Country:
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Starting point and access: Cergy-le-Haut station.
- RER - Line A, terminus of the section between Paris and Cergy.
- Transilien - Line L, terminus of the section between Paris-Saint-Lazare and Cergy.
Take the Place des Trois Gares exit and, at the top of the stairs, take the exit marked "Sortie de nuit" (night exit).
No signage
(S) Upon exiting the station, turn left onto Rue de l'Espérance, passing a cinema on your right, and walk downhill.
Yellow signposts
At the bottom, cross the street and take the Promenade des Deux Bois opposite. Continue straight ahead on a gravel path lined with arbours, walking alongside a wood on your left and a lawn on your right.
(1) At the end of the woods, at a crossroads under an arbour, turn right and go under two successive road bridges. Wind downhill on a tarmac path, stay on the tarmac and ignore all the side paths. At a fork, turn right (follow the "Paris-Londres" arrow for cyclists) and enter a wood. Pass under a footbridge and continue along the tarmac path.
(2) Come out onto a wider road and follow it to the left (again "Paris-Londres"). Continue downhill and, after a chicane of small rocks, ignore a path branching off to the left. At the first houses, continue downhill and ignore the paths and dead ends on the right.
(3) Turn right onto Rue des Marais. At the next intersection, turn left. You will come out onto Rue des Bourdoulais; follow it to the right. Go under a bridge and, immediately afterwards, climb the wooden staircase on the right.
Yellow + red and yellow markings
(4) At the top, turn right and cross the bridge. The route then follows the platform of an old railway line. Cross a second bridge. Continue straight ahead on the platform, which is bordered on both sides by cobblestones, ignoring all the side paths, until you reach a beautiful viewpoint (stairs coming from the left; sign saying "Axe majeur").
No markings
(5) Then descend to the right, either by the stairs that follow one another in steps, or by the grassy path that runs parallel to them. At the bottom, cross a road in two stages and take the red metal bridge that crosses the Oise. At the end of the bridge, turn left onto a stabilised path. After about 50 metres, at a T-junction, turn left again and follow a stabilised path for about 100 metres.
(6) At the crossroads, cross a well-marked path and turn left onto a track that leads towards the river. Immediately find a good path and follow it to the right. Stay as close as possible to the Oise (on your left), sometimes on a dirt track, sometimes on a well-maintained grassy path, and ignore all the paths on the right. Alternate between shaded and open terrain. After a path lined with poplars on both sides, cross an area undergoing regeneration. At the fork at the end of this passage, turn right uphill.
(7) At the top (viewpoint on the right overlooking the lake), turn left and take the bridge over the Oise. Ignore the arrows inviting you to turn left, but turn right, leave a private car park on your right and pass under a porch. Continue straight ahead along the street until you reach Place des Goëllettes (signposted "Port Cergy").
(8) Then turn right towards the port and, after about 30 metres, take a footbridge. At the exit, continue straight ahead, walking alongside a building on your left. At the edge of the Oise, turn left onto Quai des Mariniers. Follow the river along a concrete path. Take a footbridge over a channel, continue for about 20 metres and turn left into an alleyway.
(9) At the end, turn right (bollards). After about 50 metres, when you reach an isolated house on the right-hand side, turn left onto a grassy path between the fields. At the first house, the path gives way to tarmac and, at the immediate junction, turn right into a 30km/h zone. Go under the road bridge and you will come to a crossroads.
Yellow markings
(10) Continue straight ahead along Allée des Plantes (dead end). After a chicane, the tarmac gives way to a gravel path. At a three-way junction, turn right. Ignore a few paths on the right leading to a housing estate. Continue along a wider path. At an intersection, ignore a path on the left. Further on, ignore a path on the right leading to a playground. Then ignore a path on the left and continue along the fitness trail.
N.B. On the following section, the route crosses numerous paths and mountain bike trails, not all of which are shown on the map. Follow the markings carefully and do not hesitate to turn back if you lose them.
(11) At the crossroads, there are two paths ahead: take the narrower one on the left. At a fork, take the left path uphill. Cross a mountain bike trail and descend onto a stony path. Bear right, follow a wider path and turn right. At a crossroads, turn left and pass a rubbish bin on your right. Stay on the main path and ignore any side paths. Note a double-trunked beech tree on your right and, at the next fork, turn right. At the next crossroads, turn left twice. Ignore a path on your right, come out onto a small car park and turn right.
