In the Villecartier State Forest

The Villecartier State Forest is now known for its leisure centre and miniature harbour. A former royal forest covering 1,000 hectares, it has been home to craftsmen since ancient times: the Auge des Sabotiers archaeological site bears witness to this. During the Roman period and then in the Middle Ages, its activities continued to evolve against a backdrop of religious influence.

This walk, which takes place entirely in the forest, invites you to discover all these places steeped in history.

Details

2949500
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.05 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 207 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 203 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 367 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 272 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

Park at the Carrefour de la Croisée de Dol.

(S/E) Take the path between the D 91 on the left and the D 155 on the right, heading north-east.

YellowPR® markings

After 50 m, turn left. You will very quickly reach the Hêtre Royal.

(1) Continue to the right. At the Fork in the road, take the path on the left; it leads, veering left, to the Chêne des Petils.

(2) After 70 m, turn right and, just past a water collection point, you will reach the Oratoire Saint-Mathurin.

(3) Ignore the path on the right which leads back to the Hêtre Royal and turn left. The straight path heads south-west and leads to the D155 road.
Cross with care and continue straight ahead for a few metres, then turn left. The path runs alongside the road and leads to the Croix Sainte-Anne.

(4) Turn right. The path crosses the Route Forestière de la Haute Goupelle and then heads southwards. Ignore a path on the right and head down to the Auge des Sabotiers.

(5) Continue south, cross the Route Forestière de Chaussement and, after crossing the Ruisseau de Petit Hermitage, you will arrive in front of the Colonne des Chouans.

Red and white markings forthe GR® 34 and 39

(6) Turn right and head back up towards the north-west. Cross the D 91 road. At the T-junction with signposts bearing several markings, keep right and continue for 50 m.

PR® markings

(7) Off the route: Continuing straight on with theGR®, the Croix de Montaugé is 500 m away.
Take a sharp left-hand bend and cross the Route Forestière du Pinsonnet. Continue along the path heading due west. You will come to the Route Forestière de Nouas.

Follow it to the right for 200 m, then turn left after a forest house on your right onto the path. This leads to the Carrefour Mauny.

(8) Cross the junction and head north-west, then take the first path on the left.
After rejoining the main path, walk 100 m before following the path to the right. Continue along this path to reach the banks of the Étang de Ruffien.

(9) At the fork in the road, after a hairpin bend, keep right to cross a footbridge and reach the Discovery Trail and the Villecartier Miniature Port.

(10) Turn left, passing in front of the Moulin de la Forêt (crêperie). Take the first path on the right to the north of the pond so that Étang de Villecartier remains on your right. Cross the Parc de Loisirs.

Red and white markings forthe GR® 34 and 39

The path is circular and crosses a stream before returning to the shore. To the south of the pond, it veers away from it, then crosses the Ruisseau du Petit Hermitage. Continue left to climb up and admire the Chêne Fayard de la Mothe Bertier.

(11) Cross the Route de la Mailleterie

PR® signposting

Turn immediately left. Follow the path to the left leading to the Roman milestone.

(12) Turn right and then left to rejoin the path. Cross the Ruisseau du Petit Hermitage once more, then the D91 road, and continue straight ahead, keeping to the left of the road.

No further signposting

Finish by turning left onto the Route de la Haute Coupelle, which leads to the Carrefour de la Croisée de Dol (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 354 ft - Croisée de Dol crossroads
  2. 1 : mi 0.13 - alt. 335 ft - Royal Beech
  3. 2 : mi 0.54 - alt. 322 ft - Chêne des Pétils
  4. 3 : mi 0.83 - alt. 312 ft - Saint-Mathurin Oratory
  5. 4 : mi 1.28 - alt. 361 ft - Croix Sainte-Anne
  6. 5 : mi 2.03 - alt. 344 ft - Auge des Sabotiers
  7. 6 : mi 2.42 - alt. 331 ft - Column of the Chouans
  8. 7 : mi 2.93 - alt. 348 ft - To the left, straight ahead is the Croix de Montaugé
  9. 8 : mi 3.81 - alt. 361 ft - Mauny Crossroads
  10. 9 : mi 4.86 - alt. 295 ft - Ruffien Pond
  11. 10 : mi 5.12 - alt. 276 ft - Villecartier Miniature Port
  12. 11 : mi 6.2 - alt. 315 ft - European beech at La Motte Bertier
  13. 12 : mi 6.49 - alt. 285 ft - Roman milestone
  14. S/E : mi 7.05 - alt. 354 ft - Croisée de Dol crossroads

Notes

Unless otherwise stated, the route is marked in yellow bythe VillecartierPR®

At the start and finish, also look out for the markers: a solid white disc topped with an oratory for the "Petit patrimoine" route.
Between (8) and (10), look out for a solid red disc marking the Croix de Montaugé route

Discover all the activities on offer in the Villecartier Forest and along the Couesnon: https://www.tourisme-marchesdebretagne.c...

Worth a visit

Saint-Mathurin Oratory: https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...

Croix Sainte-Anne: https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...

Auge des Sabotiers: https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...

Chouans Column: https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...

Montaugé Cross:
https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...

Roman milestone: https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...

Three remarkable trees:
- Pestils Oak: age 150 years – circumference 4.75 m – height 24 m. Sadly, it has now fallen; the wind proved too strong for it.
https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...
- Royal Beech: age 200 years – circumference 3.65 m – height 30 m
https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...
- Fayard beech: age 150 years – circumference 2.50 m – height 40 m
https://www.petit-patrimoine.com/fiche-p...

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

4.4 / 5
Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
Cancale35
Cancale35

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 20, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A route to recommend in hot weather
I agree that part of it is probably less attractive because of the felling of trees, so that section isn’t as lovely.
The Pétils oak has been cut down, so all that remains is the trunk and a few metres

Machine-translated

OLVMALOU
OLVMALOU

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 31, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very shady route

Machine-translated

ascamapa
ascamapa

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 29, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant route through a beautiful forest. The route follows the marked trail closely. A section of windfall in the first few kilometres means you have to turn back.

Machine-translated

Razhkoed
Razhkoed

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 31, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hello, This walk is ideal for hot days, as 70% of the route is shaded. It should be noted, however, that some trees have been felled and the newly planted ones are not yet tall enough to provide shelter from the sun. So make sure you bring something to protect yourself from the sun on these sections.
Point to note: To make parking easier, it is best to start from point 10. There is a large car park there serving the leisure centre.
Another point to note: towards the end of the route, a tree-top adventure course has been set up, blocking the hiking route with no alternative route. This may be due to the difficult times we are experiencing and the somewhat hasty resumption of activities. For our part, we had to cover the last 500 metres by road... which was very busy.
One final point: the section between points 10 and 12 is very busy at weekends (leisure park) and should therefore be avoided on those days.
Kind regards

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.