Fort de Chaudanne in Besançon

Hike to discover Fort de Chaudanne with its panoramic view of Besançon and the citadel and the small paths surrounding the site.

Details

77138
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 6.71 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 30 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 217 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 218 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 412 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 238 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ District: Besançon (25000)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 47.226277° / E 6.032897°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 3323ET
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Description of the walk

Parking is available opposite the Mazagran bridge in Besançon.

(S/E) Cross the Doubs via the Mazagran bridge. At the exit, turn right onto Chemin de Mazagran.

(1) When you reach a metal staircase on the left, take it and start climbing, following the signs for Fort de Chaudanne. At the end of the path, at the tarmac road, take the wooden stairs on the left and continue climbing until you reach the fort. Go left to the viewpoint over Besançon.
Head back down the stairs to reach the top of the fort. From there, turn right towards Velotte and the viewpoint.
Take the wooden stairs and continue along the path on the left until you reach the road. Turn right and continue downhill, following the signs for "Petit Chaudanne".

(2) When you reach Rue Petit Chaudanne on the left, turn left. Continue until you find wooden stairs on the left in the woods.
Climb up and turn right at the top. Follow the yellow markings on the trees.

(3) At the end of the path, return to the tarmac road. From there, follow the signs for Velotte on the right. Go downhill and take the grassy path with the prohibition sign and yellow markings.

(4) On the path on the left, at the sign indicating Velotte via the hillsides, take the aluminium gate and follow the direction indicated "Velotte".

(5) At the end of the path, at the fence, turn right to find another gate. Descend to Rue Chemin des Deux Lys.

(6) At the bottom, turn left onto Rue de Velotte until you reach the Velotte bridge crossing the Doubs.

(7) At the entrance to the bridge on the left, go down the stairs to reach the greenway. Continue left on Chemin de Mazagran to return to the starting point after crossing the bridge again (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 241 m - Car park opposite the Mazagran bridge. - Doubs (rivière)
  2. 1 : km 0.89 - alt. 243 m - Metal staircase on the left. - Fort de Chaudanne
  3. 2 : km 3.06 - alt. 339 m - Rue Petit Chaudanne
  4. 3 : km 3.64 - alt. 343 m - Road junction
  5. 4 : km 3.84 - alt. 329 m - Sign indicating Velotte
  6. 5 : km 3.98 - alt. 307 m - Fork in the road
  7. 6 : km 4.57 - alt. 262 m - Rue de Velotte
  8. 7 : km 5.03 - alt. 239 m - Velotte Bridge
  9. S/E : km 6.71 - alt. 241 m - Car park opposite the Mazagran bridge. - Canal du Rhône au Rhin

Notes

- Walking shoes recommended.
- The path climbs at the beginning, so it is not suitable for children.

Worth a visit

- Visit the citadel.
- Walk along the Doubs river via the greenway.

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5
Based on 13 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.2 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.8 / 5
Route interest
4.2 / 5
PAYER François
PAYER François

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 17, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Hiking in the fog...so no views of Besançon and the surrounding area.

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46497477
46497477

Overall rating : 4 / 5

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

A very pleasant route combining nature, history and urbanism, with a very manageable elevation gain.

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PVM25
PVM25

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 25, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A beautiful hike with open views of the city of Besançon. No major difficulties apart from the fairly steep climb up to Fort Chaudanne.

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Marco71
Marco71

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 10, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A lovely walk, well signposted except between points 2 and 3. The route on the map is illegible in this section due to the numbering. A shame... Nevertheless, we had a lovely afternoon.

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GILFOV
GILFOV

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 26, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A lovely walk in the countryside, just outside Besançon. We were lucky enough to encounter a squirrel and a chamois, both of which were quite tame!

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pepple
pepple

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 22, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A pleasant hike to explore the hills around Besançon.

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maudoil
maudoil

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 31, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Hello fellow hikers. Very nice walk, but in my opinion it would be better to reverse the route, i.e. start from the Velotte bridge and climb the hillside path rather than descending it on the way back, which is too dangerous. No parking problems at the Velotte bridge
. Thank you all.

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cassandra.niele
cassandra.niele

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 25, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A nice little hike, especially the first part.
A bit too much tarmac at the end, but it was still pleasant because there were flowers everywhere.

Same here, we had a bit of trouble finding the "little grassy path", used geotracker in // to find the right path.

But hey, when the weather's nice, it's always fun to get a little lost.

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mimi.bouveret@wanadoo.fr
mimi.bouveret@wanadoo.fr

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 06, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Beautiful route, varied, lovely panoramic views.
Detailed description

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Thank you, bruno25.
The description should indeed be amended on this point. Let's wait for the author to take care of it. In the meantime, future hikers who read the comments will be informed.

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bruno25
bruno25

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 20, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Nice hikes around Besançon
One major drawback: the trail around the transmission tower at Petit-Caudanne; it is marked by passing in front of it and immediately turning left. This is no longer possible as there is now a fence and vegetation has reclaimed the area. --> You have to pass to the right under the pylon and go around it by taking a "patrol" path and rejoining the trail 200 metres further on.
An easy, quick Sunday walk with some nice views.

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giroddo@orange.fr
giroddo@orange.fr

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 22, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Good evening,
The route was completed in very good weather.
The GPS track after Petit Chaudanne is completely wrong, as it leads us to a transmitter with a satellite dish.
We had to retrace our steps several times to make a wide detour to the west around this passage to get back on the right path.
A beautiful hike that is accessible to all hikers, even beginners.
It's a shame that there are so many tarmac paths; the route would undoubtedly benefit from fewer of these (except, of course, along the banks of the Doubs).

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magic25
magic25

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 28, 2014
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We went on this walk in November, which meant we could see the landscape through the trees as we climbed.
The start is quite tough, with a steep climb in a short space of time.

It is best to take a map, at least to check the general direction when you come to a signpost.

Several variations are possible from this path.

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guyon
guyon
• Edited:

Actually, we did the hike a little differently: we started from the Velotte cemetery and climbed up to the fort in the other direction; for the descent, we took the well-marked path that runs alongside the fort from the esplanade and joins the Doubs, then made a leisurely return to Velotte along the Doubs. We found this more pleasant than taking the stairs... and less tiring.

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Hello patjos, and thank you for your post.
Can you tell us more about the area where this grassy path is located and what information should be added to improve the description?

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