From Carency to Mont-Saint-Éloi via Bois Poret

Start at Carency: small dirt square in front of the church

(S/E)  Opposite the church, turn right. At the crossroads, turn right to reach a T-junction. Turn left, then right a few meters further into Rue du Maréchal Foch. Opposite the water tower, turn right onto the road. Reach a crossroads.

(1) Take the track on the right through the fields. At the T-junction, turn right onto a small road, which you follow to the right to join the D58.

(2) Follow it a few metres to the left and take the 1st right-hand path. Go downhill to reach a small road which you follow to the left. After the last houses, the road becomes a path. Continue in the same direction up the Vallée Niclette until you reach the D65 (ignore all the side roads).

(3) At the crossroads, continue straight ahead, passing the renovated old railway station, then the military cemetery, until you reach a T-junction. Turn right onto a beautiful arched path which eventually bends left to cross the Bois de Villers. Reach a crossroads opposite a recently renovated chapel.

Turn left onto Chaussée Brunehaut. Keep heading south-east and walk for about 1.5 km. On the left, don't miss the gate leading to Bois Poret.

(5) Cross the barrier. At the gate, go right on a wild path through ferns, eventually reaching a 2nd barrier. Cross it and turn left on the path through the woods.

(6) At the edge of the wood, pass another fence on the right. Follow the attractive grassy path which bends left and reaches a T-junction opposite the water tower. Turn left to reach a T-junction where you turn right. Walk for about 300m.

(7) On the right, don't miss the narrow, straight path to Villers-au-Bois (you can see the church). At the end of the path, turn right into Rue Sanverne. At the T-junction (communal pond on the left), turn right, pass the church and stay on the road to reach the D58.

(8) Follow it to the right (little traffic here, be careful) and reach the cemetery. Turn left through the woods. No problem finding your way through the woods: stay on the main path. The only problem is that it deteriorates in rain, and some places can be a bit tricky. After a wider path (but not a very good one either), reach a T-junction.

(9) Take the path to the right to enter the woods again (much better path). Reach a T-junction on the outskirts of Mont-Saint-Éloi.

(10) Turn right into Rue Salengro, then left into 3^e rue (Rue des Tours) to arrive opposite the towers of the former abbey (a visit to the back of the two towers is a must!). See practical info.

(11) Then turn left with the GR^®127 and 145. Pass the Mairie (town hall) and continue in the same direction (still GR^®) down Rue de la Warde. Pass the old-fashioned garage (on the left), then the Saint-Antoine farm (on the right) and reach a crossroads near a farm (it's ahead on the left). See practical info.

(12) Continue straight on (this is the old route of the GR^®, but according to IGN it now seems to go off to the right. It's true that it's sometimes pretty bad in places, especially the last 100 metres. In mid-August 2019, after some rain, it was still decent (despite a few stinging nettles) and it's possible to avoid the most difficult parts by passing along the edge of a field on the left. Arrive at a T-junction on the edge of Bois l'Abbé.

(13) Turn left, ignoring the path to the right (GR^®127 variant) and go straight on towards Carency with the GR^® 127 in the middle of the fields.

(1) Turn right towards the water tower, then keep right (Rue du Général Barbot). Just before the D56, turn right again onto Rue de l'Église (leaving the GR^®). At the crossroads, turn left to find the car park (S/E).

Good shoes and walking stick(s) highly recommended.

A glance at the map shows that the walk can be shortened.

On the variant below, I propose a nice and not too long extension (1.6km and 40m ascent).
Variant: after the (10) sign, opposite Rue des Tours, you'll find a path to the right. It veers left, goes along the gardens and joins the D341. Follow this for a few metres to the right (caution), then turn left onto a wide track that descends to the entrance to Écoivres. At the T junction, turn left and immediately left again, taking the GR^® 127 up towards Mont-Saint-Éloi. Just before the D341, turn left onto a narrow path which then veers right to reach the D341. Cross the road and head uphill, turning right a little further up the Rue des Tours to return to the original route.

At (12), you can take the left-hand path and return. It's a bit tricky, but I really like it (1.5 km round trip).

Passages through the woods are always pleasant (between 3 and 4 roe deer last week).

Mont-Saint-Éloi abbey.

For classic car enthusiasts, the old-fashioned garage.

Some signs about the Great War in Mont-Saint-Éloi.