Between forests and peat bogs (alternative route)

Very pleasant trail between water and forest followed by a themed trail on the peat bog with explanatory panels. Ideal in hot weather, very shady trail (except for the dyke).

Details

3842781
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.92 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 50 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 108 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 105 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 872 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 769 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Departure from the car park at the exit of the village of Laprade D101 on the right near the lake.

Yellow markings

(S/E) With your back to the road, take the path towards the village, Rue du Lac, and cross the hamlet.

(1) At the Notre-Dame des Neiges church, turn left, cross an open area, walk along the cemetery and begin the descent.

(2) Turn right onto the path that crosses a picnic area, veer slightly to the left and continue along the path, following the themed markers. Follow the lake through the woods.

(3) At the crossroads, leave the lake and go up a path on the right. Come out onto a wide path, ignoring the one on the left above.

(4) At the end of a straight section, turn left (marker on a large rock). Go up a path through the woods.

(5) At the end of the climb, turn sharply left and continue along this path for 2 km in a south-easterly direction.

(6) Leave the main path and turn left into the forest. When you reach the lake, turn right and cross the dam.

(7) After a few metres, turn left and cross the car park. Follow this pretty path along the lake to the D101, which you cross.

(8) Take the "Rives du lac" path opposite until you reach the road further on, which you will follow for about 200 metres.

(9) At the car park, turn right onto the themed path, walking along the peat bog (wetland) and crossing the footbridges. Continue until you reach the village. Turn left to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 772 m - Car park at the entrance to the village of Laprade
  2. 1 : km 0.21 - alt. 781 m - Church
  3. 2 : km 0.67 - alt. 775 m - Fork towards picnic area
  4. 3 : km 1.82 - alt. 775 m - End of the lake shore
  5. 4 : km 2.23 - alt. 785 m - Climb back up through the undergrowth
  6. 5 : km 3.14 - alt. 847 m - Left fork in the road
  7. 6 : km 5.21 - alt. 812 m - Fork to the left
  8. 7 : km 6.72 - alt. 780 m - On the left after the dyke.
  9. 8 : km 7.46 - alt. 773 m - Crossing the D101
  10. 9 : km 7.92 - alt. 773 m - Themed trail
  11. S/E : km 8.92 - alt. 773 m - Car park at the entrance to the village of Laprade

Notes

GPS coordinates for the car park: 43.425336 2.280339

Picnic area after (2) and (9), also available near the dyke at the edge of the forest.

Worth a visit

Very interesting themed trail with explanatory panels.
Plenty of shaded areas for taking breaks.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 11 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
gb2o
gb2o

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike completed in 2½ hours without rushing. Very beautiful route, quiet and shaded almost throughout. Yellow markings are a little old and not always present or visible. We had some trouble finding the right path, particularly at point 5, where the start on the left "at the end of the climb" is not marked, even though the path continues to climb. Furthermore, this start is not a path but a forest track. Markings are almost non-existent on this track, although it is impossible to go wrong. The markings for the fork on the left to descend to the lake after 2.4 km on this track have disappeared over time. Overall, a beautiful, easy family hike with beautiful views of the lake and trails in a quiet, wild forest.

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le Gaulois d'Oc
le Gaulois d'Oc

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 12, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant walk, shaded, refreshing, slightly windy.
Very easy route.
Pure bliss!

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Angie Bob
Angie Bob

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 05, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Superb hike, best done in summer. Almost the entire route is through woodland, in the shade of the trees.

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Jo Larando
Jo Larando

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 15, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Hike completed on 14 April 2024. Signs between points 5 and 6 indicate forestry work and prohibit public access to the first half of this stage. The yellow markers have been covered with green paint. This work does not appear to be permanent, and in any case, no work is done on Sundays. Despite the lack of visibility of the markings, it is impossible to get lost on this straight line...

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Xtian90
Xtian90
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 10, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Hike completed on Sunday, 10 December 2023. Please note that the condition of the path between points 5 and 6 is currently disastrous, especially in the first section, which has become a veritable quagmire after the recent rains, with ankle-deep mud. The cause is the start of logging operations. A monstrous machine has passed through, and a single round trip was enough to destroy the path. We went through the thickets, which were dense and therefore somewhat difficult to navigate. That said, foresters have to do their job. From point 5 onwards, the yellow markings on this path have been covered with green paint, perhaps to discourage hikers from using it. In this case, a notice at the start of the hike would be welcome.
Otherwise, it was a lovely walk, with the leaves having finished falling and the ground now covered in gold.
Yes, the weather was superb and the paths were used by joggers, walkers and mountain bikers, but it wasn't crazy busy.
Thank you for this suggestion.

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Eric81300
Eric81300

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Magnificent lake and forest

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La balade ferralaise
La balade ferralaise

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 30, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Done on Sunday, 19 August, on a beautiful day. Well-marked trail, easy to walk without difficulty, and very well shaded.

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Laurentdivina
Laurentdivina

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 11, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A walk (rather than a hike) done in warm weather and very pleasant because it is 90% shaded.
9km that are very easy to walk, explanations not always very clear but with a map, no problem!
Magnificent forest, with a view of the lake too.
Very few people, except near the bog at the end of the hike.

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ainhoa1
ainhoa1

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 25, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely autumn walk! Accessible to all.
The directions were very clear.

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visobut
visobut

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 28, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Difficulty with the turn in 6;

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mamiedanie
mamiedanie

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 06, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

My husband and I went on this walk in beautiful weather. We had some difficulty finding the car park at the start because our satnav took us along mountain roads to Laprade le Haut. The lake is very pleasant, the forest section is very shady but lacks views and is therefore a little dull. There are many shaded picnic areas, but we chose to eat facing the dam. The peat bog area is very interesting and unusual. Coming from Hérault, we are not used to such lush vegetation and multiple water sources.
All in all, it was a very pleasant day that we will remember fondly.

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