Croix des Brosses circular from Montromant

Starting from Montromant (Mont Romain), a beautiful hilly route through woods and forest will take you to the remains of the underground section of the Roman Brévenne aqueduct. Beautiful views of the Monts du Forez, the Monts de Tarare and, from the Croix des Brosses, the Alps and the Pilat Massif.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 14.14 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 40 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 556 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 560 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 895 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 449 m

Photos

Description of the walk

The village of Montromant overlooks the Brévenne valley, near Sainte-Foy-l'Argentière.
Park in the car park opposite the town hall, below the church.

(S/E) From the car park, take Rue du Verger towards the church. Then turn right and go up Rue de l'Aqueduc (reconstruction of the Roman aqueduct). At the crossroads, continue right on the D25 for 600 metres towards St-Genis-l'Argentière.

(1) At the Grande Goutte stream and the rubbish bins, take the track on the left, cross the stream and continue along the uphill path, which levels out after a sharp bend to the left. The path passes close to the old Brévenne aqueduct, a site known as Thue des Sarrasins. Leave the path that branches off to your right to descend to La Grande Goutte, where there is an old mill.

(2) Take the small road on your left for 500 metres, then turn right onto a path leading to Les Roches.

After La Grande Goutte, do not take thefirst path on your right, which is closed off by a chain. This path is private and access is prohibited

(3) At Les Roches, take a sharp right turn towards Le Michaud, then followthe sign for"Faverges par le Pagnon 2.3 km".

(4) At Le Pagnon, take a sharp left turn. Cross a track and continue to the hamlet of Faverges.

(5) In this hamlet, turn right onto the D643 for 150 m, then turn left onto the track that climbs towards the Col des Brosses.

(6) At the pass, carefully cross the D489 and continue straight ahead on the path. At the crossroads, turn right for a round trip to the Croix des Brosses (view of the Alps and the Pilat massif).

(7) From the cross, retrace your steps, then leave the route you took on the way up and continue straight ahead to reach the hamlet of La Fromenterie via the GR®7.

(8) Cross the D489 with caution and take the GR®7 on the right. Cross the D25 and continue straight ahead to the Le Futerer signpost.

(9) At Le Futerer, leave the GR®7 and turn left towards the hamlet of Les Saignes. Cross it and continue to the right towards Les Aguettants until you reach the hamlet of La Maillardière.

(10) Follow the small road to the left for 50 metres, then turn right onto the path that climbs to a crossroads with several paths (Les Aguettants signpost).

(11) Continue straight ahead on the main path to Croix du Vire, then continue towards the hamlet of Creux.

(12) In this hamlet, turn left onto the road, then after the right-hand bend, continue straight ahead on Chemin de la Madone for about 800 m.

(13) At the intersection, turn left for 100 metres, then right onto the path that descends steeply towards La Farlayère.

(14) At La Farlayère, head towards L'Entremonts and Montromant. Pass by a viewpoint overlooking Clos Saint-Joseph. Cross a tributary of the Rossand and reach a crossroads with a small bridge near an old mill. Continue south, cross a footbridge over the Maillardière stream and reach the Entremonts crossroads. Turn right to reach the Town Hall car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 544 m - Town hall car park
  2. 1 : km 0.74 - alt. 536 m - Grande Goutte stream
  3. 2 : km 1.93 - alt. 581 m - Hamlet of La Grande Goutte
  4. 3 : km 2.61 - alt. 561 m - Hameau des Roches
  5. 4 : km 4.28 - alt. 739 m - Le Pagnon
  6. 5 : km 5.06 - alt. 781 m - Faverges
  7. 6 : km 6.06 - alt. 869 m - Col des Brosses (866m)
  8. 7 : km 6.4 - alt. 895 m - Croix des Brosses
  9. 8 : km 6.93 - alt. 863 m - La Fromenterie
  10. 9 : km 8.58 - alt. 663 m - Le Futerer
  11. 10 : km 9.32 - alt. 609 m - La Maillardière
  12. 11 : km 9.75 - alt. 629 m - Les Aguettants
  13. 12 : km 11.24 - alt. 528 m - Le Creux
  14. 13 : km 11.88 - alt. 496 m - Left track
  15. 14 : km 12.06 - alt. 456 m - La Farlayère
  16. S/E : km 14.14 - alt. 544 m - Town hall car park

Worth a visit

- Rue de l'Aqueduc, reconstruction of a buried section of the Brévenne aqueduct, with a description of its route.
- In Courzieu, the animal park, with its "Birds of Prey" show.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 12 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.4 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
Sanpaloune
Sanpaloune

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 25, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Thank you very much for this tour.
I really enjoy this type of hike, which is invigorating and very varied in terms of the route and points of interest (aqueduct and history, viewpoints, etc.).
I had no trouble following it, but I must admit that I didn't use the description much, relying instead on the GPX track.
The loop can be combined with other hikes in Yzeron to follow another aqueduct... in short, for a loop of both aqueducts!

