From Chez Désiré to Les Grands Pillets

The parking area is located in the car park of the Saint Simon de Bordes village hall.

(S/E) Head to Rue de la Salle des Fêtes (road D154E1), turn right and pass in front of the school.

(1) Turn left onto the main street (D253; church on the right) and pass in front of the town hall. Cross the D19 with caution and continue opposite on the D253 towards Ozillac.

(2) At a place called Chez Désiré, turn left onto a path. Turn right (east) at the edge of a small wood. At the T-junction, go left.

(3) At an intersection at the corner of a field, turn right, walking along the field on your right and a wood on your left. Cross the small road that leads to Le Clône de Chez Saurin and continue straight ahead along Rue des Petits Rois.

(4) At the hamlet of Les Petits Rois, turn right onto a road that immediately gives way to a path. Turn left at the edge of a wood and go downhill. Cross the Cendronne stream.

(5) On the other side, turn left at the edge of the woods, then right to climb through the woods. Ignore a path on the right, walk along a vineyard on your right and follow the winding path.

(6) At Les Hilairets, follow a small road to the left and, after about 100 metres, take a path on the right. Continue straight ahead, ignoring a path on the left, until you reach a T-junction.

(7) Then first turn left then right and enter a wood. Continue straight ahead, leave the wood, pass under a high-voltage power line and reach a small road.

(8) Follow the road to the left and cross the hamlet of Les Grands Pillets.

(9) At the first junction, turn left onto a path marked in red and yellow (GRP® de Saintonge). Climb gently between the fields, then along the edge of a wood. Turn left with the path and enter the wood. Leave the wood, walk along a vineyard on your right and continue to a T-junction.

(10) First turn left then right to follow the GRP® south-west.

(11) At the next T-junction, first turn left then right to continue along the GRP® on a path. Descend and pass in front of a monument in tribute to the Resistance. Cross the Cendronne and climb up the other side into a wood. Return to an intersection taken at the start of the hike.

(3) Continue straight ahead and, taking the same path as on the way out but in the opposite direction, return to the car park of the village hall (S/E).

This hike covers varied terrain and requires sturdy footwear.

This route is only partially marked: from the start to point (3) and from point (9) to the finish, it follows the GRP® de Saintonge. It is therefore advisable to follow the directions in the description and on the map, while also paying close attention to the landscape.

Hike completed by the author on 7 December 2022.

Church of Saint-Simon-de-Bordes
The church, built in the 12th century, was listed as a historic monument by decree on 5 December 2000. The two arms of the transept were rebuilt in the 19th century.

For more details, see the commune's website.