From Saint-Maur to Suçy-en-Brie via the Marne and Morbras Park

Starting point and access: Champigny station.
- RER - Line A, on the section between Paris and Boissy-Saint-Léger. Take exit 1, Place de la Gare.
- Bus - Lines 111, 116, 117, 208, 306.

Yellow signposts

(S) When you leave the station, turn slightly left and cross Avenue La Fontaine at the traffic lights. Follow Boulevard de Champigny (D130) towards Champigny-sur-Marne and continue straight ahead. At the traffic lights, cross Quai de Champignol and take the bridge over the Marne. On the other side, just before a bus stop, go down the steps on the right to reach the banks of the Marne.

Yellow + red and yellow markings

At the bottom, follow the Promenade Camille Pissarro (paved path) to the left and walk along the Marne on your right. The paving soon gives way to tarmac. Continue between small buildings on the left and the river on the right. After a good kilometre along the Marne from the bridge, go through a wooden barrier and note an information sign on the right for "Les guinguettes".

No signposts

(1) Then turn left onto Chemin de l'Île Congé. At the stop sign, cross the street at the pedestrian crossing and follow it to the right for about 50 metres.

Yellow + red and yellow signposts

After No. 139, turn left onto Sentier du Roc, which immediately turns right. Immediately turn left onto Passage de la Côte and climb a staircase that becomes steeper as you go. Take the footbridge over the railway line. On the other side, climb another staircase to reach a sort of landing.

(2) Then follow a paved lane to the right between walls and house fences (Sentier des Grandes Vignes on the map). Pass a stone bollard and continue on a path, still between fences. Further on, descend slightly and, after a short cement section, you will come out onto a street.

Yellow + red and white markings

(3) Cross the street, take the Sentier de la Gorgette opposite, ignore a staircase on the left and descend slightly. At the end of the tarmac, continue along a path and climb back up. Follow this path, alternating between short ascents and descents. Cross a paved alley at number 18 and continue straight ahead on a path that starts between two walls (Sentier des Roissis, signposted at the other end).

Come out onto a street and follow it uphill to the left. After about 30 metres, climb a stairway between two walls. At the top, turn right.

No signposts

At the crossroads that you will soon come to, take the^{second road} on the right, Rue du Général de Gaulle, towards the Church of Saint-Pierre and the Terrasse. Continue straight ahead until you reach a small square with the church on your left and an exhibition building on your right.

(4) Turn right and walk as close as possible to the exhibition building on your right. Go through a gate and you will reach the Terrasse de Chennevières (orientation table, which has aged considerably since it was installed in 1961). Retrace your steps.

(4) Cross the street and the small square, then follow a discreet path along the church on your left. Turn left at the end of the church and join Rue Durmersheim. Follow this street to the right and cross Rue Jacques Doré on your right. At the next intersection, cross the D233, continue straight ahead on Chemin de la Maillarde and follow the cemetery wall on your right.

(5) At the corner, turn right onto a path along the edge of the field on your left and the cemetery on your right. At the end of this path, continue straight ahead on a path between the field or small allotments on your left and the hedges of houses on your right. The field narrows and the path comes close to an industrial area on the left (noisy during the week).

(6) Look out for a chicane on the right (be careful), pass it and turn onto a paved lane. Go straight ahead and, at the roundabout that quickly appears (cedar tree in the centre), follow Rue Ingres straight ahead. Continue straight ahead through a residential area. At a crossroads, turn left onto Rue Jean Charcot, then immediately right onto a one-way street, still on Rue Charcot. At the end, turn left, then right, then left to cross the D111 at the traffic lights.

Yellow signposting

(7) Follow the D111 towards Créteil. At the next traffic lights, turn left onto the D233, keeping to the grassy verge on the left. Before a right-hand bend in the road, stay behind the safety barrier and pass an EDF substation. At the end of the barrier, turn left and leave the road onto a downhill track.

No signposts

At the bottom, take a grassy path on the right (do not cross the river). When the path widens to make way for a lawn, turn right and climb a slope (slippery in wet weather) to reach a road (Avenue Maurice Schumann on the map; bus stop).

