The lovers' walk at Notre-Dame-de-Courson

A lovely walk for those who enjoy walking, from the banks of the Touques to the healing fountain of La Croupte.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.09 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 40 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 489 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 492 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 659 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 361 ft

Description of the walk

Departure from Notre-Dame-de-Courson, a historic commune that is now part of the new commune of Livarot-Pays-d'Auge. Park in the Salle des Fêtes car park located 50 metres on the right towards Les Moutiers-Hubert after the junction between the D64 and the D4.

(S/E) Return to the junction between the D64 and D7, cross the D7 at the roundabout using the pedestrian crossing and take the D64 towards Fervaques and Lisieux.

(1) At the crossroads, ignore the right-hand lane, which will be the return route, and continue straight ahead.

(2) Turn right onto Chemin des Amoureux, join Route d'Antignac, follow it to the left for 150 metres, then turn right towards La Patinière and Les Rues.

(3) Continue straight ahead along Impasse des Rues, after passing the entrance to the pretty Norman house "La Patinière", and take the path on the left to walk along the pastures behind the Belleau-Belleau manor house. After 400 metres on this path, at the foot of a large beech tree planted at the crossroads of four paths, turn right onto the path that climbs towards La Moutonnière.

(4) Leave Impasse de la Moutonnière on your left and continue straight ahead for 200 metres. Take the road on the left, walk for 300 metres and turn right towards Hameau Launay and the Croix du Buissonnet stud farm in Val Séry.

(5) Continue through the woods on the path that runs alongside and crosses the Ruisseau de la Croupte stream via wooden footbridges.

(6) Take a look at the wash house, the healing fountain known as the rag fountain and the Church of Saint-Martin, located a few dozen metres away, then retrace your steps to take the small path that climbs to the right (coming from La Moutonnière) towards La Haie Mérière and the Bois de la Couvinière. Be careful not to confuse it with the wider path 10 metres away, which also climbs uphill. At La Haie Mérière, turn right, then at the first crossroads, turn left onto a wide path through the undergrowth.

(7) Carefully cross the small Antignac road (D161b) and take the grassy path opposite. Cross the hamlet of Les Brusey and then take the small road on the left, which you will follow for about 400 metres.

(8) Turn left onto the path which further on becomes a small road called Chemin de la Salette. Shortly after the hamlet of Le Petit Houx, leave Chemin de la Salette, which makes a 90° right turn, and continue straight on along Chemin Ancien. You will reach the village of Notre-Dame de Courson and the D64.

(1) Take the D64 on the left, cross the D4 again at the roundabout using the pedestrian crossing and you will find yourself opposite the Salle des Fêtes car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 367 ft - Parking at the village hall
  2. 1 : mi 0.25 - alt. 361 ft - Crossroads of the circular loop. On the left, the - Touques (fleuve)
  3. 2 : mi 0.6 - alt. 361 ft - The lovers' path
  4. 3 : mi 1.27 - alt. 463 ft - The Impasse des Rues
  5. 4 : mi 2.08 - alt. 584 ft - La Moutonnière
  6. 5 : mi 2.83 - alt. 459 ft - Launay hamlet
  7. 6 : mi 3.48 - alt. 499 ft - La Croupte
  8. 7 : mi 4.99 - alt. 643 ft - Route from Antignac to Les Brusey
  9. 8 : mi 5.72 - alt. 659 ft - The Salette trail
  10. S/E : mi 7.09 - alt. 367 ft - Parking at the village hall

Notes

The path may be wet or muddy in places, so be sure to wear suitable footwear.

Worth a visit

At the roundabout junction between the D64 and D4 roads, don't miss Bruno and Dany's pastries and cakes. The Courson bakery is open every day except Tuesday from 7am to 1pm and from 4pm to 7pm.
If you're feeling peckish, why not pop into Le Tournebroche restaurant for a bite to eat?

Reviews and comments

4.2 / 5
Based on 8 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.1 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.4 / 5
Route interest
4 / 5
BellesPortes111
BellesPortes111

Thank you for your participation.
We look forward to seeing you again soon.

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Koutine
Koutine

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 24, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

At 7, the grassy path towards the hamlet of Les Brusey is impassable, so we feel a bit lost.
But it's a great hike, we recommend it.

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BellesPortes111
BellesPortes111

Thank you for your participation.

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AirGiAime
AirGiAime

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 15, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant walk through the hedgerows and woods of the Pays d'Auge.
You walk alongside some enchanting streams.
A little too much tarmac for my liking at the start of the route, but that's just my personal opinion.
A few slightly more difficult sections on paths that have been turned into torrents by the rain: lots of flint.
Hiking boots and walking sticks are recommended.
I agree with G@linette's comment on 11/08/2024.

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G@linette
G@linette

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 11, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike, but not particularly interesting except for the fountain with rags. Be careful! On the way back from the fountain, take the path on the right (backtracking a little) and not the one that climbs to the left, which appears narrower but leads to a paved road.

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LALA
LALA

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : May 15, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant walk.

There is a picnic table available on the banks of the Touques (after the church of Les Moutiers Hubert). It is a charming and peaceful spot.

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BellesPortes111
BellesPortes111

Thank you

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FLOCH
FLOCH ★

I have made the correction.

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BellesPortes111
BellesPortes111

It is up to the author to make the changes.

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BellesPortes111
BellesPortes111

Impossible,

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FLOCH
FLOCH ★

Hello,
Go to your hike: action - edit description - make the change and then save.
Kind regards

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BellesPortes111
BellesPortes111

I would like to correct the comments, but how do I do that?

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basley claudine
basley claudine

We did this hike on 10 April. There is a small error in the instructions for point 3 at the foot of the large beech tree at the crossroads of four paths. It says to turn left onto the path that goes up to La Moutonnière, but this is incorrect. You have to go up to the right. We then found that there was a lot of road, but it was still a beautiful hike.

Thank you.

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BellesPortes111
BellesPortes111

Overall rating : 4 / 5

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

We liked it.
Sometimes damp.
Some inaccuracies in the description. I agree with Elgoun.

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RandoRosy
RandoRosy

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 23, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant walk under beautiful sunshine that really brought out the magnificent autumn colours.
We followed the route using the map on the Visiorando app: perfect.
The miraculous spring near the church of La Croupte is intriguing. Add to that the surrounding sunken paths, and you're completely immersed in the legends of the past...
Incidentally, there are lots of flints on the ground in the sunken paths, which can make walking difficult when there are a lot of them.
I particularly enjoyed the very last section, the Chemin de la Salette, with its ancient trees. Clearly a very old path.

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