From Bourron-Marlotte to Nemours via Dame Jouanne

Starting point and access: Bourron-Marlotte-Grez railway station.
- Transilien - Line R, on the section between Paris-Lyon and Montargis.
Take the only exit, Place de la Gare, on the side of track 2 (Montargis-Paris direction). If arriving in the opposite direction (track 1), take the underground passage.

Red and white + green and white markings

(S) With your back to the station, follow the^GR®13on the first road on the left, towards Grez-sur-Loing. Walk along the railway line on your left and take the tunnel under the D607. At the roundabout, take the first left towards Recloses. Continue straight along this small road. After a metal gate on the left, turn right, still on tarmac.

(1) After a "Croisement" sign on the left-hand side (as seen from behind), leave the road and follow a path on the right that enters the forest and then immediately turns left (the "Propriété Privée" sign applies to the undergrowth on the right). Walk west-northwest through a forest of varied species and undergrowth that is dense in places.

Red and white markings

(2) At the crossroads, continue straight ahead then turn immediately left towards Villiers, ignoring the Chemin du Moulin de la Fosse on the right. At the next crossroads, turn left. At the T-junction, follow a small road on the left. At the fork that follows shortly after, turn right and pass under the bridge of an old railway line.

Yellow markings

(3) After the bridge, continue straight ahead on the tarmac road (ignore the^GR®13trail branching off to the right). Just after a "Croisement" sign on the left, turn right onto a sandy path. Climb gently through a pine forest with a few small rocks.

After a small pass, turn right to descend. When a path comes from the left, turn right. Then ignore the two successive paths on either side. The path narrows and the canopy thins out. When a wide path comes from the left, leave the forest and continue straight ahead along the edge of the horse pastures on your left.

(4) Cross the D63d road (take care) and continue opposite (south-west) on a farm track, first between fields and then between houses and sheds. Return to the tarmac and continue straight ahead to enter Villiers-sous-Grez. At the crossroads, follow the D104 to the right towards La Chapelle-la-Reine.

After No. 15bis, turn left onto a footpath. At the corner of a fence on the right-hand side, continue straight ahead and do the same a few metres further on, despite the^GR® signpost indicating a left turn. Keep heading south-southwest along the edge of the field on your right. Then walk along the horse pastures and you will come to an intersection (hiking sign).

Red and white markings (+ rare orange markings)

(5) At the intersection, continue straight ahead along the edge of the forest and follow the^GR®13again, towards Larchant. At a fork, take the left path and stay on the edge of the forest. Further on, enter the forest, ignore all the paths on the left and take the tunnel under the A6 motorway.

(6) Come out into a clearing and walk along a fence on your right. Turn right and enter the forest again. Pass directly below a transmitter on the right and, at a three-way junction at the corner of the wire fence, turn right. Descend and then walk west at the foot of a hillock covered with rocks on the right-hand side. At a three-way junction, turn right. Pass a chicane and enter the hamlet of Busseau.

(7) Cross the hamlet on a small road, passing an old well and a basin on your left. At the next crossroads, continue straight on towards Larchant. Immediately on your left, ignore the^first path along a wall and take the^{second one}, passing through a forest barrier. Climb up this sandy path.

(8) At a fork, turn right. At the next fork, turn right again and walk through a pine forest with heather undergrowth and small mossy rocks. When a path comes from the left (small rock), turn right and climb a little. At the next crossroads, turn left. Note the boulders on the right and you will come to a sandy crossroads.

Red and white markings

(9) Continue straight ahead, between plots 112 and 107, and climb up the wooden steps. After the steps, go around a rock on the right and then turn left. Pass between two groups of boulders. Then wind your way through the heather undergrowth and start climbing again between the rocks.

Red and white + blue markings

The Denecourt-Colinet trail no. 19, marked in blue, arrives from the left and joins the^GR®13. Follow these two trails, continue climbing and winding your way between the rocks (follow the markings closely as they are very dense here). You will come to a small rock marked with a double blue arrow.

(10) In a small pocket, there are three options here that are compatible with each other:
- To the left, make a round trip to see a rock with an unusual shape.
- Straight ahead, take a round trip to reach the Maunoury rock viewpoint (extensive view, particularly of Larchant church).
- To the right, the option you must take in any case to continue the hike, descend the rock itself with a few jumps from one rock to another. Keep to the right to pass between two boulders (here, do not confuse the hiking trail markings with the blue or orange arrows for the climbing routes).

In a flatter area, leave the rock marked "J" on your left and, after a large isolated pine tree, climb up again. Wind your way through the heather undergrowth (plot no. 106). At an intersection (wooden steps on the left), continue towards the Dame Jouanne viewpoint (sign). You will come to a tree bearing both a red and white marker and a blue arrow pointing to the right.

