Circular forest starting from Étang Milourd in the town of Anor.

A lovely hike in the Avesnois region. Along the way, you will discover long stretches of the Hirson forest, come across ponds and waterfalls, and walk alongside the Oise and other rivers. A varied hike.

Details

876292
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.74 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 72 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 74 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 251 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 203 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐
    Area: Avesnois
  • ⚐ District: Anor (59186)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 49.974497° / E 4.102898°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 2808O
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the car park on the left before Étang Milourd.

(S/E) Walk past the lake, then take Route du Maka on your right, leaving Rue de Milourd on your left. Continue to the next crossroads.

(1) Continue straight on this road until you reach the T-junction.

(2) Turn right onto Route de Neuve Forge. In autumn and winter, you will see several blockhouses along the road or in the forest.

(3) Turn left onto Route du Pas Bayard à l'Étoile and continue to Carrefour Amélie.

(4) Turn left onto Route de l'Étang and continue straight on until you reach Carrefour Hélène.

(5) Turn left and follow Route de Gratte Pierre (a little muddy) to the stud farm. Turn right, pass the pond, the waterfall and the chapel at Neuve Forge.

(6) At the crossroads, continue left onto Rue de la Grande Lobiette and keep left until you reach the calvary.

(7) Then turn left onto Rue de la Fontaine à Bailles.

(8) After about 300 metres, leave the road via a path on the left that enters the woods. Be careful as the path is quite narrow at the start. It is part of a network ofPR® Yellow andGRP® Red and Yellow hiking trails. Go down the path, which then continues to the right along the Rie de Bon Feu river.

Ford a stream and continue along the path parallel to the river flowing on your left. Continue to the first houses and leave the path by turning left onto Rue du Maka.

(1) At the crossroads you passed on the way there, turn right and, at the next intersection, continue left in front of the pond and you will return to your car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 210 m - Parking on the left before the pond.
  2. 1 : km 0.34 - alt. 205 m - Crossroads of the circular - Oise (l')
  3. 2 : km 1.5 - alt. 238 m - On the right, Route de Neuve Forge
  4. 3 : km 2.35 - alt. 225 m - On the left, Route du Pas Bayard
  5. 4 : km 3.68 - alt. 246 m - On the left, Route de l'Étang
  6. 5 : km 4.99 - alt. 232 m - On the left, Route de Gratte Pierre
  7. 6 : km 7.54 - alt. 245 m - On the left, Rue de la Grande Lobiette
  8. 7 : km 8.06 - alt. 245 m - On the left, Rue de la Fontaine A Bailles
  9. 8 : km 8.39 - alt. 245 m - On the left, trail in the woods.
  10. S/E : km 10.74 - alt. 210 m - Parking

Notes

There is a picnic area, rubbish bins, etc. at the car park.
Please be careful.
The Gratte Pierre road can sometimes be muddy, so waterproof shoes and walking sticks are necessary.

Worth a visit

Saint-Michel Abbey less than 15 km away.
Val Joly Lake 20 km away.
Glass workshop and museum in Trelon, 8 km away.
Museum of Social Life and Textiles in Fourmies, 6 km away.
Museum of beautiful woods in Felleries, 21 km away.
Bocage House in Sains-du-Nord, 16 km away, etc.

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

4.4 / 5
Based on 10 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
3.8 / 5
Jocelyne.duquenoy
Jocelyne.duquenoy

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 08, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Interesting route through a beautiful forest, very well signposted

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Dubois Thérèse
Dubois Thérèse

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 04, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The beginning is tedious: long, narrow roads through the woods. But from point 5 onwards it gets better, and at point 8 it's great: a lovely trail that winds along the stream.

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CathyL
CathyL

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 23, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant walk, especially the second half.

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DelphineGD
DelphineGD

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 19, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The beginning, with its long, straight, tarmaced roads, is rather monotonous, but then it gets better, and the end is truly magical!

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J2MB
J2MB

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 09, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Second hike via Visorando.
No problem following the route given the map and descriptions on the information sheet.
However, you still need to pay attention at crossroads or changes of direction so you don't end up back where you started due to carelessness!
A peaceful route, varied terrain (countryside, forest, paths, a little tarmac, a short stretch through a village, and beautiful sights to discover, including forest, waterfalls, chapels, one of which is tucked away in the woods, a river, etc.).
Can't wait to do a second one in this area!
Thank you.

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RonnyBee
RonnyBee

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 09, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing

Parts 2-3-4-5 are not very interesting; they are very monotonous.
Even though this would significantly reduce the length of the hike, I recommend taking a shortcut from point 2 to point 6 in a straight line, which is also a PR.
Also, be careful around point 6: we were attacked by a very vicious dog, which seemed to amuse its owner (I even wondered if he had deliberately sent it at us), who was clearly drunk.

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chrisdivx
chrisdivx

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 24, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A fairly easy walk with some beautiful sites such as the blockhaus in the forest, the waterfall and the chapels.

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papillon coloré
papillon coloré

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 24, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Apparently there are private roads, so the unnamed crossroads are poorly signposted. From Neuve Forge onwards, it was better, ending in the forest (starting from GR), well signposted and a beautiful finish, which makes up for a less than ideal start. The waterfall isn't really a waterfall.

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mousse54
mousse54

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 03, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A lovely walk, but in terms of difficulty, you could classify it as easy (there's nothing tiring about it, no elevation gain or anything else).
My opinion:
75% of the route is on tarmac paths in the woods, which is visually pleasant but much less so for walking. From checkpoint No. 8 onwards, the route becomes magnificent and remains so until the end.
A little anecdote: when we entered the woods at checkpoint No. 8, after a hundred metres or so, we found ourselves in the middle of a small herd of wild boars, which left without causing any panic.

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Beginne Catherine
Beginne Catherine

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 09, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Impeccable, do it without hesitation

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