Jaudrais circular via the Grande Vallée

Jaudrais is accessible via the D140 between Senonches and Châteauneuf-en-Thymerais. Parking is available in front of the church.

No signposting

(S/E) With your back to Jaudrais church, turn right and head down the road that passes in front of the town hall. At the junction, turn right onto the D140.12, towards Maillebois. After the left-hand bend, continue straight ahead along the track until you reach the hamlet of Les Mares.

(1) Opposite No. 23, take the road on the left which crosses the hamlet. At the junction with the D30, continue straight ahead along the path which goes round the Bois Bouleau.

(2) At the road, turn left towards Jaudrais. At Bois Bouleau, just before No. 18, turn right onto the small road and, at the next junction, continue straight ahead along the path. Cross the Vau valley. View of the castle ruins. You’ll reach a road (D321.12) at the corner of the castle park wall.

(3) Continue along the path opposite, following the wall, then soon leave it behind and reach the Cour d’Aumoy. Carry on to the D321.

(4) Cross it carefully and head straight on towards La Mardelle. Ignore the road on the right and you’ll soon reach a four-way junction.

(5) Turn right (D30), follow the road carefully along the right-hand verge, pass under the high-voltage power line and head down towards the Houillé valley.

(6) Pass through the hollow of the valley and walk up it for a few metres. Cross carefully to take the path on the left, which first follows the valley and then climbs up to the right to join a road. Follow it to the left (D321.3) towards the farm in the hamlet of La Barre.

(7) At the three-way junction with a grassy island in the middle, continue left along the descending road until you reach the path branching off to the left 50 metres before the bridge over the Grande Vallée.

Yellow and red markings

(8) 50 m before the bridge, turn left onto the path that crosses the Grande Vallée and enters the Châteauneuf-en-Thymerais State Forest. At the forest entrance, follow the edge of the forest to the left. Further on, leave the GRP® trail, which climbs steeply to the right at the end of the Route Royale.

No signposting

Take the track opposite, which runs alongside a plot planted with tall fir trees, and join the Route Forestière du Houillé. Turn right, pass a wooden building and reach the entrance to a track on the left which skirts the Bois des Mores.

(9) Follow this track until you reach the Route Forestière de Jaudrais.

(10) Follow it to the left for about fifty metres. You’ll reach the entrance to a track branching off diagonally to the right (plot sign 38). Take this track, cross a forest road that runs through the Bois de Jaudrais and continue straight ahead to the next track. Turn left along a new plot of conifers and reach its corner.

(11) Turn right, skirting the plot, and continue straight on along the path which leads to the edge of the woodland, behind the houses at Les Piperaux and then La Hennerie. The path becomes a track running alongside the road serving the hamlet, then winds its way above the D140. Join the Allée Centrale, which, on the right, leads to the D140 at the entrance to Jaudrais.

(12) Turn left onto the D140. Danger! Due to new roadworks near the bridge over the Grande Vallée, cross the road carefully first. Follow the right-hand verge. Cross the bridge using the zebra crossings. At the junction, continue alongside the cemetery to reach the car park in front of Jaudrais church (S/E).

(7) Wear sturdy shoes, as the paths can be muddy when it rains.

During hunting season, check the hunting calendar for the Eure-et-Loir national forests on the website https://eure-et-loir.ffrandonnee.fr/. There is no hunting in national forests on Sundays and public holidays.

(S/E) Jaudrais is said to take its name from a Germanic name; the commune suffered greatly during the Hundred Years' War and, much closer to home, during the fighting in 1940.

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church
The church, which was partially destroyed during the bombings of June 1940, has only been partially rebuilt. Upon entering the cemetery, you pass under an arch that was the old gate and enter a sort of courtyard surrounded by walls forming a gallery housing a few statues that remain from the abandoned nave. The stained glass windows are currently being restored by a young stained glass artist from Digny.

(3) Jaudrais Castle and its grounds: This castle, now in ruins (a large part of the tower remains, and the rest is occupied by farm buildings), was once very important; it is said to have corresponded with the Grey Tower of Verneuil; it was occupied by renowned lords (the de Courseulles family, a branch of which were the lords and glassmakers of Tardais, then by the d'Aligre family - (owners of the Château des Vaux) ). All that remains is a tower partially surrounded by moats.

(4) La Cour d'Aumoy. The term "Cour" is common in the names of hamlets or villages ("cour" or "court" = dwelling). The term "Aumoy" may come from "hamlet" or "ormeau".

(5) La Mardelle evokes a small pond.

(7) La Barre. As we know, in the past, all possible sources of hydraulic energy were used; the small stream in the "Grande Vallée" was therefore "barred" and a mill was installed on its course. At the top of the hill: Mi-les champs, on the other side of the Grande Vallée, is also marked on maps as Mille Champs.

The Houillé forest road - Le Houillé is a small seasonal stream, a tributary of the Grande Vallée. The name is enigmatic (presence of holly, place worked with a hoe, place where sheep are raised (ouilles)?

The Bois des Mores. This is a sort of enclave of the commune of Digny in the Bois de Jaudrais... and another strange name: is it a distortion of "mures" (blackberries)? Or of "marchais" (ponds)?

The Bois de Jaudrais. It is very pleasant to walk through, but its location on the northern slope of the Grande Vallée undoubtedly caused Jaudrais a great deal of trouble during wars both ancient and recent (battles of the wars of 1870 and 1940). According to archivist Lefèvre (1850), there were two ponds in this wood, the Mouchot and the Cuisine.

According to Paul Alexandre, local historian - notebook no. 46 of the Bulletins published by the Senonchois Cultural Association "Balades en toponymie" (Walks in Toponymy): (out of print)

Nearby:

Senonches: 8 km Small town of character Castle museum - Shops - Huttopia holiday village.

Châteauneuf-en-Thymerais: 9 km away Shops.

La Ferté-Vidame 18 km Small town of character. Park and ruined castle of the Marquis de la Borde - Espace - Saint-Simon.

Rueil-la-Gadelière 23 km away "La Tourillière" Home of Maurice de Vlaminck. Visits on certain dates. https://www.maisonvlaminck.fr/
The painter often came to Jaudrais and walked in the forest and at Châteauneuf. Madeleine, the eldest of the three daughters from his first marriage, had married a farmer who came to run a farm near La Hennerie.
Vlaminck, who was also a writer, had published a book recounting life in Jaudrais. To cover his tracks, he had titled it "La Haute Folie," which was actually the name of the farm next to La Tourillière. But the locals recognised themselves and were not particularly pleased with the image Vlaminck had painted of their village.