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Departure from the town hall of Puiseux-en-Retz. Park in the town hall car park (bus station) or, if it is full, along the main street, Rue du Château.
Crossroads in the forest are generally signposted, as are the main roads.
Without signposts
(S/E) With your back to the town hall, turn left and walk past the war memorial. Take thefirst right, Rue des Grands Jardins. Stay on this street, ignore a street on the left and continue on the road, which is closed to vehicles over 10 tonnes: the tarmac then gives way to a gravel track. After crossing the Laie du Gerfaut, the track turns left and joins another track: follow this track to the left for about 50 metres.
Signposted "Ru de Retz"
(1) At the Carrefour des Six Routes, turn right onto an uphill path.
Red and white markings + signposted "Ru de Retz"/Soldat
At the next crossroads, turn left onto Route du Mur du Parc. After about 100 metres, turn right and continue along a winding path (the purple line on the IGN map, which is supposed to represent theGR®®11, is very approximate here).
(2) Cross the Laie du Chablis des Bouleaux and continue along the path. Ignore a path branching off to the right (signpost "Sentier Réaumont") and take a footbridge over a stream. The Mangin Tower becomes clearly visible on the left. Climb steeply, ignoring a path branching off to the right. At the top, at a T-junction, turn left and descend slightly. This will take you to the foot of the Mangin Tower.
(3) Continue along a wide gravel path and you will soon reach the Mangin stele. Turn right at the hairpin bend on the gravel path and descend. Ignore a turn-off on the left (not shown on the map), pass through a forest barrier and you will come out onto a small tarmac road (Route du Faîte).
No markings
(4) Follow the road to the right and pass the Lieutenant Chasseval stele. Before a left-hand bend, leave the road and turn left uphill onto Laie des Chablis des Bouleaux. At the top of the hill (Carrefour de Bellevue on the map), continue straight ahead and descend into a pine forest with fern undergrowth.
(5) At the crossroads, turn right onto a grassy path. At the next crossroads, continue straight ahead. At Carrefour de la Fontaine Blanche, cross a paved road and continue straight ahead onto Laie d'Haramont. Descend into a sparse beech forest, then climb back up on the opposite side.
(6) At the crossroads, take the third path on the right (north-west), La Laie de Marguerie (yellow and brown markings). Continue straight ahead, following the ups and downs of the path, until you reach Carrefour Marguerite, at the edge of the D81 road and opposite the "Passant arrête-toi" monument.
(7) Follow the road to the left (take care) to the Guards' Grave (British cemetery). Cross the road carefully (this is where visibility is best) and continue left until you reach a bend. Turn right at an acute angle and go up a smaller road. Opposite the Rond de la Reine forest house, turn right onto a small tarmac road. Return to the D81 and cross it carefully.
Red and white markings + "Ru de Retz"/Soldat signs
(7) Follow the D81 to the left (ignore the road to the right towards the Mangin Tower) and, a few metres after the end of the safety barrier, turn right onto a downhill path (be careful to spot this turn-off).
(8) At the next crossroads, turn right, heading due east. At the Carrefour de L'Herbier, continue straight ahead. The path becomes narrower and winds through the undergrowth (more than the map suggests).
No markings
(9) At the crossroads (plot no. 301), turn sharply left. At the next crossroads, cross a stony track and take the Laie des Quatre Chapons path diagonally to the right. Continue straight ahead on this good path until you reach the Carrefour de Puiseux crossroads in an open area.
(10) Then turn left onto Laie des Fonds Houchad. You will immediately come to a fork: take the right-hand path (azimuth 340), which is not very well marked, and ignore the wider path on the left (azimuth 320), which quickly becomes very overgrown. Once you enter the undergrowth, the path gives way to a track that descends slightly. Go through a forest barrier, rejoin the tarmac road and continue straight ahead along Rue des Grands Jardins, which you took on the way out. At the end, turn left and you will soon reach the town hall (S/E).
but on Sunday 23/02/25 the forest paths were very badly damaged by forestry machinery, which spoiled the fun a little. The paths that did not use the forest paths were perfect and, as a bonus, we had sunshine. I hope the paths will be repaired. 
Visorando member
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