Circular route in the Liau Forest from the Moulin des Îles

Head to Pont de Pany, before taking the D35 towards Urcy. Park on the right-hand hard shoulder just after passing under the railway bridge.

(S/E) Set off along a field path towards the woods. At the edge of the woods, turn right, then immediately afterwards, at the corner of the woods, keep left towards a viewpoint. Climb the steep slope on the left to reach the old railway line, now disused and without tracks. Head left until you reach the next bridge spanning a path. Leave the railway line here, on the left-hand side, and you’ll come out onto the lower path (the end of the Jean Sage route). Join the towpath.

(1) Turn left to follow the Canal de Bourgogne, keeping to the right. Pass the Roche Canot lock and, further on, ignore the path leading up to the left towards a house. After the canal bends to the right, continue to the playground and picnic area at the entrance to Sainte-Marie-sur-Ouche.

(2) Turn left to join the local road leading to the campsite entrance (on the left). Go straight ahead, crossing the old railway line with the riding school on your right. Continue to a Fork in the road: ‘silent hunting’ sign.

(3) Turn right and head up towards Les Brûlées.

(4) At the fork in the road, keep to the right and continue straight ahead on the white track until you reach a wire fence blocking the way.

(5) Turn right just before this to descend a marked path at the edge of the logging area.

(6) Further down, turn onto the only path on the left, through the undergrowth. Follow it continuously until you reach a four-way junction at an altitude of 341 metres. Continue straight ahead down a fairly steep slope until you come out onto a cross-country path.

(7) Turn left onto Chemin des Combes. Continue straight ahead towards two high-voltage power lines and pass underneath them. Follow this track continuously for several kilometres until it climbs steeply between rocky outcrops. You will reach a crossroads at an altitude of 419.

(8) Turn left onto a wide, carriageable track that climbs slightly. Pass to the right of the Ferme de Champ Grillot. Continue straight on to join a white cross-country track.

(9) Cross this dirt track and head straight ahead. At the first Fork in the road shortly afterwards, turn left (orange-marked path). At an altitude of 434 metres, continue straight ahead.

(10) At the next junction, turn right and, immediately afterwards, left downhill to a cross-country track at the bottom of the valley, in a fir forest.

(11) Turn left and, further on, pass under the two high-voltage power lines again. At an altitude of 358 metres, you’ll reach a four-way junction. Take the path on the left at the bottom of the valley, with rocky outcrops on either side in several places, and join the D104.

(12) Head left, descending to the next Fork in the road.

(13) Keep left onto the local road towards Arcey (1.3 km). Turn right at the junction with the Route de la Ferme de Grandmont. Enter Arcey via the D104j (Grande Rue) and follow this road _carefully_.

(14) At the central crossroads, turn left after the wayside cross (Grande Rue/Rue des Écrevisses/Rue d’Amont), passing in front of the town hall (on the right) and heading uphill towards the reservoir along a stony path, until you reach the walled-in Sigré fountain (overflow and pool nearby).

(15) Retrace your steps to the crossroads just before the fountain, then turn onto the steepest path on the far right. Head right along a lovely path through the woodland at a place called Chaume Boichot. At the first junction with two paths branching off to the left (including the Jean Sage path), keep right and continue down a gentle slope.

(16) At the next junction, turn right, heading northwards.

(17) At the next Fork in the road, turn right. The path descends shortly afterwards. At the next junction, head down to the left towards the valley. Follow it, ignoring the side paths, until you approach the D35 as you leave the woods. Turn right to return to the starting point (S/E).

Bring walking poles for ascents and descents in wooded areas.

Picnic spots.
At Sainte-Marie-sur-Ouche (picnic area).
Near the Champ Grillot farm.
At the Sigré Fountain.

Arcey:
The locals were nicknamed ‘Lé méjou de chai’ (the cat-eaters), as it is said they hunted wild cats relentlessly.
In the past, only a simple stone cross marked the boundary between the two streets in the village (Grande Rue and Rue des Écrevisses). In 1977, a modern steel sculpture was added, featuring a design of intertwined twisted flames, created by the artists Pavelot and Guérin.
The town hall is now housed in the former 19th-century wash house. The four arches are still visible.

Nearby:
The Forest of Liau, to the west towards L’Ouche, and the Bois des Larreys to the south-east, where Mont Ménageon rises to 569 m.

Nearby:
The Cheval and Lacets d’Urcy (or Fontaine Sigré)Caves are hidden 400 m north-east of the junction of the D35, D104 and D104i, just before an old quarry. Were they not lost amongst the box trees, they would make lovely shelters for walkers.
To the south-west are the two 13th-century boundary stones known as the ‘justice stones’ of the Grandmont farm, a former barn of Cîteaux Abbey. Emblazoned with coats of arms, they bear on one side a shield bearing the arms of Marigny, and on the other, a crozier and the ‘C’ of Cîteaux.