Château Rouge and the Epernon plateau

A very peaceful walk, no difficulty, with scenery of plains and woodland.

Details

n°13624

Creation:
24 Oct 2012

Last update:
09 Mar 2023

Last review:
20 Apr 2024

Activity: Walking
Distance: 9.23 km
Average duration: 2h 45
Difficulty: Easy
Back to start: Yes
Ascent: + 54 m
Descent: - 58 m
Highest point: 169 m
Lowest point: 128 m

Country: France
City: Hermeray (78125)
Start/End: N 48.651925° / E 1.653905°
IGN map(s): Ref. 2115O, 2215OT, 2215OTR, M2215OT
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Description of the walk

Start at the Château Rouge crossroads at the top of Mittainville.

(S/E) Set off along the path by the sheep shelters, take the path on the left and head down to a fork.

(1) Continue left to the hamlet of Saugis, follow the road straight ahead and cross the hamlet.

(2) At the crossroads, turn left onto Chemin de la Tour Neuve. The road, which climbs slightly, ends in a track. Continue climbing straight ahead. At the top, you are at 163 m; keep going straight ahead.

(3) At the end, turn left and then right shortly afterwards onto the path leading to an air pollution monitoring station.

(4) At the station, turn left immediately afterwards. Continue along the path, which curves slightly to the right.

(5) A little further on, take a path on the left that leads back down.

(6) At the end of this path, turn left onto an uphill path and continue until you reach the apple trees on the right. Walk a few metres.

(7) Turn onto the path on the right which enters the woods and climbs. A little further on, turn left and continue straight on to the top. You’ll come to a gate; go through it and continue on the left along the^GRP® des Yvelines path.

(8) Walk past the SPA de la Berthière and continue straight on. Pass a small crossroads, go straight ahead; at the end of this road, the finish line is on the left (S/E)

Waypoints

S/E : km 0 - alt. 167 m - Château Rouge crossroads at the top of Mittainville
1 : km 0.89 - alt. 140 m - Fork
2 : km 2.34 - alt. 133 m - The hamlet of Saugis
3 : km 4.06 - alt. 163 m - Junction
4 : km 5.02 - alt. 160 m - Air pollution monitoring station
5 : km 5.86 - alt. 156 m - Turn left
6 : km 6.31 - alt. 130 m - Junction on an uphill path
7 : km 7.09 - alt. 141 m - Junction on the path to the right
8 : km 8.54 - alt. 168 m - La Berthière Animal Shelter
S/E : km 9.23 - alt. 167 m - Château Rouge crossroads at the top of Mittainville

Notes

No special equipment required.

Worth a visit

Rambouillet and La Boissière-École.

Reviews and comments

3.8 / 5

Based on 6 reviews

Reliability of the description
3.8 / 5

Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5

Route interest
3.3 / 5

Aerobar F

20 Apr 2024 at 22:39 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 20, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The "air pollution monitoring station" at WPT 4 is in fact an air navigation beacon.

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ovil

16 Mar 2022 at 23:44 3600

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 15, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

We set off from Epernon station and tried to join the route by following the GRP, but on leaving Epernon we didn’t follow the right signposts and ended up wandering through the fields until we reached Hermeray and rejoined the route.
From Château Rouge, the walk through the woods is pleasant, but the long stretch across the fields is a bit monotonous and rather dreary at this time of year.
There was no one on the paths and no sign of human activity apart from the lorries queuing to enter the quarry.

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Louv78

21 Sep 2020 at 10:32 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

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

A lovely walk that we completed in under two hours (the guide suggests three hours). The route offers a pleasant mix of woodland and rolling countryside. The scenery is magnificent and, best of all, we didn’t see a soul the whole time we were out.

The Chateau Rouge crossroads isn’t marked on the maps, but it’s easy to spot if you look at the map.

One small point to note: at the end of the route, where the path enters the woods, the entrance isn’t very visible.

A walk I highly recommend for enjoying the peace and quiet of the countryside

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libel

15 Apr 2019 at 09:29 7200

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 15, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

A few places where you might get lost; a pleasant walk

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gazok54

05 Nov 2017 at 18:48 3600

Hello
Waypoints have been added to the description of this walk to help you find your way.

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JLMALHERBE

18 Oct 2017 at 19:53 7200

That’s fine, thanks
I’ll probably have the chance to do it again
Jean-Luc MALHERBE

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gazok54

18 Oct 2017 at 18:16 7200

Thank you, JLMALHERBE
You’re right to point that out; without the WPTs, the text is harder to interpret. Unless the author is willing to add them, I’ll do it myself in the next few days.

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JLMALHERBE

18 Oct 2017 at 10:50 7200

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 15, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

A very pleasant and varied walk.
The start at the Château Rouge crossroads at the top of Mittainville is rather tricky to find as it isn’t marked on any road signs (or GPS) and is also quite a distance from Mittainville. It seems wiser to follow the SPA signposting for La Berthière, which takes you to the small crossroads mentioned in the last line of the description.
Route description: it’s a shame that the waypoints are missing (both text and map), which makes the text a bit confusing.
Despite this, I can confirm that the walk is lovely

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Aubert78

16 Oct 2017 at 10:04 7200

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 13, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Have a lovely walk

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