Circuit passing by the Fontaine Ardente

This easy half-day circuit takes you from the bottom of the Gresse valley to the Miribel-Lanchâtre plateau, passing by one of the seven wonders of the Dauphiné: the Fontaine Ardente. On the plateau, there are some beautiful views of the surrounding mountains.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.51 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 361 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 362 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 707 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 411 m

Photos

Description of the walk

The hike starts at a place called Essart Garin.

(S/E) Cross the Gresse torrent and immediately turn right, walking alongside a vineyard. A little further on, the trail crosses the Ruisseau Verdant, either by fording it or via a very original footbridge.
The trail climbs into the forest, passes under power lines several times and reaches a place called Le Plan, not far from the hamlet of Saint-Barthélemy in the commune of Le Gua.

(1) Continue straight ahead on the path through the field until you reach the D8. Cross it, continuing in the direction of Miribel-Lanchâtre.

(2) Take the road on the left and descend to the departmental road. Follow it uphill for about 400 metres until you reach a bend with a small car park on the left and an information panel about the Fontaine Ardente site.

(3) Take the path on the left that descends to the Fontaine Ardente site.

(4) Go back up the same path to the road and continue on the left to the hamlet of Cassoulet.

(5) At the entrance to the hamlet, turn left onto a small road towards Miribel and cross the stream of the same name.

(6) Take the path on the left which descends, passing under power lines again, and return to the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 412 m - Essart Garin locality. Cross the - Gresse (rivière) - Affluent du Drac
  2. 1 : km 2.13 - alt. 633 m - Straight ahead is the place known as Plan
  3. 2 : km 3.22 - alt. 707 m - Road on the left towards the D2
  4. 3 : km 3.92 - alt. 695 m - Path leading to the Fontaine Ardente
  5. 4 : km 4.24 - alt. 629 m - Fontaine Ardente (Miribel)
  6. 5 : km 4.91 - alt. 704 m - Cassoulet hamlet
  7. 6 : km 5.8 - alt. 656 m - Take the path on the left to return
  8. S/E : km 7.51 - alt. 412 m - Essart Garin locality

Notes

Be sure to wear good shoes, as the paths can be very slippery and sometimes muddy.

Worth a visit

The Fontaine Ardente is a developed natural site, listed among the Seven Wonders of the Dauphiné.
It is a flame that burns continuously, fuelled by an underground pocket of methane gas. The site has been developed, secured and enhanced by the local authorities. Before the recent development work, the fire burned in the middle of the stream, adding to the mystery of this site with its combination of water and fire. The development and securing of the site were made necessary by various landslides and flooding of the stream.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 20 reviews

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

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely hike starting from Essarts Garin. Be careful with parking. There are no facilities, and you may be challenged by a local resident.
The start is a pleasant walk across the Gresse, followed by a gradual, steady climb where you gradually discover views of Vercors, Chartreuse and Grenoble. The path was very muddy, and you have to step over a small stream regularly.
Arrival at the start of the Fontaine Ardente trail, with a significant incline that is very muddy and slippery (take walking sticks). The Fontaine Ardente phenomenon is very interesting. Return via Miribel Lanchatre to complete the loop, passing by the ruins of Miribel Castle. A little further down, the path is steep and very muddy.however, the walk was very pretty and not very busy at this time of year. View of the Connex.

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sioucat
sioucat

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

very interesting... a little-known curiosity

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Per ROUD
Per ROUD

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 18, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

a lovely walk in the sunshine, but last week's rain has made the path muddy.

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ptibou038
ptibou038
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

a beautiful walk through pretty countryside landscapes, best done in dry weather with good shoes, as there are large ravines to cross. Without the Visorando app, we would have got lost many times, as there are few signposts. The burning fountain is a beautiful sight to see. It was well lit on the day we visited, but it's a shame that it has been moved from its riverbed for development, as this takes away some of its charm. We completed the walk in the time indicated, taking our time (we didn't have any children with us).

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a.boutin
a.boutin

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 16, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant route yesterday, with a fountain in flames and no one on the paths

We extended the route by 1.8 km (+30 m elevation gain) by continuing straight on at point 5 and turning left onto the Chemin de la Condamine at the entrance to Lanchatre to return to point 6, for a total journey time of around 2½ hours (and we walk quite well)

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Lydiagenpas
Lydiagenpas

In fact, as we wanted to park the car in St Barthélémy du Gua, we set off from the church and headed back down to Essart Garin. When we reached La Gresse, we climbed back up to Miribel and then Lanchatre, before joining the road and then a path at La Pierre (a hamlet in Miribel) to reach the church of St Barthélémy du Gua.
Approximately 450 metres of elevation gain and about 11 kilometres
Before La Pierre, you can visit the Fontaine Ardente (Fountain of Fire).

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muse_88_
muse_88_

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 18, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Hello,
a pleasant walk in beautiful sunshine. It's a shame that you can hear the road the whole way and that there's quite a long stretch where you have to walk on concrete (be careful if you have children). The views are lovely. The burning fountain is interesting from a physics/chemistry point of view, but visually it's not really that great. Three hours isn't the right amount of time; we're good walkers and it took us more like three and a half hours.

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Coacoon
Coacoon

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 17, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful walk with varied landscapes and not too crowded at this time of year. But be sure to wear good walking shoes as the paths are quite rough (beautiful ravines) and muddy in places.

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Emesse
Emesse
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

A pleasant, easy walk that allows you to discover the Fontaine Ardente, one of the seven wonders of the Dauphiné, but I was a little disappointed by the layout, which doesn't really showcase this natural feature!
There are also some lovely views of the Vercors massif.
Thanks to the author of this route, which allowed us to spend a lovely half-day away from the crowds and noise of the Grenoble conurbation.

PS: As mentioned in previous reviews, this route should only be attempted in dry weather as both the ascent and descent can be very muddy in wet weather, and there are gullies on the trail that are sometimes 50 to 70 cm deep.

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michel38660
michel38660

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 15, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very muddy circuit, with a third of the course ravaged by streams and probably motor vehicles; it had rained all night the previous night... Best done in prolonged dry weather

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ferdav
ferdav

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 09, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A gloomy, wet day with little sunshine. Very muddy path. Best done in dry weather. A visit to the Fontaine Ardente is of great interest to anyone from the Dauphiné region.

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JCParavy
JCParavy

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 30, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A classic route (illustrated by a video by Antoine Salvi) offering an interesting discovery of one of the wonders of the Dauphiné region.
Avoid in very wet weather, as the paths become very muddy.

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colpitt
colpitt

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 21, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Easy route, very accessible for families with young children

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papagianno
papagianno

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 10, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A beautiful route that matches the description.
A little disappointed by the layout and surroundings of the fountain.

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Valfonie
Valfonie

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 03, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

This is a lovely walk to do in this direction because the descent after the Fontaine Ardente and the stream is quite steep.
The climb up the opposite slope is less physically demanding.
The Fontaine Ardente is a natural curiosity.
The path down to the fountain is now accessible.

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