From Lizy-sur-Ourcq to La Ferté-sous-Jouarre via the Marne and its hillsides

Starting point and access: Lizy-sur-Ourcq station.
- Transilien - Line P, on the section between Paris-Est and La Ferté-Milon via Meaux.
Take the only exit, platform 1, in the direction of Meaux to La Ferté-Millon. If you are coming in the opposite direction, platform 2, take the underground passage.

No signposts

(S) With your back to the station, cross the car park and turn left onto Route de Mary. Ignore two streets on the right and enter Mary-sur-Marne. Ignore another street on the right and go up along the railway line on your left.

(1) At the bridge over the railway line, turn right into a cul-de-sac (yellow cross). Walk gently down this small tarmac road, following a fence on your right and with a view of the Marne on your left. When you reach the gate of the sewage treatment plant, take a grassy path that goes around the plant on the right. Continue along the edge of the field until you reach the Ourcq. Then turn left, take a path that crosses a hedge and follow the river along a grassy path at the edge of the field. Pass a footbridge on your right and reach the confluence of the Ourcq and the Marne.

(2) Then turn left at the hairpin bend and follow the Marne on your right, still along the edge of the field. At the end of the field, continue along the river until you reach the tarmac road.

Yellow markings (sparing)

Go under the railway bridge. Before reaching a street lined with tall houses, take the cement path on the right that starts between a small rock and a forest barrier. Stay as close as possible to the river and, just before the terrace of a restaurant, turn left and then follow Rue du Port to the right. Ignore the cul-de-sac of the same name on the left and, before the stop sign, turn right and climb a small staircase that leads to the edge of a road (Grande Rue).

(3) Cross the road at the pedestrian crossing at this point, continue opposite Avenue Trois Vallets and you will find a branch of the Marne on your right. Ignore a few turnings on the left and a small bridge on the right. After the last houses, the tarmac gives way to a dirt track (note the bell tower of Tancrou church opposite). Return to the tarmac and walk along a fence on your left.

(4) At the foot of the church (picnic tables), leave the road on the left, climb a path interspersed with wooden steps, then climb a wooden staircase. At the top (information board), turn right, leaving the church on your left and a cross on your right, and continue along Rue de l'Église. When a road comes from the right, continue straight ahead (ignore a yellow arrow pointing to the right; two^PR® trails intersect here).

No markings

(5) At the crossroads (bus stop on the left, fire hydrant on the right), turn right onto the small road that leads to the village of Jaignes (no sign). Cross a stream, ignore a farm track on the left, go uphill and enter Jaignes via Rue de Tancrou. Then cross Rue de Verdun on the left and continue straight ahead along a one-way street. Cross the D53 road and follow Rue de l'Abbaye opposite until you reach the church (polishing stone at its foot).

(6) Leave the church on your left, then pass the school and town hall on your right. At the T-junction, turn right onto Rue des Vignes and immediately turn left (signposted "Écurie").

(7) At the foot of a large sign for "Écuries du Pays d'Ourcq" and before a training arena on the left, turn right (south-east) onto a wide path that quickly becomes grassy. Walk gently down between the fields and, at the bottom, turn left to walk along the Ru de Rutel on your right.

(8) Cross the D3 road (take care) and continue straight ahead. Walk along the stream lined with shrubs on your right and the edge of the fields on your left. Ignore a small bridge over the stream, pass under a power line and you will come to a crossroads.

Yellow markings (very rare)

(9) Turn sharply right onto a farm track that crosses the stream and climbs steadily towards the A4 motorway (view of Tancrou and its church on the right). When you reach the motorway, make a first turn right then left to take the tunnel that passes underneath. Continue along a grassy path between two hedges. This path narrows further on: make your way through the hedges that have grown up...

(10) Once you reach open ground, walk along a large orchard on your left. At a T-junction, follow the path on the left, ignore a farm track on the left and walk along a hedge and orchard on your right. At the end of the plot, ignore the path on the right and continue straight ahead. At the next fork, turn left (there is no sign here; the path on the right leads to a shed). At the T-junction, follow a small road on the right to the next crossroads.

(11) Turn left towards the Ferme de Courtablon (sign) and go straight downhill. At the bottom, pass between a large farmhouse on the left and a shed on the right. Pass a cross and an old stone bridge on your left and cross a paved ford over a stream. Continue south-east on a grassy path with a hedge on your left and a field on your right. At the crossroads between the fields, continue straight ahead and, after about 100 metres, you will come to another fork at the entrance to a wood (not shown on the IGN map).

(12) Turn right and walk uphill through the Bois de Voliard (see alternative route in the practical information section). N.B. The "Zone piégée" (trapped area) signs only apply to the interior of the woods, outside the path. You will come to a crossroads at the edge of the woods.

