The Beech Tree Route in Lucheux

Start in Lucheux: small car park at the junction of Rue Wallon and the D 5

(S/E) Leave the car park and take Rue Wallon (D 127) opposite. Leave it 200 metres further on (just after no. 5) to take a small road on the left and reach the edge of the woods.

(1) At the edge of the woods, continue straight ahead to cross through them (see practical information). On the other side, walk past the forest house on the right and continue for a good hundred metres along the road until you reach No. 19.

(2) Follow the correct path which branches off to the right and, almost at the top, find a path on the right (after the wire fence).

(3) Choose one of the following:

• Continue straight on until you reach a small road. Follow it to the left to reach point 5.
• Take the path on the right (this is the route) which runs along the edge of the woods. Reach a junction. Turn left, then left again onto a wide path along the ridge (superb view!). At the end of the path, reach a small road.

(4) Follow it down to the left (this is the Vallée des Morts! The pretty Creuse river is on the left). Pass a farm building on the right and find the start of a path on the right just after the sign marking the entrance to the village of Grouches-Luchel.

(5) Follow this path and walk past the farm building again, on the opposite side. At the fork (signpost for the sheep pastures), continue left (Chemin du Fiduche) and, after turning right, join the old railway line.

(6) Follow it to the right. Continue straight ahead. Just before reaching the D 127, at the fork, turn right to join the main road.

(7) Follow it for a few metres to the left and find a path on the right.

(8) Take this path. A bit rough at first, it eventually improves. Continue straight on, skirting a wood on your right, and find the start of a path on the right at its end.

(9) Take a sharp right turn onto this well-surfaced path and reach a four-way junction.

(10) Then turn left towards Brévillers. Cross a wide cultivated plain and arrive at a wooded area just before reaching the hamlet.

(11) Take the pretty grassy path on the left (a track used by livestock, so it can be quite muddy at times, but you can walk along the edge of the field on the left) and join the D 200. Follow it for a few metres to the left, then turn right onto Rue de la Chapelle and reach a T-junction. Turn left, pass the pretty chapel on the left and reach a crossroads just before the water tower.

(12) Turn right onto Rue d'Arras, and at the fork with a cross, take the path on the right, the GR®124, which first takes you through the Forest of Lucheux, then back to the starting point.

(13) At the edge of the woods, enter and head off to the right. This marks the start of a stretch that is both notorious and enchanting, as my friend BaudouinB puts it: Follow the red and white markings carefully (and especially the few red arrows you can spot) and continue along this rutted path (it’s easier to walk on the sides, amongst the trees) until you reach a small road.

Note: I tried to follow the path shown on the OpenStreetMap, but it’s nowhere to be found.

(14) Cross it to take the wide lane opposite (still GR®124, with a lovely ford in mid-March 2024). Follow this gently ascending lane (wild boars in August 2023) until you reach a junction with the Allée Royale.

Surprising, isn’t it? Just after number 13, there is a barrier on the right blocking access to the Chemin de la République, whereas at number 14, the Voie Royale is freely accessible.

(15) Cross it and take the path opposite (still GR®124). In this section, it is impossible to follow the normal path (except during very, very dry periods), but numerous tracks have formed that bypass the ruts. I spotted a few wild boars there in April 2023.

(16) At the edge of the forest, turn right and ignore two paths coming from the left.

(17) Just after the second one, turn left onto a descending path and join the D5. Cross it to take the grassy (or rather, very grassy!) path opposite. Walk for about 400 m until you reach a fork.

(18) Turn right for a round trip of about 300 m to the Chapelle Saint-Léger and its pretty well.

(19) Return to the previous junction.

(18) Continue to the right along this good path which joins the D5.

(20) Follow it for about a hundred metres to the left, then turn left to reach the junction of the D127 and the D4127. Take the D4127 for a few metres and look for a grassy path on the right.

(21) Follow this path for about 500 metres until you find a path on the right.

(23) Take this path, cross the Grouche (footbridge) and reach a small road. Follow it to the left and, just before the T-junction, you’ll come to a grassy area.

(22) Walk up this area, keeping well to the right, behind the benches to pass near the wedding tree. Join a side street (D5).

(23) Follow it for about a hundred metres to the left and, just before the café, opposite No. 12, take the path on the right (Ruelle Bazin). You’ll reach a small road; follow it to the right to arrive opposite the castle.

(24) Then turn left and immediately right (paved section) to reach the side street (D5) at the corner of No. 2. Follow it to the right for about a hundred metres, and, just after the small stream, turn right onto Rue de Bas.

(25) After about fifty metres, turn left opposite No. 6 (Ruelle du Bras de Fer, grassy path). At the end, turn left to reach the car park.

Good walking shoes and one or two walking sticks seem to me to be absolutely essential, especially when crossing the forest.

At (1), you can turn right to walk along the northern edge of the woodland.
At the north-western tip of the woods (before the hamlet known as "la Plaine du Parc"), turn right, then immediately left. A good path then leads to a small road which you follow to the left to find the and continue the walk.

For lovers of wild orchids:
Virtual walk in Grouches-Luchue.

"The Wedding Tree" in Lucheux in the Somme