From Sainte-Catherine to Valfleury (circular)

In the village centre, follow the D126 towards Saint-Martin-la-Plaine. At the junction on leaving the village, leave the D126 on your left. Continue straight ahead towards the Châtelard campsite and park on the left on Rue des Écoliers before the fork in the road.

(S/E) Continue south along the road you took by car.

(1) At the fork in the road that appears immediately, at the corner of the cemetery, turn right onto the D663 towards Lamure. Ignore the road on the right leading to Irignolles. At the sign for La Fayolle, just before a hairpin bend to the right, look out for a path on the left

(2) Leave the road and follow this track to the left. About twenty metres further on, at a Fork in the road, take the right-hand branch. At the junction that appears shortly afterwards, continue to the right. Ignore the side tracks and rejoin the D663. Follow this road through the hamlet of Le Barrot.

(3) Before reaching an isolated farm, leave the road and take a track on the left. Walk down the south-facing valley, cross a stream and head back up to a junction.

(4) Turn right onto the^GR®®7(marked in white and red). At the sign for ‘Le Fayard’ (elevation 824), head straight on towards Les Quatre Vents (ignore the sign for Chapelle Saint-Apollinaire on the right). Ignore any side paths and continue until you reach a road.

(5) At the fork, 100 m further on, follow the road on the right (west;^GR®®). After about 500 m, you’ll reach a flat stretch in a right-hand bend.

(6) Leave the road and the^GR®®7and turn left onto a path marked in white and yellow. After 1 km, emerge from the woods and reach a junction. Continue to the right for about 50 m until you reach a crossroads where you rejoin the^GR®®7you left earlier.

(7) At the ‘Les Quatre Vents’ sign, turn left (west) onto the^GR®®7. About 700 m further on (elevation 865), ignore the path on the right towards Crêt Reynaud and head downhill opposite.

(8) At the Croix Bicoury crossroads, carry on straight ahead on the D23 (^GR®®). Cross another road. Cross a second road, continue for 200 m in the same direction (south-west) and reach a Fork in the road.

(9) Leave the D23 and take a path on the left (^GR®®) which crosses three roads in succession before joining the D6. Follow it to the right for 200 m until you reach a junction of roads and paths (elevation 767).

(10) Ignore the road to the right, the track to the left and the D6 straight ahead. Continue along the track almost directly opposite, running alongside the D6 on your right. About 1 km further on, you’ll reach the Col de la Gachet junction.

(11) Cross the D6 with care and take the track opposite (still following the^GR®® red and white markings) to reach a road after 100 m. Continue to the right, go round a bend to the left, then leave the road as it takes a sharp bend to the right to follow a track opposite. Keep to the right at the Fork in the road 20 m further on, ignoring the path on the left towards Valfleury. Stay on the^GR®®7and reach the hamlet of Le Terrier.

(12) Leave the road to the left and continue along a path heading in the same direction (south). On leaving the hamlet, join a road which, shortly afterwards, in the hamlet of Grand Logis, crosses the D106 and continues opposite along the Red Cross Path. About 500 m from Grand Logis, you’ll reach a three-way junction.

(13) Turn left (south-east) onto a track marked with a ‘no motorised vehicles’ sign (leaving the^GR®®7). After 300 m in open country, walk 500 m through woodland before reaching a junction.

(14) Leave the level path and take the path leading downwards to the left (against the flow of traffic). At the next junction, ignore the flat path to the left (not shown on maps) and continue downwards. Pass some picnic tables on the right, then a Way of the Cross on the left, and reach a hairpin bend in the road.

(15) Ignore the uphill path on the left and continue down the path on the right, which leads to the Route du Rosaire. Walk up this road on the opposite side to reach the Route de la Gachet. Follow this road on the opposite side for 150 m, then leave it to go down the alleyway on the right, grandly named Grande Rue. Ignore Rue Froide on the left and pass an esplanade overlooking the church porch. At the left-hand bend, leave Rue de la Tour straight ahead and reach the church forecourt via Rue de l’Église.

