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The hike starts at the picnic area. Coming from the village of Gruey, on the tarmac road and once in the forest, the start is at the first forest road on your left (but the start is on the other side of the road). There are two tables with benches where you can stop for a bite to eat. Park at the side of the main road or on the first few metres of one of the secondary forest roads.
(S/E) Take the path heading north-west, on the side with the picnic tables. Continue straight ahead on the track and descend to the small stream at the bottom of the valley. Cross it and continue on a small path going in the same direction as the previous track, which runs along the contour line. Stay on this path until you reach a stone marker just before a slight bend to the left.
(1) Continue straight ahead on the main forest path, ignoring the paths coming from the right and left, until you reach a wide, passable forest road.
(2) Turn left onto this road and you will arrive at the Étang Coné-Fontaine. Continue along this forest road, ignoring the secondary tracks that branch off in both directions, until you reach the junction between the Tranchée de Gruey and three other forest roads.
(3) Take the forest road opposite, slightly to the left, and continue straight ahead. At the Quiquengrogne meadows, continue on the path opposite. At the next junction, where a forest road branches off to the left, continue straight ahead. A few dozen metres further on, look for an antenna on your left as you continue straight ahead. Continue along this straight road until you reach the first bend.
(4) Turn right to continue on the main forest road, leaving the path that goes straight ahead. A beautiful oak tree marked with a "7" with two lines forming an angle marks the junction. Walk to the first secondary path on the left a few dozen metres further on.
Turn left and continue along this secondary path until you reach a stone marker. The number "7" is spray-painted on this marker. At this point, you have two choices: right or left, as the straight line ends at the marker.
(5) Turn right onto a well-marked, straight path until you reach the first path on the left. Two trees mark this turn: the first has two horizontal white lines and the second, a few metres further on, has two horizontal white lines and a "6" above it.
Turn left and, a few hundred metres further on, you will come to a forest road suitable for vehicles at a turning area. Take this track and descend to the bottom of the valley. Be careful not to turn left too soon. Here, it is essential to pass the forest barrier clearly marked on the IGN map (or at least the two posts on either side of the road). After this barrier, you will reach a Y-junction.
(6) Turn left to follow the Ruisseau Bon Vin valley. Pass by the Cabane de Marie-Laure (forest house) and several ponds that are now abandoned. Continue on the main road. Cross the bridge over the Ruisseau des Cerisiers and a few metres further on you will find a Y-junction.
(7) Turn left (yellow mark on a tree and a mountain bike trail sign crossed out with a Red Cross) onto a secondary trail that climbs along the ridge.
Leave the forest road that continues straight ahead, and do not take the path that crosses the stream again on the left, or the one that runs along the bottom of the valley.
Be careful, as these paths do not appear to have been maintained for several years and there are several small paths winding along this ridge. At the first Y-junction, take the left path. The path remains quite narrow, but there are many clues to help you stay on course: old stone walls, earth embankments, etc. Continue climbing until you reach a junction of six paths.
(8) At this junction, the vegetation has grown thick. The path going up the slope is not visible at first glance. Walk a few metres to the left, then turn right up the slope as soon as you spot the path going up. Climb up and at the first Y-junction, take the path on the left. At the second junction, follow the path on the right that continues uphill and leave the one on the left (Chemin des Monts, which runs along the contour lines). Continue uphill (another Y-junction where you take the path on the left) until you come to a path coming up from your left.
(9) Turn right to reach the turning area on the main forest road. Turn left to walk along this forest road. After several hundred metres, the path crosses a small stream, and a dyke is clearly visible on the right. The Étang des Cerisiers is now on the right of the path.
(10) Just after the pond, take the first path on the right. Continue along this path, which runs alongside the pond for a while, then quickly branches off to the left and heads straight back to the starting point (S/E).
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