Red and yellow signposts

(8) Cross the road at the pedestrian crossing and first turn left then right to climb Rue de l'Ancien Moulin towards Parc du Morbras. After about 50 metres, turn left, pass a memorial on the left and then a car park on the right, go through a chicane and enter Parc du Mortbras. Go downhill for about 50 metres.

No signposts

At a fork, take the paved path on the right lined with pine trees, which remains at a higher elevation. Then take the^first path on the right (information sign). Pass the toilets on your right and follow a paved path. Ignore all the paths on the right and cross several streams (at^{the first one}, note a small water wheel on the left). Further on, ignore a lane coming from the left and leave the park (chicane). Immediately descend to the left onto a gravel path. Finish with a few steps and reach another entrance to Morbras Park (Rue Baron on the right).

Red and yellow markings

(9) Continue straight ahead, go down a cement path and cross the Morbras. After a few dozen metres (post boxes on the left), leave the markings for a moment and go down a staircase on the right. At the bottom, cross a street at the pedestrian crossing, find the markings and follow the Lac du Grand Val on your right. Go through a chicane, note a small bridge giving access to a small island on the lake and go through a second chicane. Come out onto Rue Pasteur and follow it to the right to the end of the lake.

Without signposts

(10) Then turn left onto Rue Gambetta, then left again onto Rue Curie. At the roundabout, continue straight ahead on Rue Curie and go slightly uphill. At the end, first turn right then left onto Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau. At the roundabout, turn left onto Rue Carnot. Go around the next roundabout on the left, cross Rue de Champigny and take the next left, Rue de Thérouanne. Cross Rue Villedois-Mareuil on the left, then turn left into Rue Henri Houpied. Cross another street, walk along the bus station and you will soon reach Sucy-Bonneuil station on the right (E).

To return home:
- RER - Line A, towards Boissy-Saint-Léger or Cergy or Poissy via Paris and La Défense.

Train timetables: consult the Transilien website.

In dry weather, good walking shoes are sufficient for this route, which is mostly on paved or stabilised paths and streets. In wet weather, expect some muddy sections, so hiking boots are recommended.

Bars, restaurants and shops are located near both stations (S) and (E), as well as in the centre of Chennevières (4). Public toilets are available in Morbras Park and are marked on the map.

Parc du Morbras opening hours:
- Opening hours: 8:00 a.m.
- Closing times: 5pm from November to January; 6pm in February; 7pm in March and October; 8pm in April and September; 9pm from May to August.

Warning:
Hikers are advised that the route between (5) and (6), although running along the edge of a field, is not the most picturesque.

Additional information:
This rather short hike can be combined with the hike "From Sucy-en-Brie to Boissy through the forests of Notre-Dame and Grosbois". At least three combinations are possible, presented below in descending order of total distance and duration.
Full combination - At the bus stop just before Suçy-Bonneuil station, turn left, walk along Square Charles de Gaulle and take Rue de Montaleau to follow the second hike. This option takes you twice along the Lac du Grand Val and twice through the Parc du Morbras, once on the heights and once in the river valley. Allow around 22 km and 6 hours 45 minutes of walking.
Avoiding the centre of Sucy-en-Brie - At the point (9) of this walk, turn left, re-enter Parc du Morbras and follow the second walk from its starting point (3). This option takes you through Parc du Morbras twice, once on the heights and once in the river valley. Allow around 19 km and 5½ hours of walking.
Avoiding the town centre of Sucy-en-Brie and Morbras Park - At the point (8) of this hike, follow Avenue Maurice Schumman to the left and the second hike from its starting point (4). Allow around 16 km and 4 hours 45 minutes of walking.

Useful detailed map (at least the one accompanying this description).

Hike completed by the author on 16 December 2021.

- Pleasant walk along the Marne, between and (1).
- Panoramic views of the eastern suburbs of Paris from the footbridge after (1) and the terrace (4).
- Saint-Pierre Church (13th century) (4).
- Ormesson Castle, closed to the public but visible from afar (7).
- Parc du Morbras, between (8) and (9).
- Grand Val Lake, between (9) and (10).