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01rando
01rando

Hello
This hike was posted almost five years ago. No wonder there may have been a few changes.
Thank you. Future hikers on this route will appreciate any details you can provide.
Best regards

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gali69
gali69

The first description indicated that at La Grande Goutte, we should take the path that climbs to the right despite the cross. The owner asked us to change the route so as not to take it. (in bold in the description)
At Michaud, stay on the road and follow the sign for "Faverges par le Pagnon 2.3km" (signpost).

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L 'ARPION
L 'ARPION

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

At La Grande Goutte, the path on the right, which is normally closed to the public, is no longer closed; it is only marked with a yellow cross.
At Le Michaud, do not take the path in front of you, but the tarmac road on the right with the sign saying SANS ISSUE (dead end).
DEMI TOUR IMPOSSIBLE
Best regards
Bernard Giroud, known as l'Arpion

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Bernard Mesnil
Bernard Mesnil

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful landscapes and views.
The journey from Lyon is a bit long. It's better to take the A89 motorway. Less crowded than Yzeron.

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gilles.guilhin
gilles.guilhin

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 15, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Thank you to the author of this hike. It met our expectations. The only downside, for which the author is in no way responsible, was that we had to make a long detour by road due to hunting. The area concerned was the forest below and west of the Col des Brosses.
So I would not recommend doing this hike during hunting season (September?). You do pass by many hunting reserves belonging to the surrounding municipalities.
We enjoyed the short detour off the trail to see the remains of the old aqueduct.

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franck Petit
franck Petit

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

A very beautiful hike at this time of year, the countryside was sparkling under the autumn sun, with foliage colours ranging from yellow to bright red.
We had downloaded the app onto our mobile phones, which was fortunate as the signs are difficult to find on the paths.

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Mol
Mol

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

A lovely walk, mostly shaded.

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manuel.fonseca
manuel.fonseca

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 17, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful, undulating route through woods and forests, with quite a few steep climbs, but well worth the effort.
As a bonus, there are some beautiful remains of the "underground" part of the Roman aqueduct of La Brévenne, a canal that is around 2,000 years old. Many thanks to the municipality of Montromant for creating this discovery trail.
We really enjoyed this hike.

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rando ms
rando ms

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 27, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hike completed on 25 July 2020
Very pleasant route with elevation gain at the start and last 400 metres of the hike
We enjoyed the shaded sections
Beautiful views, beautiful landscapes

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guy pagat
guy pagat

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 28, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful bucolic walk starting from this truly charming little village. The effort is at the beginning of the route. After Le Creux, a grove in the meadow hides a statue of the Virgin Mary and her shrine, a place to rest where you can find a little shade. The walking time is quite long. Thank you for this suggestion.

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del G
del G
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 14, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

hello,
it was a beautiful route, but we cannot give the description a parish specific to Brittany rating. We ended up walking an extra 5 km because we missed a path at the start of the route, but that must have been our fault for not reading the description properly.
We have no regrets, as it gave us some exercise and the hike was very pleasant

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Kanougole
Kanougole

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 14, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful hike, with lovely slopes at the start and end of the route, a little rocky especially after the recent storms.
The description is good, we hesitated between points ten and eleven, because after the Chemin de la Madone, less than 800 metres away, you have to turn right along the buildings, but that may just be my own interpretation.
The GPS cleared up the confusion.
Many thanks to the creator.

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01rando
01rando

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 14, 2020
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant spring hike to prepare for steeper terrain this summer.
Beautiful rolling countryside just an hour from Lyon.
We added an extra 1.7 km and 50 m of elevation gain to see the remains of an ancient underground aqueduct, which was mainly interesting for the children. It's a shame it wasn't on the way back to motivate the troops!
To take this alternative route, at waypoint 1, continue along the road to Saint Genis l'Argentière instead of taking the path on the left.
At the Grande Goutte stream, turn left for the first time, shortly after the sign indicating the aqueduct area, turn left again, cross the stream and continue up the path, which becomes flatter after a hairpin bend to the left. The path passes close to the aqueduct, then leave the path that branches off to your right and descend to a place called La Grande Goutte, where you will find an old mill, a building straddling the stream, which you will go around on the left. Go onto the road and take the first path on your right (there is a chain to prevent motorbikes from passing). Continuing along the path, you will reach waypoint 2. This is where the alternative route ends and you can continue on the original route.

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