Circular Rontalon route via Saint-André-la-Côte, Riverie and Saint-Didier

By car: coming from Thurins-le-Pont, in the village centre, take Rue de l’Ancien Couvent on the right, pass the Paul Buyer Museum and park in the ‘Parking des Randonneurs’ car park.

(S/E) At the ‘Parking des Randonneurs’ sign on the right, head towards Le Roman. At the fork, leave the car park exit on your right and go down the gully-like path on the left. After the right-hand bend, join a street leading to the hamlet of Le Roman.

(1) At the “Le Roman” sign, follow the signs for Le Pin des Meules by heading up the street on the left. At the first junction, turn right. After 30 m, leave the street and take a sunken, muddy track on the left – this is the start of the botanical trail – then, about 500 m further on, you’ll reach a crossroads (elevation 472).
(2) At the “Le Pin des Meules” sign, take the^GR®®765East, to the left, towards the “Le Violet” junction.

(3) At the sign for “Le Violet”, head left towards Croix Thomas via the GR®^®. Cross the Bois du Grand Bacha and, via a flat stretch, arrive at a crossroads where the botanical trail ends (elevation 549). Opposite, take a road for about fifty metres. Leave it as it bends to the left and continue straight on along a path which soon splits in two.

(4) At the “Croix Thomas” sign, follow the sunken path up to the left towards La Trêve. Join a road and take it to the right. In the hamlet of Tiremanteau, do not take the path leading uphill to the left; instead, ignore the road towards Le Combet on the right and proceed to a crossroads (elevation 631).

(5) At the “La Trêve” sign, continue straight ahead towards Croix Forest. Cross the D75 road and follow a path running alongside it below. You’ll reach a crossroads at the foot of a disused railway bridge (elevation 665).

(6) At the “Croix Forest” sign, head towards Monchard by crossing the D34 towards Chaussan, then turn left onto the one-way street that runs up alongside the left abutment of the bridge. Turn onto a sunken track on the right and emerge onto a road.
(7) At the “Monchard” sign, follow the signs for Sagnirand / Saint-André-la-Côte along the road to the right; then, 30 metres further on, leave this road and the^GR®®765East as it bends to the right. Turn onto the path on the left, which is almost level (GTML mountain bike sign). Head up to a muddy junction at the corner of the Ferme des Templiers (elevation 767). Continue along the path on the left, ignoring the side paths. Further on, you’ll reach a junction.

(8) At the “Sagnirand” sign, keep to the right towards the nearby junction for the Grenier de Joanny.

(9) At the “Grenier de Joanny” sign. Turn left towards Saint-André-la-Côte onto the^GR®®7marked path, which continues as Rue de la Croix Sainte-Agathe. Ignore the two dead-end roads on the left and at Le Grand Plat, as well as the one on the right at the bend, and head down to a crossroads. Continue straight on along Rue de la Mairie until you reach a junction.

(10) At the sign for “Saint-André-la-Côte. L’Église”, turn right towards Le Bourg / Chemin du Grand Molard for about thirty metres.

(11) At the sign for “Le Bourg”, turn right onto Route de Riverie, signposted^GR®®7, towards Chemin du Grand Molard. On leaving the village, ignore the Route de Bonnefond on the right and the side cul-de-sacs; then, at the Fork in the road marked with a cross, head right onto the Route d’Accolé. At the Fork in the road at the top, on the plateau (elevation 863), at the sign naming the road, keep to the path on the left. Ignore the side paths and continue to a junction.

(12) At the sign for “Chemin du Grand Molard”, head straight down southwards towards Brûle Fer, ignoring a path leading in the opposite direction on the left, until you reach the D113 road.

(13) At the “Brûle Fer” sign, follow the road to the right towards the Chemin des Servannières. As you come out of the left-hand bend, leave the D113 and turn onto the first road on the right to reach a junction with a track.

(14) At the “Chemin des Servannières” sign, leave the^GR®®7, head down to the left towards Le Lavoir and come out onto a track. Take this track to the right, then rejoin the D113; follow it for about 50 metres straight ahead to reach a junction (elevation 712).

(15) At the sign for “Le Lavoir”, continue straight on towards the Croix de la Barre and arrive at Rue des Farges.

(16) At the “Croix de la Barre” sign, turn left towards La Richaudière. After about twenty metres, at the junction of three streets, take the middle one leading down to the left of a large stone cross; at the Fork in the road, about 50 m further on, turn onto the path on the left and, after about 40 m, ignore the path on the left. Continue straight ahead along the stony, water-runoff-streaked path. Pass a path on your right and head for a junction in front of a house.

(17) At the sign for “La Richaudière”, turn left towards the stadium, then take a street and continue straight ahead.
Pass the side streets going in the opposite direction, cross the D63E road and follow the path opposite until you reach the junction, where the road is restricted in height by a barrier.

(18) At the “Le Stade” sign, head straight on towards the nearby Croix Bachasse junction.

(19) At the “Croix Bachasse” sign, turn right towards Saint-Didier-sous-Riverie Le Bourg. Ignore the Chemin des Rivières on the left and then the street on the right, staying on Rue du Repos. Join the Route des Monts du Lyonnais and continue straight ahead towards the centre of the village. Pass the Rue du Pavé on your right towards the church and, about thirty metres further on, you’ll come to a narrow lane on your left.

(20) At the sign for “Saint-Didier-sous-Riverie Le Bourg”, take the lane towards Le Nicolas. The path continues to a junction. Leave it straight ahead and follow the sign for “Chemin”, heading down to the right, skirting a copse and reaching a junction. Head right downhill; at the junction, turn right and follow a street alongside the Ferme des Rivaux, ignoring the other roads on the right. At its left-hand bend, leave it and continue along a path straight ahead until you reach a crossroads.

