La Hottée du Diable from Villeneuve-sur-Fère

Park in front of the town hall, Place Paul Claudel (near the fountain)

(S/E) From the fountain, walk 20 metres eastwards then turn right into the lane leading south (Rue aux Leus)
The lane quickly becomes a farm track. After about 400 m, at the first crossroads, turn left. Walk through the hamlet of Chantraine, turn right and follow the track to La Louarde.

(1) At La Louarde, cross the tarmac road and take the path almost opposite, slightly lower down on the right. Pass through a forest and cross another tarmac road to take the path opposite, which runs alongside a wood before heading into farmland, then veer left, due north, towards a water tower.
When you reach a T-junction (elevation 219), turn right. The path becomes tarmac.

(2) When you reach Villemoyenne, cross the D39 and take Rue Husson opposite, which becomes Rue Pierre Gros before rejoining the D39. Directly opposite is a pretty chapel.
“The detour to the wash house isn’t worth the trip: it’s in ruins and is used as a storage shed.”

(3) Leaving the chapel, cross the road again and immediately take the path on the right which climbs parallel to the road. It turns left and passes two sheds, before joining the^GR® Pays Tour de l’Omois at elevation 178.
Continue straight on across the fields along the path, which veers slightly to the left to pass in front of the Fontaine St-Georges, where a pipe spouts water into an old bathtub, then past a spring below the road.

(4) The path becomes tarmac as it enters the village; the street turns sharply right to reach the church, running alongside the village square and its pétanque court.

(5) “A pretty church, the grounds of which were off-limits as it was undergoing renovation when I passed by, and the Claudel house just behind it.” (See details of the visit in the chapter: During the hike or nearby).
Opposite, take Rue du Moulin et des Meuniers, which runs alongside the church’s boundary wall and heads into the fields, then enters a small woodland with some fine trees, including a venerable beech with bark scarred time and again. About a hundred metres before the main road, take a path that cuts through the woods on the left to reach the monument to Doctor Tristani.

(6) After a quick look at this unusual monument, head up the D310 to the right, then take the first road on the left towards Trugny.

(7) At the first junction, at the Croix de Morts, turn right to reach the village of Trugny after passing through a small tunnel. If you turn right and then head due north along the Route du Pont, you can visit the wash house marked on the map. It’s nothing special, but the spot on the banks of the Ourcq is not unpleasant.

(8) Return to the centre of the village and turn right, heading west, onto Rue de l’Ourcq.
Leave the village, and after a left-hand bend into a hamlet, you’ll notice numerous remains of cave dwellings.

(9) Just past the last house in the hamlet, take the path (not shown on the IGN map) which climbs almost in line with the road before it turns right. This path is important as the Val Chrétien ford was completely impassable during my hike! Ruins of an old abbey at Val Chrétien, unfortunately off-limits. But there are a few spots from which you can take photos from the outside.
Take the road leaving Val Chrétien through a tunnel.

(10) At the left-hand bend at elevation 114, continue straight on along the path (south-west) which leads into the fields before entering a forest.
Once you reach Bruyères-sur-Fère, turn right to go round the village and pass by the pretty little church.

(11) After the church, turn right onto the Grande Rue and, at the fork, take the road on the right towards Coincy, which climbs before descending again.

(12) Just past the last house, and before the Stop sign, turn right onto a good track that heads into the forest before reaching the Hottée du Diable site. Take your time to explore the sandstone rocks with their varied shapes; don’t forget to climb to the top of the hill (elevation 159) to enjoy the most beautiful view of the rocks and far beyond.

(13) Then join the path that runs north of the Hottée through the gap between it and the hill to the north. Follow this path westwards through the forest. Pass the first crossroads at the edge of the forest, continue straight ahead across the fields, and at the next crossroads, at elevation 123, turn left. After about 400m, the path descends into a small valley, turns right and joins another path straight ahead at elevation 100.

(14) At this junction, turn left, cross the Ru Lua via a culvert, then turn left again onto the path that climbs through the fields. When you reach the Bois de Moines, at elevation 120, turn left and follow the path to the D310, which you should cross with care. Take the path opposite and continue to a crossroads at elevation 143.

(15) Turn left. After 450 m, ignore the path branching off to the right and continue straight on through the forest.

(16) 700 m further on, ignore a path branching off to the left and veer slightly right towards the east. Continue through the forest, then across the fields to a bridge.

(17) After the bridge, head up the path opposite, which soon leads to the town hall of Villeneuve-sur-Fère (S/E).

An easy route, but some sections may be muddy, depending on weather conditions.
The route layout allows for numerous shortcuts if the weather or your legs require it.

Maison Camille et Paul Claudel, open from May to October, 10.30 am to 12.30 pm and 2.30 pm to 6 pm.