Forêt de la Reine - Lorraine region

A beautiful bike ride in the Lorraine Regional Nature Park and, more specifically, the superb Forêt Domaniale de la Reine, which straddles the departments of Meurthe-et-Moselle and Meuse.
It is a so-called "wet" forest, containing more than a dozen natural ponds.

Details

13776
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Mountain biking
    Activity: Mountain biking
  • ↔
    Distance: 16.35 km
  • ◔
    Duration according to the author: 1.5 hrs 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 16 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 16 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 255 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 238 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Broussey-Raulecourt (55200)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 48.813986° / E 5.732417°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 3215SB

  • ◶
    Type of surface:
  •  
     
     97% Byway  3% Path
  • ⇧
    Bike carrying: Yes
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the route

Park in the small square by the church in Raulecourt.

(S/E) Returning to the road, turn left and follow the Rd147.

(1) Shortly after entering the forest, you will see a grave on the right, that of a soldier who died during the 1914-1918 war.
Continue along the road to the "Neuf Étang" (the first pond), where you can take a look and perhaps see some migratory or resident birds.

(2) After the pond, turn left (signposted picnic area). Walk along the private pond of La Mosée (via the Meuse trench), then the pond of La Grange en Woëvre.

(3) 700 metres after the latter, take the path on the left (trench of the great enclosure) and then pass through the barrier 1,700 metres further on.

(4) Walk alongside the Neuf Étang (here's a second one).

(5) At the barrier after the hunting lodge, continue slightly to the left.

(6) 1000m further on, turn left to return to Raulecourt (S/E). 

And there you have it, you've completed the circular loop. You've seen lots of ponds, birds, pools and mushroom hunters – it's wonderful.

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 254 m - Raulecourt church square.
  2. 1 : km 1.71 - alt. 246 m - Soldier's grave. Towards the - Esch (rivière)
  3. 2 : km 4.7 - alt. 249 m - Turn left at the fork.
  4. 3 : km 9.5 - alt. 239 m - Trench of the Grande Enceinte
  5. 4 : km 11.06 - alt. 243 m - Barrier
  6. 5 : km 12.83 - alt. 241 m - Barrier at the hunting lodge
  7. 6 : km 13.82 - alt. 240 m - Turn left at the fork.
  8. S/E : km 16.35 - alt. 254 m - Raulecourt church square

Notes

Many of the ponds are private and access is prohibited. It's a real shame because this natural setting is perfect for a walk, but if it means getting shot or eaten by a dog, it's not worth it.

You can see many migratory and resident birds near the ponds, so get your cameras ready.

Worth a visit

  1. Commercy.
  2. Little Switzerland Lorraine and the Esch stream.
  3. Madine Lake.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 8 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.4 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
Ti poulet
Ti poulet

thank you

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Hello Ti Poulet, and thank you for choosing my hike.
I imagine that on foot, the beginning of the circular, along the road, was a bit long. By bike 🚴 it's faster.
Enjoy your future hikes with Visorando.

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Ti poulet
Ti poulet

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 18, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant walk
This walk is not difficult and offers views of the ponds (please note that some areas are private property). The only downside for us is that the walk starts on a road.
Thank you for sharing.

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Thank you all 👌

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Montagnard54
Montagnard54
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 28, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike on foot, not by mountain bike: duration 4 hours
Very good, pleasant, in the middle of the forest and close to numerous ponds
Saw four deer and very few walkers
No problem following the route with the Visio rando app on my phone.

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grandin
grandin ★

Thank you for your opinion, Ducatis4r. For the map, I recommend you try the Visorando app.

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Ducatis4r
Ducatis4r

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 23, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We also got lost and found our way back to the village of Mandres at the 4 turns. We retraced our steps and turned left just after the hunting lodge. After driving for an hour, we found ourselves back at the hunting lodge. So we turned around and headed back to find our car.
The map of the hike printed on Visorando wasn't detailed enough, but I understood our mistakes after looking on the internet.

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TEXIER
TEXIER

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 22, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We got a little lost and ended up in the village of Mandres des Quatre Tours. A nice little detour to a pretty village. However, there were lots of mosquitoes in the forest, so remember to protect yourself!

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PREPAOPTIMA
PREPAOPTIMA

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 16, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A really enjoyable hike.
We took a wrong turn at km 9.5
No big deal... after reviewing the route, we realised our mistake was due to a lapse in concentration.

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Thank you for enjoying this walk among the ponds.

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zivanath
zivanath
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 27, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

What a lovely little walk! All these ponds are magnificent!

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Rando268
Rando268

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 20, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very practical tools and hiking gear

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ANNIE182
ANNIE182

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 20, 2014
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

We only did part of the route on foot rather than by mountain bike. A lovely walk in the forest with lots of ponds.

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