Loop of Milly-la-Forêt via the Vanne and Loing aqueducts

Departure from the Church of Notre-Dame de l'Assomption, in Milly-la-Forêt. Park in the car park on Place Grammont, at the foot of the church. See alternative starting points in the practical information section.

Red and white + yellow signposts

(S/E) When you leave the car park, turn left and walk alongside the church. At the corner, turn right into Rue Notre-Dame (dead end). At the end, turn left alongside a wash house. You will come out onto a boulevard (Boulevard Félix Éboué on the map) and follow it to the right. At the next intersection, turn left onto Rue Léopold Bédu.

(1) Cross the École river and, at the next intersection, turn right towards the Jardins de Saint-Laurent (the purple line supposed to represent the^GR®32on the 1:25,000 map is not updated here). Cross Rue du Pan de l'Oreille on the left and walk along the Jardins de Saint-Laurent on the right (retirement home).

(2) At the corner of the fence, follow a gravel path to the right (not shown on the 1:25,000 map). Turn left onto the grassy path and follow the fence on your left. At the end, turn left and follow the D837 at a distance below. Cross Rue Louis Pasteur and continue along the D837, now on a cycle path.

(3) After about 100 metres, cross the D837 in two stages (be careful, busy road). Continue opposite on the cycle path. Follow a small car park (information sign) and go straight ahead. About 400 metres after the car park, you will see a sign for Cyclop on the left.

(4) Leave the signposts for a moment and follow the direction indicated (if you feel like it). After about 150 metres, you will reach the monumental sculpture in its enclosure. Retrace your steps.

(4) Continue north along the cycle path. After about 150m, ignore the yellow arrow indicating a left turn and continue straight ahead (there are two^PR® signs here). Pass a forest barrier and continue along Rue de Cochet.

No signposts

(5) At the fork, continue straight ahead (ignore the arrow indicating to turn left onto Rue Adonis Rousseau). Follow Rue de Cochet north, ignoring the side streets on the left. At the end, turn right onto Rue à Moisy.

Red and white signposts

At the end, follow the Grand Rue to the left (be careful) with the^GR®11. After about 20 metres, cross the street at the pedestrian crossing and continue north. After another 20 metres, turn right onto the Sentier des Courtils de la Ville.

After a left-hand bend, continue straight ahead along the path between garden walls and watercress beds, ignoring the paths on the left. At a T-junction, turn left. You will come out onto the Grande Rue again and follow it to the right to arrive at the foot of the church in Moigny-sur-École.

Red and white + yellow markings

(6) Then turn right onto Rue du Moulin. Cross a stabilised path on the left and note an old military marker with the number 21 on the right. Continue along the street, cross the École (river) on a wooden bridge and follow the Moulin Grenat. Continue along a small road. When it turns right, leave it and take a path through the woods. Wind your way along the wall of the Château de Courances park on your left. Come out at the edge of a field and arrive at a T-junction (signpost).

(7) Turn left and, after a short stretch through the woods, follow a large lawn on your right (possibly a polo field). Come out onto a small road and follow it to the left. Turn right with the road and pass a gate with a view of the castle grounds (pond) on your left. You will arrive at Place Charles de Gaulle, a triangular square with an old wash house on your left and the Church of Saint-Étienne on your right.

Yellow signposting

(8) Then take the^second street on the right and walk along the war memorial on your left. At the corner of the town hall/school, turn right and then left to enter a path between two walls. At the end, cross the street and continue straight ahead towards Paris and the cemetery. At the stop sign, continue straight ahead on Rue de la Grange Rouge.

(9) At the next crossroads, cross Rue des Tilleuls on the right and continue along the street with the calvary on your left. At the stop sign, cross the D372 (be careful, this is a busy road) and continue straight ahead on a small road. Follow the cemetery on your right, go through a metal gate and continue straight ahead between two recently cleared forest plots. At the crossroads (elevation 86), turn left (private property on the right).

N.B. Between points (10) and (13), the route is on the embankment of the Aqueduc de la Vanne et du Loing, on paths not shown on the IGN map but which are shown on the OSM Trails map.

(10) At the crossroads (paved area), turn right. Go uphill with a fence on your left at some distance. After a slight descent, at a crossroads (metal gate on the left), continue straight ahead and go uphill again. Continue on flat ground, the path becoming narrower. At another junction (metal gate on the left), continue straight ahead. Further on, descend and, at the bottom, turn left onto the path.

(11) Go through a metal gate (close it behind you) and immediately turn right and then left to get back onto the flat ground of the aqueduct. Pass between two masonry structures, turn right and descend gently. Cross a small road and continue straight ahead.

(12) Go through two metal gates and enter the Trois Pignons national forest. Pass a spillway on the left and a masonry structure on the right. Then climb steeply up through small rocks. Leave two masonry structures on your right and continue climbing. After a flat section, descend, alternating between sandstone steps and the path. At the bottom, bear right and follow the aqueduct arches on your left to the end (cross the Route de la Roche qui Tourne and ignore the passage on the left under the arches).

