Circular of the Risle lakes at Ponts Gras

A flat, marshy valley, especially in winter, the Risle valley is bordered by forests on both sides. The ponds dug inthe 20th century alternate with the wet meadows of the ancestral Norman bocage. Encompassing all these landscapes, this route offers one of the few possible crossings of the Risle valley on footpaths.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.81 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 160 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 151 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 114 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 19 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Starting point car park: village square in front of the town hall and school

Markings: Red and whiteGR® 224 markings on both sides of the valley, but the two links crossing the valley are not marked.

Unpaved paths: 60%

(S/E) Opposite the school, turn right and then right again in front of the church to go down Rue du Village. Turn left at the first street, cross the old railway line and take the footpath to the right of a pretty gate: the entrance to this path is marked by a gate that prevents vehicles from passing.

(1) Cross two footbridges over streams. When you reach the lake, follow the path to the right that goes around the lake.

(2) On the other side of the lake, just before the dog training club, take the gate on the right, which allows you to cross the main branch of the Risle on a large concrete bridge (a remnant of the20th-century aggregate quarry) and follow thissecond lake to the right.

(3) Halfway around thissecond lake, take the gate on the right and follow the path to the lake. Cross the Route Départementale 130 with caution and follow it to the right , taking the wide grass verge. After 200 metres, go up the small road on the left and then take the sunken path that follows the bottom of the valley.

(4) At the fork marking the exit from the woods, keep left. At the top, at the crossroads in front of the cottages, turn left. Then, at the crossroads in the hamlet, continue straight ahead to find a path and follow the red and whiteGR® markings.

(5) After the small valley and the high-voltage power line, continue straight ahead (you will leave theGR® markings) to descend through the woods. At the edge of the woods, continue straight ahead and enjoy superb views of the valley and the magnificent pollarded trees.

(6) Cross the RD130 and continue along the small road towards the town hall. At the first crossroads, at the entrance to Corneville-sur-Risle, turn left into Rue des Ponts Gras and cross the valley, continuing straight ahead for 1.2 km.

(7) On the other side of the valley, take the RD39 to the right for 120m, then turn left towards Campigny "Côte du Banneau" and take the first path that climbs to the left, following the red and white markings ofthe GR® 224.

(8) At the top, keep left and continue to follow the GR®. At the edge of the forest, take the small road to the right, still following the GR®.

(9) At Chêne à Leude (an old hollow oak tree, only half of which remains), take thesecond pathon the left called "Impasse du Chêne à Leude". Back on the tarmac, go down to the left and continue straight on after the high-voltage line: the village of Condé is in sight.

(10) At the Calvary, take the path straight ahead. Then, at the first crossroads, turn left to return to the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 32 m - Car park in front of the town hall - Eglise et mairie de Condé-sur-Risle
  2. 1 : km 0.18 - alt. 25 m - Footbridges over streams - Lac communal de Condé-sur-Risle
  3. 2 : km 0.95 - alt. 23 m - Small passage to the right of the dog training club. - Lac communal de Condé-sur-Risle
  4. 3 : km 1.48 - alt. 23 m - Gateway to the 2nd lake
  5. 4 : km 2.98 - alt. 90 m - At the top of the hill
  6. 5 : km 3.63 - alt. 101 m - After the high-voltage power line
  7. 6 : km 5.48 - alt. 27 m - Crossing the D130
  8. 7 : km 6.81 - alt. 21 m - D39 road
  9. 8 : km 7.79 - alt. 99 m - At the top of the hill
  10. 9 : km 8.99 - alt. 113 m - Impasse du Chêne in Leude
  11. 10 : km 10.16 - alt. 49 m - Calvaire
  12. S/E : km 10.81 - alt. 32 m - Car park in front of the town hall - Eglise et mairie de Condé-sur-Risle

Notes

Please note:
- Heavy traffic on the D130: use the grass verge for the 200 metres where you are walking alongside this road.
- When crossing the Risle valley at Ponts Gras: as the meadows are used for flood expansion, the road may be flooded after heavy rainfall in winter and therefore impassable (once or twice a year).