(16) Retrace your steps and walk along the south façade. At the rear of the church, head down the dead-end street on the right, which continues as a footpath. Walk past the sewage treatment plant and, shortly afterwards, you’ll come to a fork in the road.

(17) Follow the path down to the left towards the orchards. Walk along the left bank of the Durèze, ignoring a path on the left, until you come to some ruins.

(18) Go round them on the right and ignore all other paths on the left to reach a hairpin bend in the road (elevation 474).

(19) Head up the road to the left (north-east) towards Vernay. On leaving the hamlet, stay on the road straight ahead, ignoring the one on the left, and head for La Sibertière.

(20) Carry on straight ahead along the road leading to Le Mont. In the hamlet, continue straight ahead on the same road towards Lachal. Enter the hamlet via a right-hand bend and, immediately afterwards, reach a junction.

(21) Turn onto the road on the left running alongside a castle wall. After 300 m, you’ll reach a junction; follow the Chemin des Vergers towards Moulin Barre, turning right then left, until you reach a multi-way junction.

(22) At the sign for Moulin Barre, turn left. After 100 m, ignore this direction straight ahead and turn left. Head down into the Feuillet valley, cross the stream and, at the bend, ignore the path on the left. Climb up the opposite slope to reach the hamlet of Les Vignes.

(23) Take the D6 to the right, then leave it after about thirty metres. Follow the Chemin du Pinay to the left for about 600 m. At the junction, ignore the path on the right leading to the chapel; continue to the left to reach the one-way road of Pré Chevalier.
(24) Follow this road to the right for about 150 m, then turn left onto the Chemin de Croix Grenouillat, which leads to another junction after 250 m.

(25) Take the Route de la Place to the right, ignoring the dead-end path to Grange Alix on your right, and continue to a fork in the road.

(26) Head down the path on the right, which runs almost parallel to the road. Cross the Ruisseau de Trévin, walk alongside the orchards and rejoin the Route de la Place. Follow it to the right and pass through the hamlet of Philigey to reach the Trois Pierres crossroads (elevation 580).

(27) Leave the Chemin de Montsibert on your left and the Route de Servarin on your right, taking the middle road – known as the Chemin de Senevas – which runs past the farm on your left. Then carry on straight ahead along this path.

(28) Continue to the right towards Senevas. Pass through a wooded valley via a bend to the right, then, at the next bend to the left, leave the road and take a parallel track to the right (elevation 637). After about 700 m, you’ll reach a junction.

(29) Climb the path on the left and join the Senevas road. Take this to the right and, on leaving the hamlet, reach a Fork in the road (elevation 699).

(30) Leave the road heading down to the right and continue along the narrow lane on the left, which turns into a track. At the next fork, keep left.

(31) Carry on straight ahead and join the^GR®®7(elevation 799).

(32) Follow the^GR®®7to the right, ignoring any side paths. Walk past a campsite. Cross two roads and join the Route des Jonquilles (signposted ‘Chante Perdrix’).

(33) Cross the road to take the path opposite and reach a junction on the Route des Jonquilles (elevation 728). At the ‘Les Pensions’ sign, continue on the^GR®®7towards Sainte-Catherine via the path on the right, then along the Route des Jonquilles.

(1) Go straight on to reach the car park straight away (S/E).

Route identification.
From point (S) to point (4) Unmarked route.
From point (4) to point (6)^GR®®7Conventional White/Red signposting
From point (6) to point (7)^PR®® Standard white/yellow markings
From point (7) to point (13)^GR®®7Conventional White/Red signposting
From point (13) to point (32) Unmarked route.
From point (32) to point (E)^GR®®7Conventional White/Red signposting

The history of the small village of Valfleury began in the year 800, when the legend of an apparition of the Virgin Mary captured the attention and devotion of the local people. A pilgrimage consecrated the site, which encouraged Benedictine monks to settle there, thus spreading the fame of this place that had become sacred. Following the plague epidemics of the 16th and 17th centuries, the Lazarists took over from the Benedictines.
History of Valfleury
Lachal Castle