(21) At the sign for “Le Nicolas”, turn right towards Pont de Missilieu. Pass a pumping station on your right and come out onto a road. Head left towards the hamlet of Missilieu. In the centre, ignore the Route de la Fillonnière on the left; stay on the Route de Missilieu and carry on straight ahead. Cross the bridge over the Ruisseau de Fondagny; just after this, you’ll come to a junction with a footpath on the left.

(22) At the “Pont de Missilieu” sign, turn left onto the path towards Fond Mathieu. Cross the stream’s ford in a rather precarious manner, using stones and pieces of wood. Climb up a disused sunken track. Then, in open country, cross a path and, at the top, reach a crossroads (elevation 442). Ignore the roads to the right and left and take the one straight ahead to reach a fork in the road.

(23) At the “Fond Mathieu” sign, take the ascending lane towards La Fillonnière, ignoring the road to the left. Continue along a path until you reach a road. Follow it to the right, pass through the hamlet of La Fillonnière, ignoring the side streets, and reach a junction at the upper end of the small village.

(24) At the “La Fillonnière” sign, take the road on the left towards Verzieux. After a right-hand bend, ignore a road on the left and continue to a Fork in the road.

(25) At the “Verzieux” sign, continue straight on towards Vendessieux / l’Éteillé, ignoring any side roads. At the fork, head towards an iron cross by taking the road on the left; at its base, leave this road to climb a path straight ahead which, at the top, joins the Route de Saint-Sorlin (D63E).
(26) At the “Vendessieux” sign, cross the road and continue towards l’Éteillé along the sunken path opposite, running alongside an orchard. At the top, cross the Route de Riverie D63 and continue along the lane opposite leading to the hamlet of Vendessieux. Ignore the side streets and, at the end of the hamlet, continue along an ascending path. On a flat stretch, begin the long traverse through the forest. Turn left and head uphill (north-west) for about a hundred metres. At the junction marked by a cairn (alt. 650 m), ignore the path opposite and turn onto the one on the right, which is almost level. Climb gradually until you reach a junction (alt. 710 m).

(27) At the sign for “l’Éteillé”, continue straight on towards Les Châtaigniers. At the following right-hand bend, cross a stream and head down the stony, muddy path on the right. After a left-hand bend, where the path resembles a deep, muddy trench, avoid it by following the track on the left which runs alongside it at the top. Join it again further on, then reach a fork flanked by a cross. Take the right-hand branch, which, shortly afterwards, crosses the D613 road diagonally and, via a small path, descends to a road, the Chemin d’Arfeuille. Follow this straight ahead until you reach a junction with a path on the right.

(28) At the sign for “Les Châtaigniers”, continue along the road towards Arfeuille. After the^first houses in the hamlet, leave the road and turn onto the first path on the left.

(29) At the “Arfeuille” sign, set back from the road, take the right-hand bend to head for Les Marches. Walk uphill for a long stretch through the woods, ignoring the side paths. Take a wide right-hand bend to cross the Ruisseau du Glas valley and arrive at a crossroads in the hamlet of L’Adret. Cross the Route de L’Adret diagonally and head uphill opposite. At the junction, ignore the street on the right and the path on the left, and follow the one straight ahead. This leads to a junction with an iron cross. Turn onto the path on the right; further down, take the Route de L’Adret on the left and reach the junction with a path on the left.

(30) At the sign for “Les Marches”, stay on the road towards Saint Genoux. Pass a hairpin bend, then at the corner by the Arvin farm, ignore the path on the right. Cross the D34 road – take care – to reach a nearby junction.

(31) At the “Saint Genoux” sign, turn left towards the Bois des Rivoires and, about 50 m further on, head down the stony path on the left. Enter the woods to reach a junction (elevation 570).

(32) At the “Bois des Rivoires” sign, head straight on towards La Ferrandière, following the right bank of the Ruisseau de Cartelier. At the bottom (elevation 513), cross the stream to the left and follow the path up the left bank. Walk past the La Ferrandière farm on your right to reach a road.

(33) At the “La Ferrandière” sign, follow the sign for “Les Basses Garennes”. Cross the road and take the path set back to the right. Descend into a small valley, cross the bridge and turn right to climb back up to the crossroads at the hamlet known as La Julanière. Keep to the road on the right, which further on, at a right-hand bend, ends in a Fork in the road. Leave the private track on your right and continue along the dirt track, which further up joins a track. Follow it downwards straight ahead, ignore the track on the right towards Les Farges and carry on straight ahead to reach a road, the Chemin des Garennes.

(34) At the sign for “Les Basses Garennes”, turn left towards the “Parking des Randonneurs”. Ignore the Chemin des Basses Garennes on the right; in the village, pass the entrance to the car park on the left and then take the cul-de-sac on the right. You’ll come out onto the main road, the D75; turn right onto it and, on the left-hand side after the small square, turn into the access road to the Parking des Randonneurs (S/E).

Route markers
The route is signposted and marked by frequent signs along its entire length.

The small village of Riverie, overlooking the surrounding area from the eastern slope, has retained the characteristic features of its medieval past as an important barony, with its narrow streets lined with old houses, the remains of its ramparts and its fortified castle. From its terrace and the rampart walk, there is a sweeping view of the Rhône Valley and the Alps. In the centre, be sure to note in particular the medieval chapel, now a church, and the Market Square with its former hospital.