From Bois de la Tour to Château de la Tenaille

Park in the town hall car park, along the D253.

(S/E) Leave the car park and carefully take the D253 northwards. At the crossroads, continue left on the same road, Route de Saint-Genis, until you reach the first road on the left.

(1) Turn left onto Route de Chez Ravet. Walk past the cemetery on your right and continue to a place called Chez Ravet. Cross it and continue on the path that follows the small road. Join the road called Chemin de la Tour, then turn right and continue for about four to five hundred metres.

(2) Take the farm track on the left, which soon runs alongside a small section of the Bois de la Tour, then cross a seasonal stream and join a road coming from a place called Le Grand Marvillard. Carefully follow the road to the left until you reach a crossroads with three roads and a track.

(3) Continue along the path, heading south, which crosses an intermittent stream a little further on, then passes between the Bois de la Tour on the left and the Bois de la Lande on the right, until you reach a crossroads at the edge of the woods.

(4) Take the Chemin des Bois on the left, which enters the woods and leads to a small road a little further on. Turn right and follow the road called Chemin de la Tour until you reach the first path on the left, at the end of a small "S" bend in the road, before the hamlet of La Tenaille.

(5) Turn left onto the path, which runs straight through an orchard to the Route du Pont. Turn right and follow this road to the crossroads with Chemin de la Tenaille, almost opposite the access road to Château de la Tenaille and the chapel, which is the remains of Abbaye de la Tenaille, now abandoned (see section "During the hike"). From there, the route follows the GR®655. Follow the road known as Chemin de la Tenaille to the left, cross the River Tort and go to the junction with the first path on the right, at the corner of a wood.

(6) Turn right onto the path that goes straight south-west to the road leading to Chez Trébuchet. Turn left and follow the small road that leads to the D148 road a little further on.

(7) Turn left and follow this road with caution. At a path on the right, the route leaves the GR®655 and continues straight ahead on the road. Continue to the crossroads with the roads to Le Touzinard and La Tuilerie on the left.

(8) Turn left onto the road and, at the three-way junction that appears about 50 metres from the crossroads, take the left-hand road that leads to La Touzinard. Pass Le Touzinard on your right and continue to the crossroads at the edge of a wood on your left. Turn right and follow the path heading north-east towards La Tuilerie. When you arrive, take the road called Chemin de la Tuilerie on your right to reach the nearby T-junction.

(9) Continue by turning left onto the road heading north. At the last house, the road becomes a path leading towards the Pierrières area until you reach a Y-junction.

(10) Take the path on the right that heads north-east and runs alongside the Bois de l'Espic on your right for about 200 metres. Continue straight ahead on the path that passes east of the hamlet of Le Tort with two ponds, one of which is quite large and rectangular. Continue straight ahead to the road (D253) at the entrance to Saint-Sigismond-de-Clermont.

(11) Turn left and carefully follow the road until you reach the town hall car park along the D253 (S/E).

The parking area is located on the edge of the D253, known as the Route de Saint-Genis, right next to the Town Hall (to the north).

This hike covers varied terrain and requires suitable footwear.

This route is only partially marked: it follows the GR®655 (Chemin de Compostelle) for approximately 800 metres before the (6) and up to 150 metres after the (7). Consequently, it is advisable to follow the directions in the description and on the map, while also paying close attention to the landscape. The waypoints (with their GPS coordinates and distance from the starting point) are helpful for hikers who are discovering the route for the first time.

Hike completed by the author on 24 November 2023. Route revised on 11 March 2025 following changes on the ground (section of private path and ploughed path became impassable).

Saint-Sigismond de Clermont:

La Tenaille Abbey (11th century). For more information, download the "Abbaye de la Tenaille" file from the website of the Société d'Histoire et d'Archéologie en Saintonge Maritime (Saintonge Maritime History and Archaeology Society).

Château de la Tenaille (18th century).

Romanesque church of Saint-Simon or Sigismond.