own graves. A commemoration takes place every year in the clearing and at the cemetery in Morvilliers, where the bodies were returned after the Liberation.

Walking Circular Beauche via Boulay Saint-Clair in the footsteps of a "Fauve"

Visorando member
Boucle de Beauche par le Boulay Saint-Clair sur les traces d'un "Fauve"
↔10.18 km ↗+71 m ↘-78 m ◔3h 05 ▲Moderate
⚑Departure from Beauche (Eure-et-Loir)
The painter Maurice de Vlaminck lived near Rueil-la-Gadelière from 1925 until his death in 1958. This year marks the centenary of his arrival in the area. A three-day itinerary already allows you to explore his homeland from Verneuil-sur-Avre to La Loupe. Walkers who are unable to undertake this crossing can take one or more of the short circulars "In the footsteps of a Fauve". These allow you to discover in detail the places that inspired the painter."Beauche is the village next to the hamlet of La Tourillière. Its origins are lost in the mists of time. One cannot imagine that its pleasant, wholesome appearance has ever changed. The spire of its bell tower pierces the clouds. It can be seen from far away because Beauche is built on flat ground in the plain..." Vlaminck.Starting from Beauche, this short route through fields and woods skirts the Château du Boulay Saint-Clair. On the way back, it passes by the Benne pond, which has recently been restored by the municipality of Rueil-la-Gadelière.

Walking Short circular loop around Lamblore via the Chemin du Mortripié

Visorando member
Petite boucle de Lamblore par le Chemin du Mortripié
↔8.36 km ↗+55 m ↘-60 m ◔2h 35 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Lamblore (Eure-et-Loir)
Starting from Lamblore Town Hall, this circular leads to La Ferté-Vidame, where you will find reminders of historical figures: The Dukes of Saint-Simon, the father, who after acquiring the estate had the parish church built, and the son, the famous memoirist, the Marquis de Laborde, who had a sumptuous palace built, the romantic ruins of which still remain, and laid out a huge park. King Louis-Philippe wanted to restore this building, which had been dismantled after the Revolution, to its former glory, but he was only able to build the "Petit Château" (small castle)...A detailed tour of the village and park is a must. The return journey takes you past the former Citroën test centre, a mecca for the automotive industry. This is where the most famous models of the chevron brand were developed: the Traction Avant, the 2CV, the DS, the Ami 6, the SM... After passing the Champ-Brulé equestrian centre, the route returns to the village via the beautiful Chemin du Mortripié, which has been reopened by the local council.

Walking Verneuil-sur-Avre - La Ferté-Vidame

Visorando member
Verneuil-sur-Avre - La Ferté-Vidame
↔25.30 km ↗+129 m ↘-59 m ◔7h 35 ▲Difficult
⚑Departure from Verneuil-sur-Avre (Eure)
To mark the centenary of Maurice de Vlaminck's move to La Tourillière near Rueil-la-Gadelière, a few kilometres from Verneuil-sur-Avre, recently renamed Verneuil d'Avre et d'Iton, this tour offers a three-stage discovery of the region that inspired the painter.A hunter, fisherman, walker, cyclist, motorist and motorcyclist, he came to settle here to find peace and inspiration. From 1925 until his death in 1958, under an often changeable sky dotted with clouds, the painter tirelessly explored these landscapes of fields, copses and the vast forest of Senonches, in search of subjects for his many paintings.We will first go from Verneuil to La Ferté-Vidame, passing by his grave in the cemetery of Rueil, his bust sculpted by his friend Paul Belmondo in front of the town hall, and above all his home in La Tourillière, preserved in the state in which he lived.

Walking In the land of Vlaminck

Visorando member
Au pays de Vlaminck
↔58.03 km ↗+193 m ↘-159 m ◔3 days ▲Difficult
⚑Departure from Verneuil-sur-Avre (Eure)
In the centenary year of Maurice de Vlaminck's move to La Tourillière near Verneuil-sur-Avre, here is a journey through his heartland between Verneuil-sur-Avre and La Loupe. These towns are both served by railway stations that can be reached from Paris Montparnasse. Woods, fields and forests were the inspiration for many of the painter's works. With cloudy skies guaranteed, take a stroll through the landscapes that so strongly inspired this colourful, versatile artist, where he welcomed the greatest celebrities of his time.

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