(12) Then turn left towards Pontoise (sign for cyclists). Follow a road on a parallel path on the right-hand side. When the road turns left (elevation 26), continue straight ahead and enter Parc des Sheep Pastures. Follow a cement path, ignore a path on the left and pass under the railway bridge. Immediately turn right onto a gravel path. Ignore a path on the right and pass under the road bridge.
Red and yellow markings
(13) At the crossroads, continue along the path closest to the river. Pass a football stadium on your left and continue north with a wooded park on your left and the Oise river on your right. Ignore any turn-offs on the left and pass under the A15 motorway bridge. Continue along a tarmac path or a parallel path on the right-hand side. Pass the Ile Saint-Martin dam and continue along a street.
(14) Leave the street and turn right onto the quay along the Oise river. Pass under the railway bridge and then in front of the Pontoise tourist office.
Red and yellow + yellow markings
At the traffic lights at the bridge over the Oise, continue straight ahead on the quay. At the next set of traffic lights, continue towards Auvers-sur-Oise on a gravel path parallel to the D927.
Yellow markings
(15) At the next fork, ignore the arrows pointing to the left (twoPR® trails intersect here) and continue towards Auvers-sur-Oise on a gravel path parallel to the D4. At the traffic lights, go straight ahead and stay on the right-hand pavement.
(16) Just after a 30km/h speed limit sign, when the D4 road turns left, leave it and continue straight ahead on a path that passes behind the safety barrier. Go through a chicane and follow the Sente des Pêcheurs. Walk along this shaded path between garden fences on your left and the river on your right, ignoring all the paths on your left.
No markings
(17) Ignore the arrow pointing left onto Chemin du Général (named Allée des Pêcheurs on the map) and continue along the path beside the Oise. Cross a footbridge over a stream, pass a chicane of small rocks and continue along the path. Cross another footbridge.
(18) Pass under the railway bridge and leave a pond and then a path on your left. Continue through the undergrowth, crossing two more footbridges. Cross a tarmac lane on the left and continue along the riverbank. Cross a concrete footbridge and continue.
(19) At an intersection (signposted "Espace Camus"), go straight ahead onto a tarmac road with a 20km/h speed limit. Walk alongside a campsite on your left. Continue along the path beside the Oise, ignore a chicane on your left and pass under the D928 bridge.
(20) About 50 metres after the bridge, leave the path and turn left. You will soon reach a street (Rue Marcel Martin) and follow it to the left.
Yellow markings
At the stop sign, turn right onto the street that goes up towards the church (street not signposted here). Cross the railway line and, at the next traffic lights, cross the D4 and go up Rue de Paris opposite. At the fork (statue), leave the markings for a moment and follow Rue Daubigny to the left. After a few metres, climb the stairs on the right leading to the church (the entrance to the church is on the left).
(21) Walk along the church on your left. At the chevet, you will come to a street. Follow it to the left and rejoin the signposts. When the street turns right towards the cemetery, leave it and continue straight on along Chemin de l'église au Veau (the purple line on the map is inaccurate here). Ignore a path on the left. After a chicane, there are two paths opposite: take the one on the right.
(22) At the crossroads (sign for "Champ de blé aux corbeaux"), turn right. At the next crossroads, go straight ahead and walk along the cemetery on your right. At the next crossroads, go straight ahead (dead end). The tarmac gives way to a path and, at the crossroads (electricity pole), continue straight ahead between the fields. At the next intersection (elevation 65), continue straight ahead. Ignore a path on the left and continue on a small tarmac road downhill. At the stop sign, continue on a wider road.
No markings
(23) At the next intersection, ignore the arrow pointing to a sharp right turn and continue straight ahead downhill. You will come to a larger street (Rue de Parmain on the map) and follow it to the right. At the crossroads, turn left onto Rue de la Division Leclerc and leave the town hall on your right. Continue straight ahead on this street (note the modern chapel on the right-hand side).
Yellow markings
At the junction with a greenway coming from the left, continue along the street. At the end, turn right. At the stop sign, turn right again, cross the railway line at the level crossing and immediately turn right to reach Valmondois station (E).
To return home:
- Transilien - Line H, towards Paris-Nord, Persan-Beaumont and Creil, or Pontoise (check the screens for the departure platform).
Please note that between 6 and 7, roadworks make the path difficult to navigate.
Visorando member
Moderate 
Easy 
Association / Club / Walk leader