Red and white markings

(13) At the end, turn right, climb a flight of steps and follow the^GR®11towards Milly-la-Forêt. Wind your way between the rocks and climb, alternating between the path and sandstone steps. At the top, at an intersection, turn right (west) and continue on flat ground. After about 150m, turn left (south-west). At the end of the path, turn left and then right and walk alongside the Ferme de Coquibus. At the corner of the building, turn left and, at the information sign, turn right to reach a crossroads.

(14) Then turn right. After about 100 metres, at a wooden gate, turn left to follow the^GR® trail towards Milly (the^GR®11continues straight ahead). At the foot of a watchtower, continue straight ahead, ignoring the vague paths on either side. Go downhill, cross a bridle path and stay on the Chemin des Grands Longs Vaux (signposted), which is initially stony and then sandy.

(15) At the end (car park on the right), follow a paved road with a 30 km/h speed limit on the left. Leave the forest and continue between the fields on a wide, stable track. Ignore a path coming from the left (elevation 77). At the T-junction, zigzag left and right to cross the D837 (be careful). Continue downhill to the left on a small paved road. After about 200 metres, before the 30 km/h speed limit sign, leave the paved road and take a grassy path on the left. At the end, continue along Rue du Guichet. Go straight ahead until you reach Boulevard du Maréchal Foch and follow it to the left.

(16) At the next crossroads, turn right onto Rue Langlois, towards the market hall. Continue straight ahead and, after about 100 metres, look for the market hall on your left. Continue straight ahead on Rue Langlois towards the church. Pass the Porte du Moustier on your right, then the town hall on your left. You will then see Place de Grammont and Milly-la-Forêt church on your left (S/E).

Hiking boots recommended.

No water sources identified along the route. Bars, restaurants and shops in Milly-la-Forêt, around the Halle. Bar-restaurant and small grocery store in Moigny-sur-École opposite the church (6).

A 1:25,000 map is useful (at least the one accompanying this description).

Alternative starting points:
- Along Boulevard Félix Éboué in Milly-la-Fôret, between (S/E) and .
- Small car park at Cyclop, between and (4).
- Car park at the Moigny-sur-École cemetery, along Rue de Verdun, off the route near (6).
- Parking lot at the church in Moigny-sur-École (6).

Hike completed by the author on 20 January 2019.

From Milly-la-Forêt (S/E) to Moigny-sur-École (6):
- Notre-Dame de l'Assomption Church (15th-17th centuries) (S/E). Open on Saturdays and Sundays from 2.30pm to 5pm.
- Wash house at the end of Rue Notre-Dame, shortly after (S/E).
- Le Cyclop (4). A monumental sculpture (22.5 metres high) installed in the forest between 1969 and 1994, designed by Jean Tinguely (1925-1991) and Niki de Saint-Phalle (1930-2002) and created with the collaboration of several artists. The monument is located in a large enclosure but can be seen from outside. The site is open to the public from April to mid-November. Guided tours (€7.50 per person in 2019).
- Watercress beds in Moigny-sur-École, before (6).

From Moigny-sur-École (6) to Courances (8):
- Saint-Denis Church (12th-15th centuries) (6).
- Military boundary stone (17th century), shortly after (6). You can visit a watercress bed just a few dozen metres away by taking a path that branches off to the right between a lamppost and the boundary stone.
- Grenat Mill (15th century) between (6) and (7).
- Gaps in the grounds of the Château de Courances between (7) and (8).
- Saint-Etienne Church (12th-17th centuries) in Courances (8).
- Saint-Etienne wash house and fountain (8).

From Courances (8) to the Carrefour de Coquibus (14):
- Courances cemetery, after (9). Military graves of six British airmen shot down on mission in June 1944; they were aged between 19 and 24... Grave of fashion designer Nina Ricci (1883-1970).
- Sandstone rocks, after (12).
- Arcades of the Vanne and Loing Aqueduct (13).

From the Carrefour de Coquibus (14) to Milly-la-Forêt (S/E):
- Pleasant forest walk between (14) and (15).
- Milly-la-Forêt market hall (late 15th century), shortly after (16).
- Port du Moustier Péronne, shortly before (S/E): remains of a monastery dating from the 7th century.

Off the route:
- Jean Cocteau's house. Immediately after setting off (S/E), take Rue Notre-Dame on the left. At the end, turn right. Open on Saturdays and Sundays from 2pm to 6pm.
- Lavoir de la Bonde (1883) and Château de Milly-la-Forêt (late 15th-19th centuries), shortly after (S/E), continuing straight ahead on Rue Langlois.
- Château de Courances (17th-19th centuries). At (8), turn left and leave the war memorial on your right. Turn left onto Rue du Moulin and immediately right onto Rue de l'Abreuvoir. At the end, turn left and follow the D901 road to the main gate of the château. Visits (park and/or castle) are only available from 2pm to 6pm on Saturdays and Sundays, as well as public holidays, from^{the first} weekend in April to^{the first} weekend in November. Allow around 1km for the round trip to this delightful spot.