Paladru Lake Villages Circular Tour

A walk starting from the village of Le Pin, now part of the commune of Villages du Lac de Paladru, passing through the hamlets of La Montagne and Brézin. Country lanes, forest tracks, woods and undergrowth. Views of the Chartreuse and the Vercors in the distance.

Details

3298052
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.39 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 247 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 246 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 680 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 515 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park on Place Saint-Christophe in front of the church in Le Pin.

(S/E) Opposite the church, turn right onto Rue de la Caserne towards Les Allex, following the yellow markings. Walk alongside the Étang des Palles before reaching the Les Allex district and a T-junction.

(1) Turn left towards Brézin. Continue along the road, up a short climb and then along a virtually flat path to reach Brandoux.

(2) Continue straight ahead, following the yellow markings towards La Montagne. Head up into the woods after house no. 1111. At the Bois Poulet crossroads, keep to the right, follow the Chemin de la Pierre qui Danse, then the Vorrly. You will reach the hamlet of La Montagne, where there is a hiking signpost.

(3) Head straight on towards Simandre; at the three-way junction, turn left and, at the end of the hamlet, you’ll reach a multi-way junction.

(4) Turn left, following the yellow markings, and follow the road that runs behind a large building. Start a short climb to reach the Côte Simandre.

(5) Cross theGR®65here and take the Chemin de la Vie downhill opposite. Follow this path to reach the village of Brézin.

(6) Turn right onto Rue du Buisson Rond, cross the Ruisseau des Marais and rejoin the D 17c road at the hamlet of Blanchard.

(7) Cross it, taking great care with the traffic, then turn left onto it. You’ll reach the Cua crossroads. Leave the road here and turn left onto the path that climbs between the houses, continuing along a track through fields and meadows. Pass the hamlet of Maubessay and reach Combe Noire.

(8) Turn left at a 90° angle and walk almost level for a short distance to the hamlet of Le Molard. You will reach a crossroads with a cross.

(9) Turn left and finish with a descent to return to the car park at Place Saint-Christophe in Le Pin (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 526 m - Place Saint-Christophe car park
  2. 1 : km 0.81 - alt. 530 m - Les Allex
  3. 2 : km 1.7 - alt. 610 m - Brandoux
  4. 3 : km 3.46 - alt. 642 m - La Montagne hamlet
  5. 4 : km 4.23 - alt. 651 m - Simandre
  6. 5 : km 4.74 - alt. 680 m - Côte Simandre
  7. 6 : km 5.95 - alt. 527 m - Brézin
  8. 7 : km 6.52 - alt. 527 m - D17c road
  9. 8 : km 7.7 - alt. 580 m - Combe Noire crossroads
  10. 9 : km 8.6 - alt. 581 m - Cross
  11. S/E : km 9.39 - alt. 526 m - Place Saint-Christophe car park

Worth a visit

(3) At the hamlet of La Montagne, you can head down towards Paladru to reach the lake via a round trip of approximately 4 km. On the way down, enjoy a beautiful view of the lake.

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

4.6 / 5
Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
4.3 / 5
Nightster
Nightster

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 08, 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 countryside and woods, with a magnificent gathering of swallows at the start, followed by a wooded area at the end of the route with a deer at the edge of the field – magical!
We ended up at Notre-Dame de Milin, where the doors were kindly opened for us. Thank you again

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Cassandra181119
Cassandra181119

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 11, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

A moderate hike. Lots of road walking, a few climbs too, not much shade – best not to do it in the early afternoon during the summer…
Nice, but nothing special

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ludovrh
ludovrh

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 10, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello, lovely country route – do take care at point 7; don’t hesitate to use the access path to a recently built house; the footpath is just above it on the right

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ocarina0656
ocarina0656

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 17, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Just a quick clarification to start with: after “Walk along the Etang des Palles before reaching the Allex district”, I’d add “follow the yellow signpost indicating a right turn onto Chemin des Alles”. With the guidebook, you tend to go straight on. We’ve had to retrace our steps twice now.
A lovely walk where you can pick chestnuts in season. Superb views from the Côte Simandre over Mont Blanc and Belledonne.
Not very popular with hikers but very popular with mountain bikers.

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