Route des Grandes Mottines

A short walk along dirt tracks through the marshes and their nutria.

Details

913809
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 3.65 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 1h 45 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 43 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 43 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 49 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 7 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the car park behind the church in Vanneau-Irleau.

(S/E) Go down the path that runs alongside the playground. Turn right at the street (yellow markings) and continue straight ahead on a path that branches off to the right after 100 metres to join Rue du Port. Take this street to the left.

(1) Leave the markings that continue along Rue de la Belette and turn left. Walk along the right-hand side of the harbour, take the footbridge and continue along the grassy path that runs alongside the vegetable gardens. After 450 metres, turn right at the new footbridge. A little further on, cross the junction with another path and continue straight ahead until you reach a new white path.

(2) Continue right on this new path.

(3) Turn left when you reach the path that runs alongside the Corde de la Belette (you will see the yellow markings again) and, after about 200 metres, continue to the left on the same path, between two conches. After about 900 metres, walk along the Petite Rigole on your left.

(4) Cross the Grande Rigole footbridge and then turn left.

(5) Turn left onto the path, cross two bridges and continue through the Motte Michel plywood factory.

(6) Continue left on Rue de la Couarde towards the village of Le Vanneau (option to continue on the "Dans le Marais Poitevin aménagé" route - yellow markings - 11 km).

After 300 metres, turn left before the cemetery onto Impasse de l'Aumée. After 80 metres, turn right to go up to the car park behind the church (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 49 ft - Car park behind the church
  2. 1 : mi 0.25 - alt. 16 ft - On the left - Port du Vanneau
  3. 2 : mi 1.12 - alt. 10 ft - On the right - white road
  4. 3 : mi 1.29 - alt. 10 ft - On the left - Corde de la Belette
  5. 4 : mi 2.31 - alt. 7 ft - Grande Rigole footbridge, then left
  6. 5 : mi 2.66 - alt. 10 ft - To the left towards the bridge
  7. 6 : mi 3.34 - alt. 20 ft - On the left - Rue de la Couarde
  8. S/E : mi 3.65 - alt. 49 ft - Car park behind the church

Worth a visit

(S/E) The church (19th century)
(1) The port used to transport crops, wood, grass and manure.
(1) Rue de la Belette, where the houses are connected on one side to the waterways and on the other to the mainland (continuing on from Rue du Port).
(3) The Rigole de la Garette, which was occasionally used for floating timber.
- Before the point (6), the factory specialised in the manufacture of decorative and fireproof panels for the building and nautical sectors. Founded in 1919, this sawmill cut poplar trees. Before the war, it manufactured its first plywood, but it was in the 1970s that it grew to industrial size.

Reviews and comments

4.9 / 5
Based on 17 reviews

Reliability of the description
5 / 5
Ease of following the route
5 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
larochenet
larochenet
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 17, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely route that’s accessible to everyone. We did it in the morning because of the heat.
Personally, I’ve already done it twice in August 2026: it’s the ideal place to introduce people to the marsh.
It’s true that entering via the gardens creates a pleasant, bucolic atmosphere. We spotted lots of birds (much to the delight of young and old alike). Walking through the timber yard at the end of the trail is fine, really, and is part of village life. It wasn’t a problem for us, and I’d warned the people I was with: they didn’t find it a bother at all.
All in all, a lovely ‘walk’. Thank you.

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User 23596452

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 14, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Apart from the section through the gardens at the start, the route is better suited to cyclists than to walkers, and the final stretch through the timber yard isn’t particularly interesting.

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Ti'Mars...
Ti'Mars...

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 23, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A perfectly described route.
A lovely walk through the marshes.
After the magnificent gardens, you walk through a wilder, not to say abandoned, part of the marsh.
Then we come across areas used for livestock farming.
It’s a shame that the end of the walk takes us through an industrial site. We would have loved to return to the gardens.

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Fred/Véro
Fred/Véro
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 09, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk!
Starting at the foot of the church in Vanneau-Irleau, we head towards the harbour where you can see boats sailing. After crossing the bridge, we walk along a grassy path through lovely, particularly lush vegetable gardens. After that, it’s just dirt tracks running alongside canals of varying sizes.
The vegetation is lush in May and, if you keep an eye out for the flora and fauna, you’ll enjoy spotting the flowers and animals you come across: storks, herons, cattle egrets, coypu, crayfish, fry...
The surroundings are peaceful and very pleasant. There are several bridges to cross along the route and a lovely spot for a picnic at the Grande Rigole fishing area.
A walk worth repeating in every season.

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montamrando
montamrando

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 19, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

a very pleasant route through the marshes.

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jpayraud
jpayraud

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 18, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The vegetable gardens were very pleasant with all the colourful flowers. I enjoyed the silence, even though the wind was strong and the poplar trees were bending over as if to say hello. I passed some cyclists

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Patou 26
Patou 26

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 29, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

An easy route, as advertised. Lots of bikes on the sections that run along wide paths. Crossing the sawmill at the end is a quick return to civilisation.

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JF45
JF45

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 17, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

beautiful marshland scenery. Lovely walk on white paths, except between the port and the first footbridge along the vegetable gardens, where the grassy path is very wet and may be submerged during heavy rainfall. Alternative route from the port: follow the road to point 3

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randonneurs.DS
randonneurs.DS

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 20, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very easy and pleasant route through the heart of the marshlands.

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Cc.306068
Cc.306068

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant and relaxing route, I recommend it for a family day out, or on your own in the morning or evening to watch the sunrise or sunset. I want to do it again in November when the leaves are falling, to see the colours.

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Lerat Henri
Lerat Henri

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 07, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Right in the heart of the Poitevin marshes. Total immersion

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tantone
tantone

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

In August, despite the intense heat, the route remained pleasant with large shaded areas and well-maintained gardens full of flowers at the start of the hike. There are several places to picnic in the shade, but few tables. It is quiet and peaceful, surrounded by nature, without being completely isolated, as the paths are also used by cyclists. We exchanged greetings with smiles and a feeling of sharing a good moment.

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fredthib
fredthib

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 23, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A pleasant and fairly shaded walk to take your dog (on a leash, of course),
With as many bicycles as pedestrians.

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alice.peyrard
alice.peyrard

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 07, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An easy and pleasant walk that gives a good overview of the green Venice. Shady at the beginning, less so in the second half (late morning heatwave). Paths heavily used by bicycles. Completed in 1 hour 15 minutes. Small grocery shop opposite the church at the start.

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Elo79
Elo79

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 25, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely shaded walk. However, there aren't enough benches or picnic tables when it's busy, especially at the end of May when there were lots of bicycles.

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