From Dourdan to Rambouillet through woods and forests

Starting point and access: Dourdan station.
- RER - Line C, on the section between Paris and Dourdan-la-Forêt.
- TER - Line between Paris-Austerlitz and Tours.
Take the Place Amédée Guénée exit on the side of track 1 (Paris to Dourdan direction). If arriving in the opposite direction, track 2, take the underground passage.

Red and white markings

(S) When you leave the station, head straight ahead onto Avenue Amédée Guénée. At the crossroads, follow the^GR®1and^GR®111signs to the right.

No markings

After a few metres, turn left onto Sente Bonniveau (let the^GR® trails continue along the street). Ignore another dead-end path on the left and go down a few steps. Cross a street and go down some steps. At the fork (gate opposite), take the paved path on the left, rejoin the^{GR® trails} and cross the Orge.

Red and white markings

(1) At the end of the bridge, turn right and walk along the river on your right (note the old private wash houses on the opposite bank).

Red and white + yellow markings

At the end of the path, turn right onto the^GR®1(the^GR®111turns left) and cross the Orge again. Cross a street and go up Rue du Potelet. At the roundabout, continue straight ahead, follow the D836 towards Limours, preferably on the left-hand pavement, and go under the railway bridge.

(2) Immediately turn left onto Chemin Maurice Gallais (paved here) and ignore the path further to the left that runs alongside the railway line. Walk alongside the stadium on your right and, after the last car park, continue along a path. Pass a map of the Dourdan communal forest on your left, go through a forest gate and enter the forest. Climb gently.

(3) At forest plot no. 23, turn left onto the path, which narrows. Wind your way uphill and then along level ground. At a T-junction, turn left and, at the fork that appears very quickly (sandy area on the left), turn right. After a few metres, turn right again and descend steeply.

(4) At the bottom, turn right and, at the next junction (plots nos. 23 and 22), go straight ahead. The oak forest gives way to a pine forest. Go up the main path, ignoring the vague tracks on either side. At the top, at the edge of plots nos. 22, 24 and 21, continue on the same path, veering slightly to the left.

No markings

(5) At the crossroads (signpost), take the third path on the left, the Route des Soupirs, between plots nos. 26 and 27. Walk along a copse on your left and pass through a few short wet sections without difficulty. At the next crossroads (plot no. 28), continue straight ahead and walk along a beautiful, open forest on your left. You will come to a T-junction. Note the paved ford on your left (information sign).

(6) Turn right onto a wide path. At the first crossroads (plot no. 29), turn left towards a nearby signpost.

(7) Then take the second path on the left, the Route de la Lieue, between a^PR® marked in yellow on the left and the^GR®1marked in red and white on the right. Pass at the foot of the Chêne du Breton on the left and, at the crossroads, continue straight ahead on a gravel path.

(8) At the large Carrefour de Madame crossroads, take the third path on the right, heading north-north-west. Shortly before the barrier marking the end of the path, cut right and pass a shelter. Join the access road to the car park, follow it to the right and cross the D836 road (take care).

Red and white markings

(9) Return to^{the GR®1}, turn left and follow the road downhill on its right-hand side. Pass under the TGV Atlantique bridge and then under the A10 motorway bridge. About twenty metres before the sign announcing a left turn, leave the road and take a discreet path on the right (be careful). Wind your way through the undergrowth, cross a ditch and turn left (follow the markings carefully). Stay parallel to the ditch on the left-hand side and to the road further to the left. You will come to a wider path near the road.

(10) Then turn right and go through a metal gate. Continue straight ahead, leave the forest and climb up the edge of the field towards a water tower. Ignore a path on the left and walk past the foot of the water tower (note its walls, which are equipped for climbing). Descend, leaving houses on your left. At an intersection, continue straight ahead, pass through a forest barrier and descend steeply with the church of Saint-Arnoult in your sights.

(11) At the crossroads, continue straight ahead on Rue de l'Isle. Cross the Rémarde and, at the next intersection, go straight ahead on Rue du Coq. After No. 5, climb the stairs on the left to Ruelle Triquedame. Continue along a path, pass by the side of Saint-Nicolas Church and then walk along it on your left. At the end, turn left to reach the entrance gate.

(12) Turn right and note the Virgin and Child in a niche in the Maison du Prieur on the left-hand side. Instead, turn right twice and follow Rue Charles de Gaulle for a few dozen metres. Take the first left, Rue du Billoir. At the crossroads, follow the^GR®1and^GR®655straight ahead towards the Étang d'Or. After No. 18, turn right onto a path between two walls. Climb a flight of steps and take the bridge on the left over the platform of an old railway line.

