Crève-Coeur circular

Easy parking near the church.

(S/E) Walk downhill for about 50 metres towards the north until you reach the three-way junction marked by two large trees. Take the Chemin des Vignes de Doye (tarmac road) on the far right (east). Leave the marked path on your right and continue to the next fork, where you will find a picnic table.

(1) Turn right (north-east) onto the white path (yellow markings) which climbs between the meadows and then the vineyards. There is a beautiful view to the left over the Bresse plain, the foothills of the Jura and the village of Beaufort. Pass an isolated vineyard hut near a fountain and continue along the same path, which winds its way through vineyards, pastures and woods until you reach a fork marked by a signpost for "La Carroz".

(2) Descend to the left (north-northeast) on the stony path (still marked in yellow), which winds twice before reaching a tarmac road. Descend to the left (west-southwest) for a few metres.
Turn right (north) onto a small path that descends into the undergrowth (still marked in yellow). It widens and winds more or less along the hillside to a clearing shaded by tall trees, equipped with picnic tables and enclosed to the north by a fence and a few sections of stone wall (remains of Beaufort Castle, private property).

(3) Cross the clearing, leaving the picnic tables on your left and climbing diagonally (north-northeast) to the signpost "Les Tilleuls de Beaufort". Then follow the arrow "Belvédère" to the right (south) to climb the wide stony path which soon turns left (east).

Shortly after the bend, leave the yellow markings: a few rocky steps to the right of the path and a grassy track between trimmed bushes lead east-south-east to the viewpoint on the edge of the tarmac road (bench), just below the clearly visible statue of the Virgin Mary. Beautiful panorama over the Bresse plain, Revermont and the village of Beaufort. You can even see the bell tower of Maynal to the south-west.

(4) Turn your back on the panorama and take the tarmac road to the left (north, then east) until you reach the sign for "Site de la Madone". Then turn left (northeast) onto a path that descends to a large gravel picnic area. Cross this area straight ahead, leaving a cement table on your left, then a pigeon shooting range (small slabs on the ground and a cement shelter).

(5) Just to the right of the shooting range, take a grassy path that descends towards the northeast, then veers north to the crossroads marked by the signpost "La Croisée". Turn right onto the yellow-marked path that climbs through the undergrowth towards the east-southeast, then north-northeast, to the "Côte Molard" crossroads (signpost), where you reach the pastures.

Go straight up (north) towards Crève-Coeur on the stony path that reaches the road near a water tank. Leave the tank on your left and continue climbing on the tarmac road to the square in the hamlet of Crève-Coeur, which has two fountains, one on the left (west) and the other on the right (east).

(6) At the signpost just before the fountain on the left, turn left (north) towards Sainte-Agnès, taking the stony path that descends to a vineyard, which it runs alongside on the left. At the fork at the bottom of the vineyard, follow the yellow markings to the right (north-north-east) until you reach the tarmac road.
Take this road to the right until you reach the first crossroads, marked by a walnut tree.

(7) Take the tarmac road to the right (north-east) and, at the fork immediately after, leave the yellow markings and take the right-hand branch (towards "Rotalier", mountain bike trail no. 26). The tarmac road climbs then descends, gradually turning east-south-east, until you reach a farm shed set back slightly to the left of the road, from where you can see the houses of the hamlet of En Fromencé.

(8) A few dozen metres after the shed, climb the fairly steep tarmac path on the right, which comes in diagonally from behind. It soon turns left, becomes stony and continues to climb between the vineyards towards the south-west until it reaches a path with a signpost for "Haut de la Chanée". Here you will join the^GR® 59 (white and red markings are fairly rare and sometimes not very logical).

(9) Take the^GR® to the right (south-southeast).

(10) At the signpost marked "Curenne", follow the bend to the right (west). At the next bend, follow the^GR® markings, ignoring the forest path that comes up opposite (not shown on the map), and continue climbing to the left (east-northeast). At the next junctions, stay on the^GR® which is the main path and follow it to the tarmac road, turn right (south) and follow it for 400m to the Chailles hunting lodge (picnic table and canopy that can be used as a temporary shelter for a few people).

(11) Almost opposite the hut, on the other side of the road, take the path that leads into the woods towards the south-west. At the next fork, turn left (west-south-west) and join the tarmac road, turning right (west-south-west). You are now back on the^GR®59.
At the next crossroads (signpost "Le Boutot"), turn left (south-south-west) onto the wide stony path going uphill (towards Grand Rambey). The^GR® markings seem to be missing at the junction, but there is an orange arrow on a tree to the left of the path. At the next fork (signpost "la Scie"), turn right, still heading towards Grand Rambey.

(12) At the signpost marked "Chênes Clairs", leave the^GR® and take the path down to the right (west-southwest, towards Grand Rambey). At the crossroads at the bottom of the slope, before reaching the meadows, continue straight ahead until you reach the tarmac road at the entrance to the hamlet of Grand Rambey.
Follow it to the left (west) for 80 metres, and near an iron cross, take the stony path marked in yellow that climbs to the right (north) to the Baccailla crossroads (signpost).

(13) Take the path that climbs to the left (west-northwest, towards "Stèle de Lanézia"). The path turns to the left (southwest), continues to climb, then descends. At the bottom of the descent, at the fork with no sign, continue straight ahead (yellow markings a little further on), ignoring the path that descends to the right. The path descends again, becomes narrower and meets a wider cross path, which you should take to the left (south), still descending. It begins to climb gently from a sharp left turn.

(14) Shortly after this bend and just before the path widens (woodpile) followed by a right-hand bend, take a barely visible, unmarked path on the right that leads into the undergrowth towards the south, then veers right (south-west) as it climbs. More or less narrow, it winds up and down but generally keeps heading southwest, arriving at the Lanézia memorial, a monument erected in memory of resistance fighters who died in combat.

After the monument, the path becomes very wide and grassy, and continues to descend in the same south-westerly direction. When it meets another path coming from the right, turn left until you reach the tarmac road.

(15) Follow this road to the right (west) until you reach the fountain. Immediately after the fountain, take the road on the right (north-northeast) towards Maynal. Follow this road for 600 metres until it enters the forest and then turns sharply to the right.

(16) In this wide bend, a few metres before a metal drain cover on the right-hand side, take a barely visible path on the left that leads into the woods to the west, then curves to the right (east-northeast). It descends the side of a small valley, then turns left (west) and descends to the bottom of the valley.

When you reach the pastures, you will come to a crossroads. Take the path on the right (north-north-west), which climbs slightly. This path joins the tarmac road. Turn left (north) and walk 500 metres to reach Maynal Church (S/E).

There are a few fountains along the route, but none are marked as drinkable.
There is no real shelter outside the hamlets.
Good hiking boots, gaiters and walking sticks are recommended.

The church at Maynal is remarkable and the climb up its bell tower (117 steps) offers a sweeping panorama of the Bresse plain and the slopes of Revermont.