Paths of memory in Tracy-le-Mont

Departure from the side of the church in Tracy-le-Mont (information board). Park either in the car park in front of the church, along Rue Aristide Briand, or in the car park to the right of the church when looking at the façade.

Follow the signs for 'Route 14-18'.
Signs are in the form of posts at each intersection, numbered from 1 to 23 in order of progression. Until you reach the hamlet of Visigneux, follow the^GR®® 12 and 655 trails and a^PR®® path; in the following description, the corresponding markings are only mentioned when necessary.

(S/E) From the information board opposite the town hall, with the church on your left, turn right into Rue de l'Église and walk past the fire station. At the three-way junction, turn left. Ignore the path on the left (forest barrier) and continue downhill. The tarmac gives way to a staircase leading to an old wash house. Continue downhill on a narrow path. In the hollow of the valley, find a wider path along a fence on the right-hand side.

(1) At the three-way junction (small green gate on the right), turn left and walk along the edge of the woods on your right.

(2) At the crossroads, go straight ahead on the tarmac road (red and white marker, yellow cross). Pass a reservoir, cross a stream and go through the hamlet of Visigneux. At a fork at No. 646, go left (red and white arrow). The tarmac road gives way to a path that climbs into the woods. Leave the^GR®® trail, which turns sharply to the left, and continue straight ahead.

(3) At the intersection, continue straight ahead. Pass an isolated house on the left and continue straight ahead to reach the Bimont wash house. Continue along the path through the woods and, after a hundred metres, you will find a small monument on the left, erected on the site of a former military cemetery. Then retrace your steps.

(3) Back at the intersection, turn left. Cross the stream you crossed earlier. After about a hundred metres, at an intersection, turn right and go through a forest gate.

(4) Shortly after passing the silhouette of a soldier in blue uniform, leave the path on the left to reach a trench remnant, or a reconstruction, whose location can be identified by another grey silhouette above it. Retrace your steps.

(4) Continue along the path through a dark wood. Leave the wood and walk along a fence on your right. Enter the wood again and first turn left then right along the path, which quickly becomes a sunken lane. Pass through a forest barrier and return to the crossroads you took on the way there.

(2) Turn left and follow the red and white markings for a while.

(1) At the three-way junction (small green gate), go left, follow the "14-18" signs and ignore the other markings. The path enters the woods and then becomes steep-sided; the abundance of scolopendrium ferns betrays the coolness of the place and the dampness of the ground. The path climbs and leaves the woods. On the plateau, continue straight ahead between the fields. At the T-junction, turn right. You will come to a small road, follow it to the right and you will immediately reach the entrance to the National Necropolis.

(5) Continue along the road. Ignore a sharp left turn and enter the village of Tracy-le-Mont. At the "Stop 150m" sign, turn sharply left onto Chemin des Carrières. Note the troglodyte caves at No. 125 and continue along a path through the woods. Pass a forest barrier and you will come to a crossroads.

(6) Continue straight ahead along the edge of the field for about 100 metres to find a viewpoint overlooking the old quarries that were used as barracks. Retrace your steps.

(6) Back at the crossroads, turn left. Follow the path to the D16 road (Maison du Garde opposite).

No signposts

Cross the road (take care) and temporarily leave the 14-18 route to avoid a rather uninteresting stretch along the D16. Opposite the gate, take a grassy path on the right that is closed to traffic "except for owners and services". Further on, walk along the wall of the Domaine d'Offrémont on your left.

(7) At the crossroads (gate on the left), turn right into a street that crosses a housing estate. Ignore the dead-end streets on either side and continue straight ahead at the stop sign.

Follow the signs for 'Route 14-18'.

At the next stop sign, cross the D16 (take care), continue straight ahead and pass a bar on your right. At the corner of No. 253 (house with a turret), leave the main street and turn right into a narrow street lined with walls, Rue des Cornouillers. At the three-way junction, turn left and quickly return to the church (S/E).

Hiking boots recommended.

Bar in Tracy-le-Mont, shortly before arrival (S/E).

Although the signposting is very good, a detailed map is always useful (at least the one accompanying this description).

Hike completed by the author on 15 September 2018.

This hike follows the "Sur les sentiers de la Grande Guerre" (On the trails of the Great War) route, designed, signposted and provided with information on site by the "Musée Territoire 14-18 Aisne-Oise" (1914-18 Aisne-Oise Museum).

See historical information about the Battle of Quennevières (June 1915) and the Battle of Matz (June 1918).

There are numerous information panels, richly illustrated and featuring excerpts from soldiers' diaries. Wooden silhouettes of soldiers from the period also line the route.

Things to see along the way:

- Saint-Brice Church (S/E) (early 17th century, restored after the end of the First World War). During the Great War, the church served as an advanced aid station, as the front line was only 1.5 km away. The church is open every day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

- Old wash house between (S/E) and (1).

- Bimont wash house, after the^first crossing at (3). Wash house built during the war to provide sanitary facilities for soldiers at the front.

- Monument marking the location of the old improvised cemetery, after the^first crossing at (3). Next to it, a movingly simple stele pays tribute to the soldiers of the^2nd Zouave Regiment who died in the area.

- Remains or reconstruction of a trench (4) (there is no information to help decide between the two hypotheses).

- Tracy-le-Mont National Necropolis (5). Military cemetery containing the remains of nearly 3,200 soldiers who died in combat.

- Quarries of the Maison du Garde (6). These former quarries were used to house soldiers returning from the front line. The area is enclosed and, according to passers-by, is sometimes open and accessible (no further details).

- Maison du Garde, after the^second passage in (6). House at the entrance to the Domaine d'Offrémont, which gave its name to the nearby quarries.