La plaine au Nord d'Arras et le Bois de Vimy

Car park at Place du Maréchal Leclerc in Thélus.

(S/E) With your back to the church, head off to the right to reach Rue du Sac. Just before you reach a junction, look out for a lovely grassy path on the right.

(1) Take this path to reach Rue de Vimy and follow it for a few metres to the left.

(2) Just before you reach the Fork in the road by the cemetery, turn right onto a narrow path (watch out for roots!). You’ll reach Rue des Sept and follow it to the left. It becomes a track and leads to a T-junction.
Turn right until you reach the D49. Cross with care and head straight ahead onto the grassy path. You’ll come to a tarmac track.

(3) Follow it straight on. After about 800 m, turn sharply left onto a good track. Ignore a turn-off on the left and continue to a T-junction. Turn left and, a few metres further on, turn right.
Follow this long, straight track until you reach the D919.

(4) Follow it to the left for about 300 m, taking care, then turn onto a stony track to the right.
Cross over the railway line and reach a T-junction.
Turn left to reach a Fork in the road straight away. Turn left to reach the first houses in Bailleul-Sir-Berthoult.
Take the second street on the left (Rue de la Distillerie), reach the D919 and follow it for a few metres to the right.

(5) Turn left onto Chemin du Bon Lieu (a cobbled track). Cross over the railway line and, 200 m further on, turn right onto a good track which joins the railway line and runs alongside it until it meets the D49.
First turn left then right and rejoin a good path alongside the railway line until you reach a T-junction.

(6) Then take the path on the left to walk alongside the Bois de Berthonval and reach the D50 at the entrance to Farbus.

(7) Take the road opposite and turn immediately left onto Chemin Vert, which joins the D50. Follow it for about a hundred metres to the right before turning right onto the first track.
You’ll come to a lovely path branching off to the right

(8) Ignore it (see practical information). Carry on straight ahead until you reach a T-junction.
Head right for 50 metres, then turn left. Continue for another hundred metres until you find a straight path on the right.

(9) Take this wide path (known as Mariette), continue to a T-junction and turn right onto a lovely path through the woodland which leads to the first houses in Vimy.
Ignore the first street on the left and continue along Rue de Thélus until you reach a crossroads. Turn left, then, immediately at the wayside cross, turn left again into Rue Gambetta.
Ignore the street on the left (Rue des Croix) and you’ll immediately come to a small lane on the left.

(10) Follow this narrow lane, heading west, and through a series of small streets and narrow lanes, reach Rue Georges Buret. Follow it to the right until you reach a T-junction. Turn left and reach the RN17.

(11) Head for the pedestrian crossing on the right, cross with care and take the narrow lane opposite.
Continue along the street that leads from there until you reach a T-junction. Turn right. About a hundred metres further on, you’ll find a narrow lane on the left (just after number 21).

(12) Take this pretty, winding path and, via a flight of steps leading down, join a wide track. Follow it to the left.
Ignore the path on the right leading to the English Cemetery and continue along this good path through the woodland. Take a right-hand bend, then a left-hand bend, and follow a path coming from the right to reach a T-junction.

(13) Turn right (yellow arrow), then immediately left (also marked in yellow) to cross over the dual carriageway, following a fence. Follow the well-marked path as it climbs and reaches a T-junction.

(14) Take the path on the right and you’ll arrive near the northern edge of the woodland. The well-marked path slopes to the left and continues along the edge. It’s a lovely track, full of dips and bumps, which, broadly speaking, follows the edge (pink markings on some trees in late March 2025). You’ll reach a Fork in the road.

(15) Carry on straight ahead. The path then turns left and, after a steep climb (often damp), joins the Route Forestière du Train de Loos.

(16) Follow it to the right and, at the end, facing the monument, turn left. Walk past the public toilets and find a path on the left (facing the monument).

(17) Follow this path, which joins the D 55. Follow it to the left. At the Fork in the road, continue straight ahead on the D 55 and you’ll reach the entrance to the trench site.

(18) Turn left to enter the site. Follow the path which runs through the middle of the trenches before joining the D 55E2.

(19) Follow it to the right (pedestrian path on the left, GRP®) until you reach a junction.

(20) Follow the GRP® sign and take the path on the right (often in poor condition) to reach the vicinity of the A 26.

(21) Turn left, pass close to an English cemetery, then cross over the N 17 before reaching the D 917.

(22) Head to the traffic lights, cross them and set off towards Thélus. Pass the^{first street} on the right and continue to the^second.

(23) Take this street (Chemin d’Oeillette) and, 50 metres further on, take the path on the left (Chemin des Haies). Pass a junction and reach Rue d’Arras.

(24) Follow it to the left to reach the car park. (S/E).

À part dans le Bois de Vimy, les chemins sont corrects mais un bon équipement me semble néanmoins indispensable.

Au point (8), j'ai pris à droite pour rejoindre le bois. Une centaine de mètres après la lisière, on trouve une sente sur la gauche qui commence par un talus. 
On suit alors une sente bien marquée qui, en gros, suit la lisière (elle ne figure pas sur la carte IGN au 1/25 000, mais en agrandissant, on la trouve). C'est très plaisant et les quelques obstacles se contournent sans difficulté.
À la sortie, on aboutit sur un large chemin (Chemin du Goulot) que l'on suit sur la gauche pour rejoindre l'itinéraire un peu avant le point (9). À faire de préférence avec l'appli et peut-être hors période de chasse.