La Nouvelle - Le Bélier

The final stage of the Mafate circular loop.

This walk is part of a multi-day hike: Cirque de Mafate

Details

n°3296

Creation:
14 Mar 2012

Last update:
25 Sep 2016

Last review:
11 Aug 2024

Activity: Walking
Distance: 6.59 km
Average duration: 3h 35
Difficulty: Moderate
Back to start: No
Ascent: + 587 m
Descent: - 374 m
Highest point: 1,975 m
Lowest point: 1,415 m

Country: France
Area: Cirque de Mafate
City: La Possession (97419)
Start: S 21.075783° / E 55.423504°
End: S 21.052356° / E 55.453911°
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Description of the walk

From the lodge (S), cross the village and take the GRR1 eastwards.

(1) Wind your way through the forest before entering the famous Plaine des Tamarins forest.
At the crossroads, join the GRR3.

(2) Continue along this shared path until the next junction where they split.

(3) Leave the GRR1 on your right and take the GRR3 straight north on your left. Reach the Col des Boeufs viewpoint. Join the forest track coming from Le Bélier.

(4) Stay on this track to reach the Petit Col orientation point.

(5) Continue along the track to return to the car park at the start of this circular route (E) at the scout trail.

Waypoints

S : km 0 - alt. 1,415 m - Lodge de la Nouvelle
1 : km 0.22 - alt. 1,447 m - GRR1
2 : km 2.64 - alt. 1,760 m - Crossroads of the GR trails
3 : km 3.25 - alt. 1,812 m - Crossroads of the two passes
4 : km 3.97 - alt. 1,932 m - Col des Boeufs
5 : km 5.25 - alt. 1,850 m - Petit Col
E : km 6.59 - alt. 1,628 m - Boeufs car park

Notes

No visible springs along this route.

Worth a visit

Take a moment to stroll and enjoy the superb Tamarins plain.
This is indeed the final stage in the Mafate cirque, so famous and richly deserving of its fame.
The grandeur of this site belies its small size, yet here everything meets the expectations one might have. Sharp-edged cliffs (caldera), wide, well-trodden paths, lush vegetation, legendary sites: Les Trois Roches, the Trou de l’Enfer, Piton Cabri, the Rivière des Galets, etc., lovely people, and also the progress that can sometimes spoil things. But it’s also nice to be able to make use of the helicopter, mobile phones and solar panels.
This straightforward route is highly recommended for anyone visiting the island; it can, of course, be adapted, particularly for those wishing to continue on to the other two cirques: Salazie in the north-east and Cilaos in the south.

Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5

Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5

Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5

Route interest
4.8 / 5

Mariclor

11 Aug 2024 at 22:19 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 02, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

We completed the walk with our 7- and 9-year-old grandchildren in three and a half hours. It was a pleasant walk, but it was quite busy. The end of Mafate. What a shame. It was absolutely stunning!

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Bomarin

17 Oct 2017 at 20:24 7200

On 25 September 2017, we completed part of this return walk from the Col des Bœufs car park to La Nouvelle. A very beautiful route offering magnificent views for an easy foray into the Cirque de Mafate. Often shaded, the walk would be even more pleasant if it weren’t necessary to constantly watch your feet to avoid tripping over the steps and logs that make up the path; in fact, we preferred the return climb. We took advantage of the splendid panoramic viewpoint at La Nouvelle to have a picnic and returned via the Plateau Chêne route, which offers a lovely view of the village. Here too, we found the ascent preferable as the gradient is steeper and the ground quite muddy.

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cagayous

21 Feb 2017 at 21:23 3600

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 21, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Thank you for that lovely walk

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jmgrislain@hotmail.com

24 Oct 2016 at 09:35 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 13, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

It was the final stage of our tour of Mafate.
A short stage where we came across more people.
No difficulty.
Try to spot the delicious ‘passion-bananas’ along the route.
At the Col des Boeufs, hitchhiking works well to get to Le Belier.

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philipperenard

11 Jun 2015 at 15:17 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 06, 2015
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Well, we did it the other way round: Le Bêlier/Col de Fourche/La Nouvelle: brilliant, a leisurely 4½ hours, breathtaking views (already starting to fade in some sections, but some people run the whole way!!!), with the scenery changing every 15 minutes. It’s better to take the Col de Fourche rather than the Col des Boeufs, which is also possible but a bit uninteresting.

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