The Croix de Saint-Sauveur as seen from Foix station

Date of your route : Jul 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

hello
We found ourselves with a dog tied up whose chain allowed him to cross the road. He wouldn't let us pass and was quite aggressive, so we had to find a neighbour who knew him and the dog calmed down...
further on, there was a "no trespassing" sign with a warning about dogs. We went through anyway, but we didn't feel very comfortable.
so, not a very relaxing walk!

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Date of your route : Jul 21, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Well-maintained and well-marked trail for the climb up to the cross (circuit starting from the bottom of the cross in Foix). Very little maintenance and very few markings on the rest of the circuit that passes through Vernajoul. There are two iron barriers, one of which cannot be opened and the second is very difficult to open.
The walk is very pleasant but is somewhat spoiled by these negative points.
Best regards.

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Date of your route : Jun 08, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It was very enjoyable, and the view from the Saint-Sauveur cross is magnificent. I had two issues:

• In the hamlet of Lizonne, I encountered a lone dog (probably belonging to a local resident), which barked and growled at me. I continued on my way, and it was very aggressive and growling, but after a few metres it left me alone (I remained calm as I walked on and did not look it in the eyes, but it was growling very close to me). So be careful if you come across it.
• As indicated by the red dots on the map, signs saying "Passage interdit" (No entry) and "Attention au chien" (Beware of dog) (too late for me ) are placed after the second metal barrier, which is securely bolted down. I went around it by following the arrows in the photos in the hike description. It's the path just below, marked with dotted lines on the map, that you need to follow. It's a pretty nice passage too (lots of beautiful insects to see). As a result, I missed the hamlet of Saint-Sauveur (point 6) because the path takes you back to the main trail after it.

As for the construction work mentioned in the latest reviews, I didn't encounter any problems on this section, so I think it must have been completed recently. It was probably for the installation of the metal nets that are now on the path. There were no obstacles (e.g. construction barriers) to report (I hope someone didn't remove them, but I doubt it as I saw several people on the path).

The route should be updated to include the trail described in my second point (and indicate to turn off at the hamlet after the trail if it's really worth it!) Otherwise, I really enjoyed it. Thank you for this hike!

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Date of your route : May 07, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

First of all, I didn’t think to read the reviews! 🙄 I just took note of the red markers, but on the map Visorando uses, you can see some adjacent paths (not shown on IGN Rando), but we went for it anyway.

Between 4 and 5, (perhaps we were too focused😅) we didn’t see the path that is circular, so we went straight on. That works too.

Between 5 and 6 (a very pretty hamlet, by the way), the first gate isn’t actually locked (make sure you close it properly afterwards, of course, otherwise the cows will make a run for it – very beautiful cows, mind you).
The second gate is indeed locked, which is just as well.
Opposite the gate, on your right, there’s a ‘gate’ with a path. Either you go through the posts, or you open the fence and close it again afterwards.
The path is a bit damaged as they’ve recently been working in the area, I think, to maintain the route. The path goes to the right of the concrete structure; follow the clearest route (you’ll see some tracks leading into the woods – ignore them; if necessary, check your position using the GPS point in the app).
You come to a clear slope with a lovely view, which I think is much more interesting than the closed route. Follow the path until you rejoin the original route.

Between 7 and 8 (I didn’t know about the roadworks; I should have read up on it, but it’s just as well—otherwise I wouldn’t have gone).
Sure enough, there’s a barrier blocking the way and no information. You can’t see the roadworks from there. But what a fantastic view 😍!

We went back up to the first fork on the right to take a path that descends below the main route. This one is less well-maintained but is easy to follow. Caution: Very loose ground and a bit narrow in places, with branches across the path (you have to go under them); this may be seen as a difficulty by some.

And we rejoined the main route (note: the original path isn’t blocked at this point, so perhaps further up). There is another path running above (the main route) which may be accessible; we tried a bit of it but didn’t like the view, so we went back to the original route before turning back again as it was closed 😅.)

Then we carried on. Nothing to report for the rest of the way.
With our detours, allow 4 hours.

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Date of your route : Feb 27, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

There are some lovely spots, but both the start and the end involve too much walking on tarmac for my liking. Sometimes the directions aren’t exactly clear… for example, at number 5, ‘two iron gates to get through…’ The second one is locked – it won’t open. Someone had broken the sort of fence on the side, so it was possible to get round the gate. We weren’t entirely comfortable, though, as there’s a ‘no entry’ sign and two others warning ‘Beware of the dog’. We went through anyway… phew, no dog! Another example: (9) “Cross the bridge over the Arget, go down the stairs on the right…” you can only go up those stairs, in fact, from the end of that bridge!
But what I really want to point out is that from the foot of the Croix de Saint-Sauveur (7), it’s still strictly forbidden to continue. The ‘No Entry’ signs featuring a hiker, with the yellow and red tape, are very recent. We couldn’t very well turn back. It was already too late in the day. So we went through, fingers crossed… There were no workers there that day, but the site in question made the passage difficult and somewhat dangerous. The icing on the cake: at the end, a locked metal barrier to stop people entering from the other direction! Fortunately, we could just about squeeze underneath!
So if you’re planning to do this walk, you’d best check beforehand to make sure it’s open!

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Hello,

I’d be happy to do that; I’ll amend the layout as soon as I can.

Kind regards

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Hello,
The cycle path is certainly safer and less dangerous. The D1 remains a busy road where you need to be careful.
Thank you for your feedback

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Date of your route : Sep 30, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Suggestion: It would have been a good idea to take the greenway from Foix station to Vernajoul rather than the D1, which is dangerous for walkers.

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