From Genainville to Chars in the heart of the French Vexin region.

Departure: Genainville church square, in the heart of the French Vexin region in the Val d'Oise.

The trail is marked with the red and white GR® markings, but these are not followed throughout this stage, particularly upstream from Magny-en-Vexin.

(S) With your back to Genainville church, turn right and walk up the main street until you reach the GR® trail, which branches off to the left 100 metres further on Rue de la Serée. Follow it, passing in front of a wash house. Take the path on the left when the street makes a first turn left then right, walk behind the orchards, cross the stream and continue in the same direction. Cross the road and continue opposite along the path that goes uphill. When you reach a road near the top, turn right and walk past the cemetery.

(1) Continue along the path in the same direction, descending between woods and fields. Turn right at the bottom of the descent until you reach the road.

(2) Take the road on the left and follow it to the village of Omerville. Pass in front of a manor house and head for Place Saint-Martin.

(3) Continue right along Rue Saint-Martin and follow it downhill to the bottom of the Aubette valley. Cross the D86 and go up opposite to the Louvière farm.

(4) Turn right, pass behind the farm buildings and continue to the edge of the woods. Follow the path that runs along the edge of the woods, descending and then following the valley halfway up the slope. Continue up the valley to the viaduct under the D14 at the entrance to Magny-en-Vexin.

(5) Enter Magny by following the river until you reach Boulevard des Ursulines. Turn left onto this road, continuing to follow the river. Continue straight ahead after passing Rue d'Archemont. Cross Rue de Rouen to take Boulevard des Chevaliers, still following the Aubette. At the end of the lane, turn right onto Boulevard de la Digue.

(6) Immediately turn right onto Rue de la Digue (off the GR®) to head towards the church. Then turn left onto Rue de l'École, then right onto Boulevard de la Tour Robin (returning to the GR®), and left onto Rue de Beauvais, until you reach the D86.

(7) Although the GR® continues straight ahead, turn right onto Rue du Docteur Fourniols (following the route of the Chaussée Jules-César, an ancient Roman road linking Rotomagus (Rouen) to Lutetia) until you reach Petit Artheuil.

(8) Turn left to avoid a slightly dangerous stretch of road, then after 200 metres turn right onto Sente du Loup, which leads back to the road.

(9) Take the^first road on the left to Velannes-la-Ville, 1.5 km away. Then continue straight ahead as the road narrows to a path. Continue to the buildings at the edge of the road coming from the opposite direction.

(10) Take the path on the right that climbs into the woods to reach the fields above. Continue to the road and turn left towards the cemetery and Saint-Quentin de Nucourt Church.

(11) Descend back into the valley through the woods and join the path at the bottom of the valley in the same direction, until you reach the D206.

(12) Turn left onto the road, pass the entrance to Camp de César and continue straight ahead, climbing up to the plateau at the edge of the woods and the entrance to the Oise department.

(13) Back on the GR® coming from the left, take the path on the right which initially runs along the edge of the woods, then continues across fields, approaching the village of Hadancourt-le-Haut-Clocher. Continue in the same direction (away from the village), then turn right towards the next village of Lierville.

(14) Turn left at the sports fields towards the village centre. At the next crossroads, turn right, pass in front of the church and join the D53. Follow it to the left until you reach the large roundabout.

(15) Cross the D915 (with caution) at the roundabout and take the small road opposite. After about 2 km, turn left onto the small path, which descends into the woods to the road passing in front of the pond on the Viosne.

(16) Pass between the pond and the road, follow the road which turns 90° to the right and goes uphill. When the road makes a sharp left turn, continue straight ahead on the path opposite and pass under the railway bridge.

(17) Shortly afterwards, take a path on the left that climbs up to the village of Lavilletertre, then continue on the^{second road} on the right towards the church square.

(18) Continue past the church, then take Rue Meure,^{the second} right, which descends. Follow the main road, which bends to the right at the bottom of the valley and climbs back up towards the woods. Cross the woods in a straight line, descend on the other side until you reach a level crossing.

(19) Cross the tracks and continue on the other side, following them (back into the Val d'Oise), then veering away from them as you climb back up to the plateau. Ignore a crossing path and continue in the same direction until you descend to Chars through residential neighbourhoods.

(20) Turn back onto Rue du Clos de Chars at the first crossroads you come to, and immediately turn right onto the path that leads directly to the station (E).

Arrival: Chars station on Transilien line J, Paris Saint-Lazare - Gisors branch.

(S) Departure from Genainville (or another nearby village) in the heart of the French Vexin after spending the night there. Alternatively, you can depart from Magny-en-Vexin, which is served by buses from Cergy-Pontoise (check theÎle de France Mobilités website for timetables), or park in the square in front of the church in Genainville (with car shuttle to be arranged).

(E) Arrival at Chars station, served by the Transilien J line, Paris-Gisors branch. Please note that there is only one train every two hours on average at weekends to Paris Saint-Lazare. Check theÎle de France Mobilités website for timetables.

Ideally, allow two days of walking between Mantes-la-Jolie and Chars, with the first day devoted tothe previous stage of the GR® 11 between Mantes and Genainville.

This is a long stage (~ 30 km) starting from Genainville. It is possible to shorten it slightly, either by starting a little further away (Omerville, Magny) or by ending at Lavilletertre station, on the same J line as Chars. This station can be reached from the village of Lavilletertre by turning left after the church. Please note that as Lavilletertre station is located in the Oise department, the advantageous Île-de-France fares do not apply (fares are equivalent to a TER journey).

As this stage is almost entirely in the countryside, make sure you have the right equipment (good walking shoes are essential).

Between points (7) and (13), the suggested route deviates from the GR® trail, following a parallel route on the other side of the valley, which allows you to pass by the magnificent church of Nucourt. However, there is nothing to prevent you from following the official GR® 11 route on the right bank of the Aubette (equivalent distance).

Hike completed on 6 May 2024 with the aim of covering the entire GR® 11.

• Saint-Pierre Church in Genainville (S)
• Saint-Martin Church and Omerville Manor (3)
• Aubette Valley in Magny, from (4) to (12)
• Magny-en-Vexin, the walk along the Aubette and the Church of the Nativity, between (5) and (6)
• Saint-Quentin Church in Nucourt (11)
• Saint-Martin Church in Lierville (15)
• Landscapes of the Vexin, with surrounding bell towers, between (13) and (17)
• Viosne Valley (from (16)
• Church of the Nativity in La Villetertre (18)
• View of Chars and its Saint-Sulpice church on arrival at (20)