Worth a visit

The two lakes are remnants of aggregate extraction carried out inthe 20th century for embankment and road construction. They have been taken over by the municipalities to host leisure activities such as fishing and walking:
* Condé-sur-Risle municipal lake: an ideal spot for a picnic by the water. The walkway is well maintained, as are other activities (basketball, dog training, village hall). However, swimming is not permitted (people swim at their own risk).
* Appeville-dit-Annebault communal lake: it is gradually returning to its natural state, maintenance
is minimal and the path is barely passable.

At the start: picnic tables and shared garden on the esplanade in front of the town hall, pretty church with a Renaissance porch and old pre-Romanesque door.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5
Based on 8 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.9 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
User 2988957

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 30, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant walk through the Risle and the woods. The route is peaceful.

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Sylvy-rando
Sylvy-rando

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 18, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely hike on Wednesday afternoon. A very pleasant route between lakes, forests and meadows. Despite the beautiful sunshine, I didn't meet anyone. No difficulty for this hike, which I followed using GPS. Thank you very much for sharing.

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Christine TROILLET
Christine TROILLET

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 15, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike with varied landscapes and fairly easy terrain; the paths are well maintained. There are two small, moderate climbs rewarded by very pleasant forest passages.
We didn't meet anyone else despite the mild weather.

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Mimie27
Mimie27

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 10, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

My very first hike using this app, and I'm not disappointed. A beautiful trail through a forest of pine and oak trees, with lots of forest diversity.

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Superbioman76
Superbioman76
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 17, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It was a scorching hot day! Fortunately, most of the route was in the shade... We walk along two lakes and cross the Risle valley in both directions. Very pleasant. Note that at the start, with your back to the town hall, you turn right. You can picnic in the garden next to the town hall in Condé sur Risle, a charming village full of flowers... But there are also lots of places around the first lake...

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benoitrando
benoitrando

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 09, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A superb hike. In Corneville-sur-Risle, I pushed on to the village, and I have no regrets.
As night fell, I didn't make it to the village of Campigny, which I regret, but at the same time, it gives me a reason to come back.
The route is clearly marked, and I had no difficulty finding my way.

Thank you, Dominique, for this magnificent route.

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Dominique Louis
Dominique Louis

Hello,
Storks and swans now stay year-round in the Risle Valley (they have been doing so for quite some time now). And it's true that with the meadows flooded, you can easily see storks fishing. However, two weeks ago, I saw a great egret and a whole colony of coots, which are supposed to migrate.Perhaps they will hibernate here... Global warming is so real that some birds no longer migrate.
Enjoy your walks and have a great year!
Dominique

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valourousseau
valourousseau

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike last Saturday.
We had the pleasure of seeing two storks, which surprised us as we thought they had migrated...
Be careful, however, in certain parts of the forest where hunters are present...
I'll happily do it again this summer.

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Dominique Louis
Dominique Louis

Thank you for your feedback, which allows me to correct the text at the beginning to make it clearer. In any case, you can go down to the lake from both sides, but the right side is the prettiest because there is a lovely path with an old gate and a footbridge over a stream.
Sorry about the flooding and the foot bath: it has rained a lot recently and when I passed by two weeks ago, it was already touch and go. No two winters are the same, and this one has been very rainy so far.
Despite this, I'm glad you enjoyed the route.
Enjoy your walks in Normandy!

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jlin
jlin

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 28, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Nice hike, except when crossing the valley between points 6/7, where a flooded road forces you to take off your shoes, and the water is a bit cold.
In the description of the start of the hike, I suggest: from the car park, walk between the church and the town hall (the description "walk down the village street" could be confusing, as the street actually goes downhill in the other direction!
Best regards

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