The Van Vollenhoven monument and the Château-Fée hill

The Retz Forest was the scene of intense fighting during the two battles of the Marne, in September 1914 and during the summer of 1918. Numerous monuments retrace this history, and this hike, which starts at the foot of the ruins of Longpont Abbey, passes by a memorial built in 1938. Beech and pine forests, with beautiful fern undergrowth, await you on this mainly forest trail.

This walk is part of a multi-day hike: Paths of remembrance from the Great War

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.48 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 91 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 84 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 166 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 84 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Departure from Longpont Abbey. Park in the large car park between the school and the abbey.

The crossroads in the forest are generally signposted, as are the main roads.

Without signposts

(S/E) From the car park, walk away from the abbey and turn left onto the street that leads to the D2 (Rue Saint-Louis on the map). At the stop sign, turn left onto the D2 towards Corcy.

Red and white markings

At the fork in the road, take the right-hand path uphill, which runs parallel to the D17. Follow theGR®®1through the woods, ignoring the paths on the right. At a fork, turn right into a copse.

(1) At a three-way junction, turn left. At the next crossroads (equestrian centre below on the right), go straight ahead. You will come to a small paved road (field opposite) and follow it to the left for about 200m.

No markings

(2) At the Carrefour Gaudrillard junction, turn right into a forest lane (yellow and brown arrow). Immediately, you will come to a fork (not shown on the map): go straight ahead (north-west) into the grassy lane and ignore the path that branches off to the right. At the Carrefour de la Grosse Pierre crossroads, take the third right (north-northwest), the Laie des Grands Charmes.

(3) At the end, follow a small tarmac road on the right (Route de Chavigny) and you will arrive at the Van Vollenhoven Monument on the edge of the D2.

(4) Retrace your steps.

(3) Continue straight ahead on the small road, pass the Carrefour du Hibou and arrive at the Carrefour de Chavigny.

Red and white markings

(5) Cross the perpendicular tarmac road and take a good gravel path diagonally to the right (north-west) which starts after a forest barrier and crosses a beautiful beech forest.

No markings

(6) At the next junction, turn sharply left and descend slightly on a good stony path. Cross the Route de Chavigny you left earlier and take the path that branches off to the right (south-west). Climb gently. On the flat section, the track gives way to a path that winds its way through the ferns. Descend again onto a wide track (with a few rocks protruding), cross a stream and arrive at Carrefour des Sangliers.

(7) Turn sharply left onto the Laie des Étangs de Longpont (do not cross the tarmac forest road). Continue straight ahead towards the east (a few wet patches) and cross the Laie de la Belle Épine and a tarmac road.

Red and white markings

(8) About 350m after the tarmac road, at a slightly marked crossroads, turn right onto a grassy track and rejoin theGR®®11. Walk along a cleared beech forest on the left-hand side. Cross a paved road and continue straight ahead (the purple line on the IGN map has not been updated in this area). After a short steep climb through a pine forest, you will reach the Château-Fée crossroads.

(9) Take the second path on the left among the ferns (thefirst path on the left, which you should not take, is signposted as Laie de la Grosse Pierre). At the bottom of a very short but steep descent, turn left and, after a few dozen metres, veer right (follow the markings carefully). Walk east on a good sandy path and cross the Laie de Vauvaudran.

(10) At Carrefour de la Tartarine, turn left and cross a pine forest with fern undergrowth. At the next crossroads, follow a gravel road to the right and, after about 400 metres, you will reach Carrefour Gaudrillard.

(2) Continue straight ahead and, after about 200 metres, at the corner of a field on the left, take theGR®® trail on the right (the "Private Property" sign refers to the interior of the undergrowth).

(1) At the three-way junction, turn right and follow the path you took on the way there in the opposite direction.

No markings

At the end of the path, follow the direction of the abbey, first to the left on the D2 then to the right on the D17, and return to the car park where you started (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 85 m - Car park - Abbaye de Longpont
  2. 1 : km 0.95 - alt. 118 m - Three-way junction
  3. 2 : km 1.9 - alt. 134 m - Gaudrillard crossroads
  4. 3 : km 2.79 - alt. 135 m - Route de Chavigny
  5. 4 : km 3.02 - alt. 129 m - Monument Van Vollenhoven
  6. 5 : km 3.97 - alt. 140 m - Chavigny crossroads
  7. 6 : km 4.54 - alt. 153 m - Carrefour des Merisiers
  8. 7 : km 5.59 - alt. 142 m - Carrefour des Sangliers
  9. 8 : km 6.56 - alt. 137 m - Laie des Étangs de Longpont x Route Droite
  10. 9 : km 7.18 - alt. 166 m - Château-Fée crossroads
  11. 10 : km 7.93 - alt. 139 m - Carrefour de la Tartarine
  12. S/E : km 10.48 - alt. 85 m - Car park - Abbaye de Longpont

Notes

Hiking boots are required. Some paths have uneven ground. Passages may be muddy in wet weather.

No water sources identified along the route. Bar-restaurant in Longpont (S/E).

