Sundgau Circuit: Oberlarg - Around Morimont

The landscapes you pass through here are among the most beautiful in the Sundgau region. The rock shelter of Mannlefelsen, a major Mesolithic site in Alsace, precedes the Ebourbettes, which tell the story of General Giraud's escape in 1942. Further on, the ruins of Morimont offer an interesting history lesson on how a medieval castle was adapted to firearms.

Details

179166
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.30 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 241 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 241 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 723 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 498 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the centre of Oberlarg (population 145 in 1999), next to the school.

(S/E) Go up the street that runs alongside the cemetery towards the sources of the Largue (yellow triangle and blue triangle).

(1) Cross the Largue via one of the few fords in the Sundgau region and enter the small valley. Follow the marked path and pass the pond (yellow triangle and blue triangle). Continue straight ahead.
At the reservoir, keep left towards the Ferme des Verreries (blue triangle).

(2) At the T-junction at the end of the climb, turn right (yellow triangle) towards Les Ebourbettes. Leave a path on your right and come out onto a plateau. Continue straight ahead and you will reach the Ferme des Ebourbettes.

(3) Pass a wayside shrine and continue towards Morimont, following the electricity poles (yellow rectangle). After a fairly steep slope, you will arrive at a wide, straight path. Take it on your left (yellow rectangle). Further on, do not follow the marked path that offers a shortcut to the right, but descend to the next bend.

(4) Once you reach the bend, do not continue downhill, but turn left towards the Chêne du Morimont.

(5) Once at the oak tree, retrace your steps to the bend ((4)) and continue downhill opposite. After a sharp left turn, the path leads to a T-junction. Turn right to reach the Hotel and Château du Morimont (yellow rectangle).

(6) When you are close to the hotel, continue to the left to reach the castle (red ring). After visiting the ruins, climb a few steps to the left to reach the farm via the ridge path (red ring).

From the hotel, head towards Oberlarg along the carriage road. It curves sharply to the left and heads north-northwest. At the fork, you will see the isolated Vacherie farm on your right.
Continue along the road until the next fork (elevation 499).

(7) Take the rural road on the right, which leads to the D41 shortly before the entrance to Oberlarg (red and white rectangle).

Turn right onto the road and return to the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 525 m - Oberlarg centre, school
  2. 1 : km 0.16 - alt. 537 m - Fording place on the - Largue (rivière) - Affluent de l'Ill
  3. 2 : km 1.91 - alt. 696 m - End of the climb, T-junction, turn right
  4. 3 : km 3.32 - alt. 712 m - Oratory at Les Ebourbettes
  5. 4 : km 4.35 - alt. 619 m - Bend, start of the Morimont oak tree path
  6. 5 : km 4.42 - alt. 623 m - Morimont Oak
  7. 6 : km 6.03 - alt. 547 m - Morimont, hotel, left towards the castle
  8. 7 : km 7.93 - alt. 502 m - Fork (elevation 499)
  9. S/E : km 9.29 - alt. 525 m - Oberlarg Centre

Worth a visit

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 40 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
Tchaiky
Tchaiky

I have done this hike several times. It is very pleasant.
Unfortunately, the castle is currently closed to visitors while consolidation work is being carried out.

Machine-translated

Paola D'Alessandro
Paola D'Alessandro

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 04, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant hike with numerous viewpoints: castle ruins, fields, forests, a chapel, a cave and, as a bonus, an incredible view of the plain from the witch's rock.
The route is reliable, but to reach the famous oak tree, you need to continue 100 metres further than indicated on the map. It has not been cut down. As for the end of the hike on the departmental road, it is only a short distance of 500 metres at most. What's more, there were no cars on this road.
We highly recommend this route!

Machine-translated

jadesuzhou
jadesuzhou

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 12, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

We had a lovely hike, partly in sunshine and partly in mist. There were lots of interesting things to see along the way (it's a shame the caves are on private land), which made it very enjoyable. The oak tree looks in poor condition, but near Les Ebourbettes we passed a magnificent 250-year-old beech tree. We were lucky enough to see a sea of clouds beneath the Vosges mountains in the distance. We passed the Swiss border (a historic site). There was also a lovely view of the castle from the witch's rock. There is a picnic table in the castle ruins. The road at the end of the route is not too long, and we parked near the community hall (which was a good place to start).

Machine-translated

Rodriguez sylvie
Rodriguez sylvie

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 12, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A varied hike, accessible to all walkers, with the option of a snack in the castle courtyard! Beautiful views; I highly recommend it!
Sylvie

Machine-translated

JEAN PAUL BAEHR
JEAN PAUL BAEHR

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 28, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very interesting route, very busy on Sundays. In response to mschlott (12/10/20), to avoid returning by road, I continued from MORIMONT along the yellow rectangle (E5) to point 622, then along the yellow triangle, which brings you almost back to the starting point via a wide path. The circuit is extended to 12 km with an elevation gain of 375 m. Marynah25 wrote that the Morimont oak tree has been cut down, but this is not the case. It is still there, a huge dead tree without leaves, but the 600 m round trip is definitely worth it
Jean Paul BAEHR

Machine-translated

Alsace@
Alsace@

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 29, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very pleasant hike. Beautiful scenery. Partly shaded. Regarding the old oak tree, no, it has not been cut down. It still stands proudly in its place in the forest.

Machine-translated

JLBou
JLBou

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

Great walk accessible to everyone

Machine-translated

mschlott
mschlott

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 12, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It's a shame that the end of the hike is on a country road.

Machine-translated

jackybois
jackybois

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 01, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Great route. Varied landscapes and beautiful views from the summit.

Machine-translated

Marynah25
Marynah25
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 30, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very beautiful hike. Very pleasant. Well shaded.
The only downside, and not a minor one, is that the Morimont oak tree was recently cut down, so it is no longer visible. And the caves are private property, so you can't see them up close.
However, the castle ruins are still an exceptional and comprehensive place to visit.

Machine-translated

Bertrand LEPERE
Bertrand LEPERE

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 : No

A lovely little walk with a bit of history at the Ebourbettes farm and Morimont Castle. Magnificent view from the Witches' Rock.

Machine-translated

diemand68
diemand68

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 11, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A great walk with beautiful views of the colourful Sundgau forests. Even though the weather was very autumnal and the sky looked threatening at times, it was still a wonderful walk. However, it is important to read the description carefully and make sure you understand it, especially points 4 and 5, as there is a small risk of getting lost, but this is very minimal.
Many thanks to Mr Vianney for creating this walk.

Machine-translated

GUTZ68
GUTZ68

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 22, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very beautiful hike. A "sporty" start (climbing a hill). Then... pure joy!

Machine-translated

Busset03
Busset03

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 31, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very beautiful hike!

Machine-translated

nari
nari

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 19, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

The only downside is the end of the route on the road

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.