La grande boucle de Robert Le Diable

Parking available at the judo club car park, Rue des Martyres de la Résistance, 76120 Le Grand-Quevilly.

(S/E) With the sports hall on your right, head straight ahead towards the south. Cross Rue des Martyrs de la Résistance and then the concrete square diagonally. Turn left onto the path and follow it for a few metres between the fir trees.

(1) Turn right onto Rue Arthur Rimbaud, continue to the roundabout at Avenue Franklin Roosevelt and cross it. Follow Rue Albert Lebourg straight ahead, passing the buildings on Rue Eugène Boudin, until you reach the junction.

(2) Turn right onto Rue Henri Matisse, then left about 50 metres further on, following the bend, onto Rue Toulouse-Lautrec. Continue to the roundabout, opposite the town swimming pool. Turn right onto the bus-only lane, pass the side of the school on your left and continue straight ahead along the cycle path to the next roundabout.

(3) Turn right onto Rue de la Voûte, go under the bridge and continue to the roundabout at Rue Aristide Briand.

(4) Turn left onto Rue Aristide Briand, cross the road to the pavement on the opposite side and continue on to enter Petit Couronne. At the traffic lights, ignore the dead-end road on the right and take the next road on the right, Rue Pierre Corneille. Continue to the public gardens, after passing the museum and the Pierre Corneille house on your right.

(5) At the public garden, turn left onto Avenue François Mitterrand and head up to the traffic lights on Rue Aristide Briand. Turn right, pass the Château des Tourelles, then turn right at the^first street and immediately left onto Rue Winston Churchill. Pass the Sillon hall, then continue past the town hall and the church. Turn left to the roundabout, cross it, and go up the street opposite, Rue des Martyrs. Pass the cemetery on your left and take the first right after the stadium.

(6) Turn right onto Rue du Bel Air, continue for about 370 m until the first path on the left and go between the two concrete blocks. Turn left onto the first path that follows, go between three concrete blocks, pass another one and turn onto the first path on the right. Follow this path to the end of the wall on the right.

(7) Carry on straight ahead and, at the T-junction, turn right. Follow this path, ignoring two turnings on the left. Turn right into the fallow field and cross it on the left to reach a wider path directly opposite. Follow this descending path and, at the white barrier, go left. This is easier; continue down to the roundabout.

(8) Turn left after the Grand-Couronne sign, onto Rue du Général Leclerc. Continue straight on, past the roundabout, the music school and the church to reach the town hall.

(9) With your back to the town hall, head up the road opposite to Place de la République. Opposite the police station, turn left and then immediately right onto Rue Sadi Carnot. At the next T-junction, turn right onto Rue du 11 Novembre and at the next crossroads, continue straight ahead.

(10) Just before the railway bridge, turn right onto Rue de la Gare. Pass the old station and the municipal offices.

(11) At the T-junction, take a sharp right onto Avenue Foch. Immediately take^{the first} left onto Boulevard du Rouvray, then turn left again onto Rue de Seelze. Continue straight ahead along this street, ignoring the streets on the right and left. After about 800 m, turn right onto Rue de la Commune de Paris and continue down to the traffic lights.

(12) Turn left onto Avenue de Caen, continue straight ahead and pass the fire station on your right. Continue past the Moulineaux town sign and carry on along Rue du Lieutenant Jacques Hergault. At the traffic lights, turn left. On the uphill stretch, pass the church, cross the road and head towards the last house, about 100 m on the left.

(13) Take the path that climbs up to the left just after the house; the fairly steep path turns right as it passes the small water tower. Walk to the top and you’ll reach a square with the War Memorial and Château Robert le Diable directly opposite.

(14) With your back to the monument, head straight ahead, go under the bridge and take the^first forest road on the right, Route Forestière du Château. Head down to the T-junction, Carrefour Robert. Turn left and continue along this road, passing under two viaducts and carrying on straight ahead onto Route Forestière de Beauval. At the barrier, continue straight ahead to the X-junction, which is a hairpin bend.

(15) Head straight ahead, go up the hill and, at the top, continue left onto Route de l’Étoile until the next forest barrier. At the junction with the D132, cross the road and continue straight ahead; take care when crossing, as there is little traffic but vehicles are travelling at high speed – danger.
The area is also a spot for certain encounters, but you can ignore them. Continue to the T-junction, the former Essarts motor racing route.

(16) Cross the road, mind the traffic, turn right and immediately left onto Rue du Paradis. Follow this street to the left until you reach the right-angled bend, next to the bridge over the A13.

(17) Turn left, cross the Normandy Motorway bridge and turn left at the^second street, Rue du Général Blanchard.

(18) At the end, turn right onto Avenue Jean Lagarrigue and drive past the church. At the traffic lights, go straight on, join the Essarts carpool area and continue to the roundabout.

(19) Turn left and cross the bridge over the N138. At the roundabout, turn left towards Mare Sifflot, which is a few metres away on the right.

(20) Turn right and pass the buildings on the left. Take the forest track, continue to the T-junction with the tarmac forest road and follow it to the right.

(21) Go under the D13 bridge to reach the next junction. Turn left and continue for about 1,500 m, until you reach the right-hand bend.

(22) Turn right and immediately take the first left. At the next junction, turn left again and continue to the end of the path, to the T-junction with a forest barrier on your right.

(23) Turn right uphill and continue to the next road, Rue de la Pierre d’État.

(24) Cross the road and take the path opposite, after the forest gate. Follow the path uphill on the left until you reach the Menhir de la Pierre d’État, a large rock. Turn left uphill and at the first junction turn right onto Rue du Madrillet.

(25) Cross over and continue straight ahead. About 150 m further on, turn left onto a small uphill path and cross the entire hill to Rue de la Voûte.

(3) At the bottom, turn right, go under the bridge and immediately turn left onto the cycle path.

(26) At the roundabout, cross over and continue straight ahead on the cycle path. At the traffic lights, turn right and return to the starting point (S/E).

Route suitable for mountain biking.

Petit-Couronne: The Pierre-Corneille Museum – Maison des Champs. The Town Museum. Saint-Aubin Church.
The Château des Tourelles.

Grand-Couronne: Saint-Martin Church, built in the 14th century. The parish of Saint-Martin has existed since 1195. The town hall, rebuilt after the Second World War, features a façade decorated by the sculptor Raymond Delamarre, whose studies are preserved at the Elbeuf Museum. The war memorial in the cemetery at Grand-Couronne is the work of the sculptor Paul Landowski (1875–1961), who also created the Christ the Redeemer statue on Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro.

Moulineaux: Church of Saint James the Greater (13th century), rood screen and stained-glass windows (listed as a historic monument in 1840). Château de Robert le Diable: a fire on 26 May 2007 destroyed the floors of the north tower.
The wash house on Rue Louis-Moguen (D 67). The war memorial to the two world wars.
Château du Rouvray (1876), on the banks of the Seine, built for Eugène Dutuit, whose family are shareholders in the Banque de France.

Grand-Couronne/Les Essarts: Television and FM transmitter with a 200-metre-high mast at 49° 20′ 28″ N, 1° 00′ 52″ E. Church of Saint Anthony of Padua