Mauressac circular

An easy hike between hills and fields.

Details

3597135
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Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 16.32 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 221 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 220 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 321 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 188 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Mauressac (31190)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 43.324013° / E 1.434293°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 2145O
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Description of the walk

(S/E) Start at the church in Mauressac.
Head south-west along the main street and climb up to the small bridge on the left, which takes you onto Chemin de Dorus.
Follow this path downhill to the bridge over the stream.

(1) Cross and climb up the winding path through the woods to reach the D28f tarmac road.

(2) At the road, turn left for about 100 metres, then turn right onto Chemin de Tardu.

(3) At the crossroads, turn left towards Carbonnel and, at the end of the tarmac road, continue straight ahead along the dirt track through the woods until you reach the D12 road.

(4) Turn left and continue for about 100 metres. When you reach the posts marking a gas pipe, cross over and take the path on the right.

(5) Take the first road on the left and follow it straight ahead until you reach the D40 tarmac road after Monplaisir.

(6) Follow the D40 to the right (caution: heavy traffic) for about 500 m. Cross the bridge and immediately afterwards, take the path on the left along the stream.

(7) Continue straight ahead, cross the D622 and continue to an old brick bridge on the left near the house in the hamlet of Bourse.

(8) Cross the bridge and follow the path straight ahead across the fields. Cross the D12 again and take the tarmac road opposite for about 100 metres.

(9) Turn left onto Chemin des Izards. Follow the road to the centre of the village of Lagrâce-Dieu.

(10) On the square, after the church, turn left and cross the D622 to climb Chemin des Orts opposite until you reach the intersection at the top.

(11) Follow the road to the right onto Chemin de Marsoula. Pass the hamlet of Esquive and arrive at a right-angle bend.

(12) Take the path opposite and follow it, which is narrow in places and may be muddy, through the Bois de La Mecque until you reach the tarmac road.
See alternative route in the practical information section.

(13) At the road, turn left. Pass the hamlet of La Mecque and, at the next bend, take the path on the right at the edge of the woods.

(14) At the edge of the woods, continue along the path on the right and follow it until you reach the tarmac road.

(15) At the road, turn right, then left. Pass in front of the cemetery and return to your starting point at Mauressac Church (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 216 m - Church of Mauressac
  2. 1 : km 0.73 - alt. 210 m - Bridge and stream
  3. 2 : km 1.38 - alt. 271 m - Route D28f
  4. 3 : km 1.84 - alt. 270 m - Towards Carbonnel
  5. 4 : km 2.99 - alt. 198 m - Route D12
  6. 5 : km 3.69 - alt. 194 m - End of the field
  7. 6 : km 4.31 - alt. 195 m - Route D40
  8. 7 : km 4.98 - alt. 195 m - Path on the left after the bridge
  9. 8 : km 6.99 - alt. 189 m - Old brick bridge in Bourse
  10. 9 : km 8.18 - alt. 198 m - Chemin des Izards
  11. 10 : km 8.99 - alt. 204 m - Lagrace-Dieu
  12. 11 : km 9.63 - alt. 244 m - Chemin de Marsoula
  13. 12 : km 10.41 - alt. 277 m - Entrance to the woods
  14. 13 : km 12.84 - alt. 308 m - Exit from the woods
  15. 14 : km 14.5 - alt. 309 m - After La Mecque
  16. 15 : km 15.35 - alt. 256 m - Return to Mauressac
  17. S/E : km 16.32 - alt. 217 m - Church of Mauressac

Notes

Fountain at Lagrâce-Dieu (water not drinkable)

(12) Alternative: if the weather is wet and the ground muddy, this path through the woods quickly becomes impassable. In this case, at the right-angle bend, you can continue along the road to a place called "Jean Blanc" and then follow a long dirt track to the tarmac road.

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 13 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.1 / 5
wol14
wol14

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hello, good route but a lot of mud, which is normal as it rained during the week before we arrived.

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gasfranc
gasfranc

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 23, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant and varied hike: plains, hills, villages, farmland and woods.
A slightly boring section in the agricultural plains of Auterive, but a beautiful route through the woods with lovely views along the ridge and even glimpses of Toulouse in the distance.
For your information, there are existing yellow markings and a possible extension along a botanical trail of a few kilometres (5?) starting from Mauressac with excellent little information sheets.

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kiki2711
kiki2711

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 15, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The start is pleasant from points 1 to 4. The stretch across the plain from points 4 to 11 is long and tedious. Fortunately, the rapeseed was in bloom to brighten up this stretch, which I found uninteresting otherwise.
From point 11 to the finish, the walk through the woods is really nice, with botanical information boards at various points along the way.

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Santiago3164
Santiago3164

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 09, 2021
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 lovely elevated paths. A word of advice: if possible, take a short detour halfway through the hike to visit the beautiful Romanesque church in Mailhoc. It also offers shelter in case of rain.

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Andrép
Andrép

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 24, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Dry weather

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SEM
SEM

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 05, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Very good, but we only went as far as the main road and back (we are 83 years old).
5,785 steps, 4.9 km, elevation gain of 19 floors.
At the start, after crossing the stream, don't go straight up, as this is the bed of a dry river. We took this route, but it's quite strenuous. Instead, take the small path that branches off slightly to the right, parallel to the river bed, which is a small path in the middle of the forest (we took this on the way back). At the top, near the main road, we followed a very pleasant forest path to the left of a large pasture, until we reached the main road.

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Bernard CONDAMINES
Bernard CONDAMINES

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 15, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely little walk in almost summery weather.
Some difficulty following the trail in the woods because my smartphone battery died after three hours of walking and a half-hour break. The latest version of the Visorando app is really too power-hungry. A real disaster.
Don't miss the sculptures in Mauressac.

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gerti
gerti

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 17, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Hello,

My wife and I did this hike yesterday.
In fact, the description follows yellow markings all the way – and we wondered why the trail passes through this dreary agro-industrial plain for an hour and a half, in a rectangular shape, with nothing of interest.
As soon as the trail crosses to the south side of the main road, it's fine. There are hills, a bit of forest, and quite a bit of paved road. All in all, not recommended.

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GMR
GMR

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 17, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Despite the rain, we enjoyed this walk.
There was a bit too much tarmac, but given the weather, that wasn't a problem!
A few muddy sections added to the charm!
No more than four hours of walking!
Difficult to park at the start!

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Bouboulina
Bouboulina

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 19, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Hike on 19 January 2021, very clear and very cool weather, we could see the snow-capped Pyrenees. Four hours of walking, few elevation changes, but moderately interesting. And very muddy, even if you don't go through the woods at the end of the hike (at point 12, follow the yellow markings rather than the GPX track). And few trees to provide shade if you decide to do it again in the summer.

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jean paul portal
jean paul portal

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

_

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pit31
pit31

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 25, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

This route is also marked in yellow (PR).
The duration is only 4 hours, not 5 hours 15 minutes.
Beautiful view of the region.

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mariepaule47200
mariepaule47200

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 30, 2020
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hello,
Hike completed in good weather – 17 km. Paths passable despite the rain in previous days. The trail in the Mecque woods is very pleasant (two or three tree trunks across the path, but easy to step over). A walking stick is recommended as there are a few slightly slippery sections. The long straight stretch between 7 and 8 is quite tedious, mainly on tarmac and without shade, but I didn't see any alternative for completing the circular route.
It was a bit difficult to park near the church (5 cars) as almost all the parking spaces were already taken.
No opinion on the description, as I only used the GPX track without any difficulty.
Thank you for this route, which is a little off the beaten track of the official marked circular.

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