Red and white + yellow markings

(13) Continue straight ahead (south-west) and follow the^GR®14on a grassy path between two hedges. Ignore a path on the right (not shown on the map) and continue straight ahead between the fields. Further on, continue straight ahead on the path, which continues along a farm track coming from the right. Cross a road, continue straight ahead on a small tarmac road and enter the hamlet of Le Limon.

(14) Before a break in the slope, take a good path on the right and enter the Bois de la Barre (information sign). Walk along a fence on the left, ignore a path on the right, pass a forest gate and descend.

No markings

(15) At a fork, follow the discovery trail to the left. Note the information panel "Le Chemin de la Convoye" on the right-hand side. Continue downhill, ignore a trail on the left, take a wooden footbridge, note the information panel "Eau et boue" (Water and Mud) and arrive at an intersection with the previously abandoned marked trail coming from the right.

Red and white + yellow markings

(16) Continue straight downhill (the discovery trail continues to the right). At the next crossroads, take the first path on the left at an acute angle. Head due east on a wide, flat path and ignore a few paths branching off to the sides. Running alongside a fence on the right-hand side, the path narrows.

(17) At the corner of the fence, turn right and go down a steep lane. At the bottom, follow the road on the left overlooking La Ferté-sous-Jouarre station (no access possible). At the crossroads, turn right and take the bridge over the railway line. Turn right again to reach the station (E).

To return home:
- Transilien - Line P, towards Meaux and Paris (direct access) or Château-Thierry (take the footbridge or the underground passage).

Train timetables: consult the Transilien website.

For motorists:
The two stations are located on different sections of line P. There are two possible options:
- With at least two vehicles: leave one vehicle in the car park at each station.
- With only one vehicle: take the train one way or both ways, changing at Trilport.

Hiking boots are required.

No water sources identified along the route. Bar-restaurant opposite Lizy-sur-Ourcq station and near La Ferté-sous-Jouarre station.

In Tancrou, off the route, farmhouse goat's cheese is sold from 9 a.m. to 12 noon every day, including weekends. At the crossroads (5), continue along the Grande Rue towards the top of the village: the farm and its shop are on the left-hand side.

Given the extent of unmarked areas and the scarcity of markings where they do exist, a 1:25,000 map is essential (at least the one accompanying this description).

Variations:

Detour via the cemetery in Lizy-sur-Ourcq (suggested by hiker Rozen) - This cemetery has impressive chapels and is the resting place of many circus families (Bouglione, Zavatta, Capello, etc.).
From the station (S), go straight ahead and follow Avenue de la Gare (D401,^GR®11). At the town hall roundabout, take the second right onto Route d'Échampeu towards Congis/May-en-Multien. Go up and cross the Canal de l'Ourcq. Then turn left and follow Avenue du Chemin Noir along the canal. The cemetery is located at the corner of this avenue and Rue de Lizy, with an entrance on each side.
Continue along the road and, after about 100 metres, turn left to cross the canal again. Immediately take the^first right. At the pumping station, rejoin the^GR®11and follow it into a wood with the Ourcq (the river) on your left and the canal above on your right. When you reach another pumping station (small white building), leave the^GR® and take a path on the left, leaving the building on your right. Cross the Ourcq on a footbridge. At the end of the footbridge, turn right, rejoin the main route and arrive at the confluence of the Ourcq and the Marne (2).

Shortcut route around the circular loop via the confluence of the Marne and Ourcq rivers. At the bridge (1), follow the middle cul-de-sac (sign prohibiting vehicles over 3.5 tonnes). Go directly to the bank of the Marne at the railway bridge.

Cross or bypass the Bois de Voliard. In March 2017, in addition to the total absence of markings, the path on the right was blocked by numerous branches. The path has since been cleared (see comments from hikers). If the path is blocked again, it is possible to bypass the woods on the left:
At the fork (12), follow a path not shown on the map to the left and stay on the edge of the woods on your right. Cross a stream and turn right. Go up the valley along the edge of the field with the stream and woods on your right. At the edge of a patch of woodland on the left and before a yew hedge on the right, turn right onto a path at the edge of the wood on the right and along the edge of the field, then along the edge of a fenced meadow on the left. After a small spring on the right, you will come to a crossroads (13).

Bois de la Barre. The discovery trail forms a complete circular loop and the suggested route takes the eastern half-circular loop between (15) and (16). It is of course possible to take the western half-circular loop between the same two points, simply by following the red, white and yellow marked path (this route is slightly longer).

Hike completed by the author on 30 March 2017.

- In Mary-sur-Marne, the neighbourhood near the Marne River and the railway line is called Port Courage in tribute to the dedication of its inhabitants who, in September 1914, saved dozens of wounded soldiers from drowning when their train was mistakenly diverted to the bridge over the Marne, which had been destroyed.
- Saint-Donatien and Saint-Rogatien Church in Tancrou, between (4) and (5).
- Sainte-Geneviève Church (15th-16th century) in Jaignes (6).
- Polishing stone between the Grande Rue and the church (6).