From Châtillon-en-Vendelais to the hilltop village of Montautour

This route, numbered 2 and named "Mirligousse" on white signs with green arrows, is taken from the Vitré Communauté catalogue. The description below and these notes were written by "Le Randonneur Breton".

Car park at the lake leisure centre.

(S/E) Head south towards the shores of the Étang de Châtillon.

Red and white markings of^{the GR®} 34

Turn right to walk alongside the lake and the campsite. Follow the path as it bends to the right, cross the old railway line and, via Impasse de la Basse Épine, join the D108 road.

(1) First turn right then left as you cross, heading towards L’Épine. Continue until you reach the road running alongside La Roche Piquet.

(2) Follow the road for just over 200 m (view over the lake and towards the west). Take a path on the left and go round a wooded hill on the right. Cross the Petit Sapin and turn left. At the junction, continue straight ahead.

(3) Cross the D178 road with care, then turn left towards La Rabelière. Walk past the farm and turn left at the T-junction. Ignore a path on the right.

Yellow markings with a green arrow for the^PR® Mirligousse

(4) Let the^GR® head off to the left and take the track to the right. At the T-junction, continue to the left. Cross the D209 and continue straight ahead.

(5) At Mirligousse, follow the road as it curves to the right (view straight ahead of Montautour, depending on the height of the trees). Pass Le Petit Pommier. At the junction, turn left and head towards Le Pommier

Red and white markings of^{the GR®} 34

(6) You’ll meet the^GR® 34 coming from the left. Head right. Climb up a stony path and turn right towards the south-west.

(7) Take the D24 to climb up to Montautour. At the crossroads, continue straight ahead, veering slightly to the right. Take Rue de la Mairie, passing the cemetery and the church, then the town hall.

(8) Head down a path that goes round the wooded hill and ends on a road. Before reaching this road, take the grassy path on the right

Yellow markings with a green arrow on the^PR® Mirligousse

(9) Before reaching this road, take the grassy path on the right, temporarily leaving the^GR® which heads left onto the road. Walk alongside the woods, then turn left twice to reach the D24 road.

(10) Cross the road and head slightly to the right. At a bend to the right, follow the grassy path as it continues. It crosses the Ruisseau de Landemoux and leads back to the D24.

Red and white markings of^{the GR®} 34

(11) You rejoin the^GR®. Follow the road to the right for about 750 m, ignoring the turn-offs to the right leading to Landemoux, then to Villeneuve and the Point du Jour.

(12) Facing a road on the left and after a wayside cross on the right, take the path on the right heading due north. Before the Rocher de la Devise, head down to the left along a copse.

(13) Cross the D178 road with care and continue straight on. Pass the houses of La Pérouasserie. Head up to the right to the wooded area of Rochary (rocks and panoramic views).

(14) Head back down towards Châtillon. Turn right. Cross Rue de la Fontaine, take Rue de la Tuilerie, then turn left onto Rue Bellevue.

(15) At the wayside shrine, take the hairpin bend to the right onto Rue des Hurlières for 80 m, then turn left onto Chemin de la Fleuriais.

(16) Turn right onto Rue de la Basse Fleuriais, then right onto Rue du Général de Gaulle, which runs alongside the old railway line. Take the sharp left to cross the track and continue to the right to return to the car park where you started (S/E).

The^GR® 34: It is essentially a coastal route, following the coast of Brittany along the customs officers’ paths from Mont-Saint-Michel to the Rhuys Peninsula near the Gulf of Morbihan. But it actually begins at the foot of Vitré Castle and winds its way through the Brétillien region, passing through Châtillon-en-Vendelais (kilometre 26), Fougères (kilometre 66), then through the Fougères Forest to reach Montours (kilometre 95), Saint-Brice-en-Coglès (kilometre 104) before continuing towards Antrain (kilometre 120); From there, it shares the route with the^GR® 39 and takes a short detour into the Manche department at Pontorson (kilometre 145) or, after following the Couesnon, it reaches the regulating dam (kilometre 153) where it joins the branch of^{the GR®} starting from Le Mont.
This is why some estimate its length at 1,800 km and others at 2,000 km. It all depends on whether or not you include the branch starting from Vitré.

The hill of Montautour is the highest point in the department of Ille-et-Vilaine (194 metres), from where 32 church spires can be seen. The village is dominated by the bell tower of the Church of Notre-Dame-du-Roc, atop which stands a statue of the Virgin Mary.

The 110-hectareChâtillon-en-Vendelais lake is home to a large community of migratory birds and wild ducks, as it lies on a migratory route.

The rocks of Saut-Roland and the dripping stone: legend has it that once upon a time there was Roland, nephew of Charlemagne and Prefect of the Marches of Brittany. The knight had gone off to wage war against the Saracens. Upon returning to his lands, he crossed the site on horseback, leaping from one stone to another. The horseman dedicated his first two leaps to God and the Virgin Mary. He cleared the obstacle without a hitch. The third leap, dedicated to his ‘lady’, proved fatal: Roland fell to the bottom of the ravine.
At this spot, a spring covered by a large boulder trickles, drop by drop. It is called ‘the dripping stone’. It symbolises the inconsolable beauty. Do not look for the stone… It too is part of the legend! But the two large rocks facing each other give the site its distinctive character.