During the hunting season (from late September to late February), avoid days when hunts are organised: Monday, Thursday or Friday depending on the hunting ground. Consult the map of hunting grounds and the hunting calendar (see the Retz State Forest at the bottom of the page).

A 1:25,000 map is essential (at least the one accompanying this description). A compass may be useful.

This hike follows some sections of routes designed by the Association des Amis de la Forêt de Retz (Friends of the Retz Forest Association).

Additional information:
This hike can be complemented by the "Retz Forest - La Tour Mangin and the Guards' Grave" hike. The starting point for this second hike, in Puiseux-en-Retz, is 10 km from Longpont, via the D2 and Montgobert.

Hike completed by the author on 8 September 2018.

Worth a visit

- Longpont Abbey (12th-13th century) (S/E). Private site, guided tours only: from 15 March to 31 October, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, from 11:00 to 12:00 and from 14:30 to 18:30.
- Van Vollenhoven Monument (4). Monument erected in 1938 and dedicated to the memory of Joost Van Vollenhoven (1877-1918), a Dutch citizen who became a naturalised French citizen and was killed during the offensive launched from the Forest of Retz in July 1918.
- Beautiful forests.

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 15 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4 / 5
MARTDomi
MARTDomi

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Nice route with no difficulties
Pretty village

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Lubct
Lubct

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Clear and precise directions. Hike without any particular difficulty. A few slightly steep climbs, but nothing insurmountable.

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remi2000
remi2000
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 02, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant walk in the woods.

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Rolleton
Rolleton

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 21, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Shady hike with varied landscapes. The paths are sometimes damaged by logging machinery. It's a shame!

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Isabelle Ouge
Isabelle Ouge

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 05, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Just two comments:
- before point 1, at one point, the main path turns left, but you have to go straight ahead on the path that is blocked by a barrier. (There is a tendency to follow the path that leads to a cultivated field with no exit).
-in the forest, the names of the crossroads are not always visible (e.g. the Gaudrillard crossroads, the Hibou crossroads, etc.)
But we had a lovely walk, which can be shortened by taking intermediate paths.
The village of Longpont is very pretty.
Thank you for this lovely walk.

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VDumoulin
VDumoulin

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 16, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful route through a lovely forest, with interesting war monuments.
The village of Longpont is very pretty, and even its ruined abbey is worth seeing. It is open to visitors from mid-March onwards
My only regret, but that's just my personal taste, is that I prefer small paths in the middle of the forest. Here, most of the paths are very wide and the forest is very sparse... but I still really enjoyed this hike

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Mad et JM
Mad et JM
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 05, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful forest of majestic trees, with wide, well-maintained forest paths. And Longpont Abbey is a beautiful ruin, as romantic as you could wish for, in a pretty village. A quick mention for the memorial stone a little off the trail, shortly after the start. It commemorates Lieutenant Monty, a pilot who died in aerial combat. It is moving to see how well it is maintained and decorated with flowers after all this time.

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jdmarcherapide
jdmarcherapide

Hello,
I will call the police as soon as I have a moment
Kind regards

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Netra
Netra ★

Hello jdmarcherapide,

Thank you for sharing your experience. I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed the hike.

As for me, what did you do with the intact shell you found? I think if I made a similar discovery, I wouldn't touch it... but who should I report it to?

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jdmarcherapide
jdmarcherapide
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 13, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful walk. I can confirm that the vast majority of the forest floor has been churned up by forestry machinery, making it very unstable to walk on in very dry weather. A real battlefield! And here we are, the hike is an immersion into the heart of the battles of the Marne in September 1914 and the summer of 1918. At the crossroads of the wild boars, we found an intact shell. So be careful, the remains can still speak.

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havard
havard

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 21, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

up to point 4, about 1 hour in a beautiful forest. Too bad for the dog, more than 20 ticks during this period

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Rapsak
Rapsak

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 08, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful start and a beautiful finish! You have to admit that this village is interesting.
The walk is pleasant and, despite the condition of some of the paths, it goes rather well. It's definitely best to go during dry periods, otherwise the technical difficulty quickly increases!

It's a shame that the point of interest, the village, is also the starting and finishing point. There's not quite enough to keep children entertained in the middle of the walk.

Thank you for this route!

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The user account associated with this content has been deleted.

vdidry1
vdidry1

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 19, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A lovely walk in the forest. No particular difficulty. A compass is useful to ensure you take the right direction at crossroads

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ovil
ovil

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 02, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

I combined this route with the one called "Foret de Retz-Tour Mangin" by following the GR 11A from Villers-Cotteret station and returning through the forest.
We passed points 7, 8, 9, 2, 3 and 4 via the GR and saw the English cemetery, the monument, the Mangin tower and the memorial stone.
We continued along the GR, joining this route at point 6, then went directly to the Van Vollenhoven monument via points 5, 3 and 4, and from there to Longpont via point 2. We then followed the GR again to the Butte de Château-Fée.
We then crossed the village of Fleury and the railway line to reach a long straight line to Villers Cotteret.
A pleasant hike in the forest with definite historical interest.
Some paths have been damaged by forestry machinery.

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