(13) At the roundabout, take the second left, Rue de Saint-Benoît, and follow the^GR®655. After a staircase on the right, the tarmac gives way to an uphill path. At the top, ignore two paths on the left and walk along a meadow on the right. Continue between the fields towards the Bois de Saint-Benoît. Walk along the edge of the woods on your left, pass a forest barrier and enter the woods (plot no. 43). Follow a wide, undulating path and ignore the paths on the left (plots nos. 31/41 then 31/32). You will reach the Poste de Saint-Benoît (former forest house).

(14) Continue straight ahead (north-west) on the wide path and ignore the turnings on either side. Pass at the foot of the Chêne Saint-Louis oak tree on the left and, at the next crossroads, continue straight ahead on the Chemin de Saint-Arnoult à Rambouillet (CR no. 1). Turn right along the path and note the dovecote on the left beyond a meadow.

(15) At the crossroads, follow a small road on the left. Just after a sign indicating a left turn, turn right onto a path behind a forest barrier and walk along an orchard on your left (wet passages). At the next crossroads (plot no. 17), continue straight ahead. Then ignore a path leading left towards a large house.

(16) At the crossroads (stone hut), take the second path on the right, between plots nos. 14 and 13. At the next crossroads, go straight ahead between plots nos. 12 and 13 (wet passages). At the end of the path, turn right and walk as close as possible to the Fosse aux Loups pond on your right.

(17) At the T-junction, turn left onto a good, stable path. Ignore a path on the left and then one on the right, both marked in yellow, and continue north-west on the^GR®. At a fork, go straight ahead (right-hand path). Walk for a long time along a fence on your right. After a large building on the right-hand side, turn right and follow a road for a few metres.

(18) At the gate to a private property, turn left onto Route de l'Étang d'Or. Continue straight ahead, west-northwest, on a tarmac and gravel road, until you reach the crossroads in the hamlet (forest barriers).

No markings

(19) Continue straight ahead (leaving the^GR® trail on your left). After about 150 metres, take a discreet path on the right (be careful) and leave plot no. 23-15 on your left. Walk through dense forest. Cross a ditch and then walk along a pond on your right. Then cross a stream at a ford. You will come to a crossroads where the path opposite is much clearer.

(20) Turn left. At the Carrefour des Bonnes Mares, go straight ahead onto the Route de Saint-Rémy. N.B. In February 2018, the path was blocked by freshly cut coppice wood, which could easily be bypassed on the right. Pass a small pond on your right and, at the Carrefour de la Chênaie, continue straight ahead. You will come to a small tarmac road. Follow it to the right with the Étang d'Or on your left.

(21) Take the bridge over the end of the pond. At the end of the bridge, continue straight ahead on a wide, stable path (ignore the^GR® which branches off to the left along the pond). Cross a path and arrive at Carrefour de la Louvière.

Yellow and blue markings

Continue in the same direction (north-west) and pass the Maison forestière des Éveuses on your right. The path then gives way to tarmac. Pass under a medium-voltage power line, ignore a street on your right and follow Rue de la Chesnaie.

Red and white markings

(22) At the "give way" sign, pass under the N10 bridge. At the roundabout, continue straight ahead on Rue des Éveuses. At the next roundabout, continue straight ahead on the same street, which becomes a dead end. Continue downhill on this street, which becomes a one-way street. At the bottom, turn left and pass under the railway bridge. Then turn right twice and go up the street that leads to Rambouillet station (E).

To return home:
- Transilien - Line N, towards Paris-Montparnasse.
- TER - Line towards Paris-Montparnasse or Chartres.

Train timetables: consult the Transilien website.

For motorists:
Arrange to have at least two vehicles, one in the car park of each of the two stations, which are on different lines. With only one vehicle, travelling there or back by train would require a connection between two stations in central Paris.

No water sources identified along the route. Bars and restaurants near the Dourdan (S) and Rambouillet (E) stations. Bars, restaurants and shops after the church in Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines (12).

Hiking boots required. Short wet sections between (5) and (6) and between (14) and (15). Potentially significant wet sections between (15) and (17).

1:25,000 map required (at least the one accompanying this description).

Alternative route in wet conditions:
In wet conditions, the route between the crossroads (15) and the Fosse aux Loups (17) can become quite difficult. It is therefore recommended to continue straight ahead on the road at point (15). Near the water tower on the right-hand side, ignore a path branching off to the right, stay on the road and follow the blue and white markings. When the road turns right, go straight ahead on a path to reach the Fosse aux Loups (17).

Hike completed by the author on 25 February 2018.

- Most of the route is along forest paths, with several remarkable trees.
- Several bodies of water, notably the Fosse aux Loups (17) and the Étang d'Or (21).
- Paved ford dating from the 18th century in the Forest of Dourdan (6).
- Saint-Nicolas Church (11th-12th and 16th centuries) in Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines (12).