(11) Head left to the superb Dame Jouanne viewpoint. Be careful of the sheer drop of a good ten metres! Retrace your steps.

(11) Continue left (north-north-west), start descending and, after a flight of steps, turn right. Then descend a long wooden staircase that follows the twists and turns of an old path. At the bottom (large house on the right), turn left, go to an information panel with a map and join a wide path (Chemin de La Chapelle-la-Reine à Nemours on the map).

Blue markings

(12) Leave the^GR®13trail on your right and make a first turn left then right to take a narrow path, closed to cyclists and horse riders, towards the Bois d'Hyver car park (signpost). Follow this path lined with wooden posts for the first few hundred metres, then head south into dense undergrowth.

(13) At an intersection (tree with a sign showing a yellow silhouette of hikers), turn right. At the road, make a left-right zigzag to enter the Bois d'Hyver car park. At the end of the car park, continue straight on towards Mont Simmonet/la Justice/l'Éléphant (sign), pass a forest barrier and head west on a wide path. Then turn right and you will come to a junction with the Route du Bois d'Hyver.

Red and white markings

Turn left onto Route du Bois d'Hyver (ignore the blue markings and one of the branches of^{the GR®13}continuing opposite). At the next crossroads (plot no. 143), take a wide path on the left, Route de La Chappelle-la-Reine à Larchant.

N.B. In the following section, not all the paths are shown on the map and part of the purple route marking the^GR®13is inaccurate. Stick to the description and follow the markings, which are dense in this busy area.

(14) When you reach a sandy crossroads, take the path on the right. At a fork, take the path on the left, which is much more clearly marked than the one on the right. At the next crossroads, turn right and walk along the boulders on your left.

At a fork, follow the blue markings for a short while and take the left-hand path, which climbs steeply. When you reach the top, bear left onto the^GR®13(ignore the blue arrow pointing to the right). When you reach the top, keep left. Winding your way along a track under the pine trees and between the rocks, describe an arc to the right (be careful not to lose the markings).

After passing a sandy arena on your right below, turn left downhill between the rocks. Then go down a wooden staircase. At the bottom, turn right and leave a car park on your left. At a sandy crossroads (on the left-hand side, there is a tree with a sign bearing a yellow silhouette of hikers), turn right. When a path comes from the left, continue straight ahead and you will reach the easily recognisable Elephant Rock.

Red and white + blue markings

(15) Continue straight ahead in the sand, walking alongside imposing boulders on your right. At the first fork, turn right and at the second fork, turn left.

Red and white markings

At the next fork, turn left onto a faint path (ignore the blue markings going to the right). At the corner of plot no. 152, cross a wide path and continue straight ahead. Ignore the path on the right that joins the wide path, continue on a good path that is closed to horse riders and ignore the paths branching off to the sides.

Red and white + blue markings

At a triple fork, follow the middle path marked as a footpath. Climb up and, at the foot of a boulder, veer left to go around it. At a fork, turn right and climb up steep switchbacks between the rocks (follow the markings carefully). At the top, turn left.

Red and white markings

(16) At an intersection, continue straight ahead on the^GR®13(ignore the blue markings on the right; this is the last time you will see them on this hike). Descend, ignore a path on the left and come out at the edge of a field. Then turn left. At the corner of the field, turn right and follow a hedge on your left. At the end of the hedge, turn left towards a house.

Red and white + yellow markings

Facing the gate, turn right and descend a steep track. At the bottom, continue between fenced gardens and horse pastures towards the clearly visible church of Larchant. At the crossroads (metal cross on the right), continue straight ahead.

At the crossroads, go straight ahead and enter Larchant via the Porte de Paris and the street of the same name. At the fork, follow Rue de la Libération to the left. Leave the markings for a moment and turn right onto Rue de l'Église to reach the foot of the bell tower and the ruined nave of the church. Pass under the beautiful tympanum and cross the old nave to find the current entrance to the church on the left (it is also possible to go around the church on the right).

Red and white markings

(17) With your back to the church entrance, turn left and leave Place des Tilleuils on your left. Leave Larchant via the Porte de la Bretonnière and continue straight ahead along Rue la Cave de Chatenoy. When this road turns right and becomes a one-way street, continue straight ahead on a track. At the next crossroads, turn left onto a path. After a few metres, ignore a path on the left and, under the cover of the forest, walk along a fence on your right. Walk along a horse training arena on your left, ignore two paths on the left, then walk along a first horse pasture on your right.

(18) At the corner of a second horse pasture on the right, turn left. Pass between two meadows and then re-enter the forest. Stay on the main path, ignoring a few turn-offs on the sides. Cross the D16 (caution) and continue straight ahead on a track.

