From Domois to Cîteaux Abbey

(S/E) Head south along the tarmac path that runs alongside the A311 motorway until you reach a small building on the right.

(1) Then turn left onto the path leading to the Cent Fonts spring (spelt ‘Sans Fond’ on the IGN map).

(2) Continue straight on along the^GRP® “In the footsteps of the monks of Cîteaux”, passing a snail farm before going under the A31 motorway.

(3) At the junction, carry on straight ahead. When you reach a tarmac road, turn right towards the Moulin des Étangs. Before the entrance to the private property, turn left along a poplar plantation and follow it for about 300 metres.

(4) Enter this grove to reach the Cent Fonts, cross the footbridge and turn left towards Saulon-la-Rue.

(5) Follow Rue des Pâtis and continue up it until you reach the D31. Then turn left and you’ll come out onto the D996 (Route de Seurre). Follow the D996 to the left.

(6) Walk past Saulon Castle and then over the Cent Fonts bridge. When you reach the car park, enter the woods and walk round them, following the path along the inner edge until you reach the side of the castle.

(7). Follow the path on the left that runs alongside the Cent Fonts (do not enter the private property) until you reach the entrance to Saulon-la-Chapelle. Then take the D108K and then the D31 towards the centre for about 250 metres.

(8) Turn right towards the pond and walk round it on the right-hand side. Then head towards a small housing estate. Take Rue du Petit Essart. At the end, cross the D109F to reach a picnic area along the Cent Fonts. Then follow the river to the Pont des Arvaux.

(9) Continue to follow the Cent Fonts, which runs behind the houses in Noiron-sous-Gevrey. You’ll come to a small tarmac road and cross over to the opposite bank.

(10) Cross the D109D and pass behind a go-kart track. Continue along the left bank and, about 1 km further on, enter the Izeure State Forest.

(11) Cross the D25 at a place known as ‘Forêt du Millénaire’ (a good spot for a picnic) and continue along the left bank. At the bridge on the Route Forestière de l’Abbé, head straight on, keeping to the left bank of the Cent Fonts, until you reach the Château de la Forgeotte.

(12) Go round the small pond by the château on the left to rejoin the river. Cross the Route Forestière aux Foins towards the marshes, situated about 500 metres away.

(13) Continue southwards to reach the abbey, taking care when crossing the road (S/E)

Park in the Domois car-sharing car park, situated just below the roundabout leading towards the A311 motorway.
Unless you’re keen on hitchhiking, park a second car at the abbey for the return journey.
Bring drinks, energy-boosting snacks and good walking shoes.

The name Cent Fonts (spelt ‘Sans Fond’ on the IGN map) comes from the abbreviation of ‘cent fontaines’ (a hundred fountains), the main outlet of the southern Dijon aquifer.
The Cent Fonts canal is a 13th-century structure built by the monks, which diverts the river’s original course from the washhouse at Saulon-la-Chapelle to the abbey over a distance of 11 km, with a constant gradient of 1 metre per kilometre; the works took nine years, from 1212 to 1221. It provided a water supply for the abbey, as the Vouge has an irregular flow that was insufficient for the monks’ needs (both for people and livestock), whereas the flow of the Cent Fonts, though low, has the advantage of being very regular.
Interesting fact: the Pont des Arvaux (9), where the Cent Fonts flows over another river, the Varaude.