The Ménil Route via La Rouauche

A pleasant walk through part of the Vosges forest. Lovely views over the village of Le Ménil and a walk suitable for the whole family. Do take care, however, when passing through ‘La Rouauche’.

Details

183602
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 4.75 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 1h 55 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 203 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 203 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 730 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 523 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Start from the Hôtel-Restaurant des Sapins in Le Ménil. Green Ring markings.

(S/E) From the hotel-restaurant, head towards the cemetery (north-east) and turn immediately right into Rue du Général de Gaulle. Pass the sports grounds and take the Traverse des Tissages on the right.

(1) At the end of this road, turn right again onto Route du Surdelot and pass Champ de la Reine.

(2) Turn left onto the road that climbs past the houses. At the end, take the path on the left to rejoin Route du Corat. Follow it to the left for about 50 metres, then turn right onto Chemin des Fées for about 50 metres.

(3) A path climbs into the woods on the right. Follow it to reach the hamlet of La Rouauche. You’ll come out onto a track; take it to the right, then turn left at the large crossroads.

(4) At the end, the tarmac road ends and gives way to a path. Follow it down to the left past the houses until you reach another tarmac road (Le Pré Joli) further on; keep left.

(5) Turn right onto the track, continue along the track to the left and take Rue du Corat on the right.
At the T-junction, turn left onto Rue du Général de Gaulle, then turn left again onto Traversée des Tissages to return to the starting point.

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 527 m - Le Ménil, hotel-restaurant
  2. 1 : km 0.64 - alt. 531 m - Turn right onto the Route du Surdelot
  3. 2 : km 1.19 - alt. 523 m - Turn left onto the road towards the houses
  4. 3 : km 1.57 - alt. 574 m - Take the forest path on the right
  5. 4 : km 2.91 - alt. 656 m - Leave the paved path and head down the grassy path
  6. 5 : km 3.38 - alt. 585 m - Take the forest path on the right
  7. S/E : km 4.75 - alt. 527 m - Le Ménil, hotel-restaurant

Notes

Follow the Green Ring markings carefully as, at La Rouauche, between markers (3) and (4), the route crosses rocky terrain – please take care.

There are no water points along the route; only the mountain springs may be used, but there is no guarantee that the water is safe to drink.

Part of the walk is in open terrain, outside the forest: in sunny weather, make sure you bring a hat or cap.
Hiking boots are, of course, essential.

Worth a visit

- The church at Le Ménil.
- Shelters at various locations around the village.
- The Chapel of Les Vé, which can be seen on another hike.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 6 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.2 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.3 / 5
Masbe
Masbe

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 24, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, pleasant walk. A beautiful view of the Vosges.

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forf
forf

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 09, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A varied hike with some lovely views. A good climb too!

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marieodile
marieodile

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 22, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant little walk.
We hesitated several times whilst reading the description and had to look for the signposts

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alainmartin77
alainmartin77
• Edited:

Hello, and thank you for clarifying that.

I’ll have a look at the description; I think I’ll change the difficulty from easy to medium!

@lain

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manutoutnu
manutoutnu

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 02, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

The climb at the start is really steep over a fairly short distance. This might come as a surprise for an easy walk that a family with young children or older people might choose. The walk takes considerably longer than the time stated. This detail should be included in the description.
Thank you

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Dede59
Dede59

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 18, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Caution: difficult section at the summit.
Rocks to climb

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Julien LIEVRE
Julien LIEVRE

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 29, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A lovely short walk with excellent signposting and beautiful scenery. We did this walk at the end of February with a 6-year-old; there was a bit of snow, so be careful on the rocks at the summit as they can be slippery.

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