Walk alongside a riding centre and, when the track turns left, continue straight ahead on a path between the fields. At the end, pass the sign for the Commanderie State Forest. Cross a small road and continue on the path opposite. At the next junction, continue straight ahead.

(19) Shortly before a horse pasture on the right-hand side, turn right onto a path that enters the undergrowth. After about 300m, turn left onto this path and go around a small hillock covered with rocks on the left. At the crossroads, turn left. Ignore the faint tracks on the right leading towards the rocks and, when a wide path (not shown on the map) comes from the right, continue straight ahead. At a T-junction, turn right.

(20) After about 300m, leave the path and take a discreet trail on the left (be careful to spot this start). At the fork that immediately appears, turn right and make a short, steep climb in switchbacks. You will reach a viewpoint at the top of some boulders (be careful of the steep drop).

Continue on relatively flat ground along a trail between the boulders. Descend between the rocks and, at the bottom, veer left. Climb again, less steeply than before, and go around a boulder on the left. Turn right and climb a few natural steps to reach a^second summit. Then descend a steep slope to reach a clearing.

(21) Cross the clearing widthwise and follow a path that descends opposite. At the fork that immediately appears, turn right, wind your way between the rocks and, at another fork, turn right again. At a T-junction, turn left. Ignore a path on the left and pass under an arch (the last remnant of an old chapel?). At the end of the path (lawn with a football goal opposite), turn right. At the crossroads, continue in the same direction and rejoin the tarmac road.

(22) When you reach a road, follow it to the left for about 100 metres (the purple^GR®13route on the map is inaccurate here). When the road turns left, continue straight ahead on a wide path and walk along plot no. 45, ignoring a few paths on either side.

Red and white + yellow markings

After passing a sign indicating the Forêt Domaniale de la Commanderie, continue straight ahead on the main path, following a fence on your left.

No markings

(23) At the next junction, turn left onto a wide path (ignore the marked path continuing straight ahead), still with the fence on your left. Leave the forest, continue between meadows and, at the first houses, continue straight ahead on the tarmac road. Cross Rue des Prunus on the left and then Rue des Acacias on the right. At the next junction, continue straight ahead along Rue de Puiselet (which we have been following since the start without realising).

At the stop sign, turn right onto Rue de Larchant, preferably on the left-hand pavement. Go around the roundabout on the left and head towards the nearby level crossing. On the left, you will find direct access to the platforms of Nemours-Saint-Pierre station (E).

To return home:
Transilien - Line R, towards Melun and Paris (platform 2, before the level crossing) or Montargis (platform 1, after the level crossing).

Train timetables: consult the Transilien website.

For motorists:
The two stations are located on the same section of the same line: leave one vehicle in the car park of one of the two stations and make the return journey by train. It is also possible to organise two vehicles, one at each station.

Hiking boots are required.

Water points:
- In Busseau, after (7), just before the basin.
- In Larchant (17), on the square between the church and the town hall (thanks to VR Cyclochica for pointing this out).
This should not exempt you from bringing your own supplies...
Bakeries:
- In Villiers-sous-Grez, between (4) and (5) along the D104, closed on Wednesdays and from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Opposite Nemours-Saint-Pierre station (E).

A 1:25,000 map is essential (at least the one accompanying this description).

Recommendations concerning rocky areas:

- Several sections of this hike follow trails that wind through rocks, requiring a good sense of direction. This is the case for the Denecourt-Colinet trail no. 19, marked in blue, and the^GR®13, marked in red and white: between points (9) and (12), (14) and (15) and (20) and (21).

- The markers can be found on three types of supports, at three different heights: (i) on tree trunks at eye level; (ii) on rocks, at the same height or lower; on rocks close to the ground.

- Despite the density of the markings and their maintenance (thanks to the markers!), it is recommended that you pay attention so as not to lose your way. If you have not seen a marker for some time, do not hesitate to retrace your steps until you find the markings again.

- Due to their popularity, the Maunoury, Dame Jouanne and Éléphant areas are subject to erosion. Stay on the marked trails and respect the protective measures that have been put in place: small fences, wooden stairs, etc. Due to this erosion, some boulders have become loose and are off-limits due to the risk of rockfall: please respect these restrictions!

Hike completed by the author on 29 April 2017.

- Forest paths.
- Rock chaos between (9) and (12), (14) and (15) and (20) and (21).
- Viewpoints from Maunoury (10) and Dame Jouanne (11).
- In Larchant, shortly before (17), a Renaissance-era inn and medieval house.
- Saint-Mathurin Church (12th-16th century) in Larchant (17). The church is partly in ruins, with only the choir and transept currently in use.
- Between (21) and (22), an arch with a statue that appears to be the last remaining part of an old chapel.

- The town of Nemours, with its rich heritage, is well worth a visit in its own right.