La Fontenelle (Loir-et-Cher) walks

A beautiful walk in the former fiefdom of the turbulent Gouet barons. Like Brou, La Bazoche continues a long tradition of fairs and markets. For over 100 years, the Percheron foal fair has been held on thefirst Saturday in November.

This route takes you along quiet country lanes, paths through the bocage and forest trails, and will introduce you to the Étangs de Boisvinet. You will also pass the glassworks, which operated until 1952 and was the subject of a book by Daphne du Maurier, *The Glass Blowers*.

La Ville-aux-Clercs offers four walking routes that are also suitable for mountain bikes: here is the Red route in the heart of the Perche Vendômois region.

Located between Beauce and Perche, at the crossroads of the Loir Valley and the Route du Blé, Cloyes-sur-le-Loir is a sleeping beauty on the banks of the Loir. This pretty town combines modernity and heritage. The hike takes you through the countryside with its valleys, forests and rolling hills, which are sure to charm you.

The Yerre river approaches, accompanied by scents and sounds that it seems to have carried from the depths of the forest, before flowing along the edge of the Perche region and joining the Loir river above Cloyes.

This hike allows you to discover Montmirail, a "small town of character", and its green countryside through woods and sunken paths.

The "Terres Douces" countryside reveals a heritage full of charm: the former Priory of Les Châtaigniers and the Manoir de la Guillerie.

Walk starting from the car park at Douy church to explore Courgain Mill, situated at the bridge over the Loir. The route then passes near a castle at La Boulidière, descends along the road between the ponds and then follows a path towards the Vouvray footbridge to the old wash house and Saint-Pierre Chapel. The return journey follows the same route for part of the way, then veers off to skirt the ponds of the Basse Plaine, where you can spot coots and grey herons. The end of the walk leads to another bridge over the Loir, then past the Château du Prieuré before returning to Douy church.

Like the neighbouring village of Gréez, the medieval development of Saint-Ulphace is linked to the settlement, between the Braye and the Saint-Ulphace stream, of a hermit monk in the6th century. The Hermitage of Saint-Ulphace led to the clearing of the surrounding land and the settlement of Christianised populations, followed by the establishment of the parish, first mentioned in 802.

The village is characterised by the presence of the forest. This enabled its owner, the Marquis de Vibraye, to establish forges on the Braye river in Champrond in the early 17th century, where charcoal from the forest fuelled the furnaces producing pig iron and wrought iron until 1913. The trail partly follows the route taken by the convoys laden with heavy iron bars to the workshop in the hamlet of La Fenderie, on the pond of the same name. At La Bouverie, another vanished hamlet, eight houses provided accommodation for the forges’ carters, whilst charcoal burners and miners lived in makeshift huts. Now silent once more, the forest retains of this past activity only the network of paths. Part of it is now a Natura 2000 site.

The Étang des Panses lake can be seen along a path where it is not uncommon to encounter forest animals. After the forest, you will discover Percheron fruit trees at the Miermaigne conservation orchard; in mid-November, you can take part in the Apple Festival.

Frazé’s architectural heritage is exceptional. Frazé Castle and Carcahu Manor are prime examples of this. The castle comprises various structures (15th, 17th and 19th centuries), whilst Carcahu Manor (16th–17th centuries) is unlike any other…

An easy, family-friendly walk in a lovely little village.

Situated on the eastern slopes of the Huisne, Courgenard, first mentioned at the end ofthe 9th century, was the seat in the Middle Ages of an important barony belonging to the chapter of canons of Le Mans Cathedral. The fine Romanesque architecture of Saint-Martin’s Church still bears witness today to the power of this barony, as does the remarkable16th-century decoration adorning the chancel. In the19th century, the village still lived off agriculture and the production of hemp cloth. Today, it forms part of the La Ferté-Bernard employment area.

An easy, very pleasant walk through woods (pleasant in hot weather), across the plain and with a beautiful view of the Loir valley.

Setting off from this village-street with its rich architectural heritage, head along the ancient sunken paths, sections (1) to (6) ofthe GR®® 235, lined with a variety of trees – oaks, service trees, serviceberries, wild pear trees and so on – offering walkers an enchanting, shaded route. These paths, in the heart of the rolling countryside of the Perche Sarthois, are linked by a network of quiet country lanes, offering stunning 180° panoramic views from the higher points.

Situated on a small spur at the confluence of the Anille and Roulecrotte rivers, the village, first mentioned in the 13th century, retains several old houses, including the town hall, a former presbytery built in the 15th century. The church, rebuilt around 1780, features a beautiful collection of murals painted around 1860 using potassium silicate (a new technique for the time).

The evolution of Saint-Calais is evident in its town planning, which developed in the Middle Ages on either side of the Anille. On the right bank, the former abbey site founded inthe 6th century is still visible in the two tall gables of the current resource centre. During the Revolution, it gave way to another administrative centre with imposing buildings and the straight streets typical ofthe 19th century. On the left bank, on the hillside between the river and the castle founded inthe 11th century to rival the powerful abbey, you can easily make out the medieval quarter, which was built around the axis of the Grande Rue on an irregular and densely packed grid of plots.

A pleasant and easy walk on either side of the Loir.

From the Church of Notre-Dame (listed building), you can admire the traditional architecture of Vichères, built from red sandstone and white stone. This rural route, with its ups and downs, links Rougemont Hill (the highest point in Eure-et-Loir at 285 m) to the picturesque Berthe Valley via sunken paths.

Set amongst woods and rivers, this route takes walkers through the lush countryside so dear to Marcel Proust, the illustrious guest of Illiers-Combray.

Taking beautiful sunken paths, over hill and dale, you will discover magnificent panoramic views of the Cétonais countryside and be amazed by its diversity: woods, meadows, hedgerows and cultivated fields.

A very beautiful walk along the Boulon Valley.

A short walk starting from Meslay, passing the Château de Meslay, then following the Réveillon stream and winding through the village’s fields

A pleasant little walk through woods and vineyards.

This route offers panoramic views of the Huisne valley on the outskirts of Nogent-le-Rotrou.

Through sunken lanes, hedgerows and woods, discover the landscapes of the Perche region as far as Ceton, the Jambette Valley and the Huisne Valley.

The Braye, celebrated in song by Ronsard, meets the Loir here. Whilst Bessé-sur-Braye is best known to locals for its thriving paper industry, this village in the Calais region is also home to a Renaissance gem, the Château de Courtanvaux, which is said to have hosted Henry IV. Its large wooded park is open to the public all year round, and serves as the starting point for this walk, which also takes you through lovely countryside along a small tarmac road.

Bessé dates back to the Middle Ages. At that time, the parish comprised numerous fiefdoms, including Courtanvaux, a parish seigneury elevated to a marquisate in 1609. The village developed particularly from the18th century onwards thanks to the establishment of pre-industrial sites, as evidenced by the cotton mill set up by Elie Savatier in 1735 (on the site of a former linen weaving mill) or the paper mill established at La Roche in 1824. The latter has since become the town’s main industrial site.