The Houdan Plain and the Roman Villa at La Pièce du Fient

Start from Houdan station (Transilien line N, on the section between Paris-Montparnasse and Dreux). For access by car, see the practical information.

Red and yellow markings (except for the first few metres as you leave the station).

(S/E) Take the Route de Gressey exit, located on the platform heading towards Paris (if arriving from the opposite direction, use the underpass). Walk up alongside the car park on the left-hand side. At the junction (marker on the lamppost), turn sharply right onto a grassy path (^GRP® des Yvelines). Walk due east with fields on your left and a hedge on your right. Pass the base of a telecommunications pylon and follow the railway line on your right.

(1) Turn right and take the bridge over the railway line. At the end of the bridge, turn left onto a small road that goes downhill (take care when crossing the D983). Soon, the tarmac gives way to a gravel track flanked by two hedges. Follow the railway line on your left, then leave it behind. When the track turns right towards a house (Moulin de Giboudet, two poplars at the entrance), leave it and continue straight on (north-east) along a grassy path. Cross a stream at a hedge. At the fork immediately ahead, turn left towards a sewage treatment plant and go round it on the left.

No signposting
Up to Richebourg, there are a few faded markers from the old GRP® route^.

(2) Let the^GRP® branch off to the right and take the tunnel that passes under the railway line (Red Cross and Yellow Cross). At the exit, turn left and follow the wall of a property on your right. Turn right at a right angle to the path. Just after a second right-hand bend, at a fork, take the left-hand gravel track leading to a roundabout.
N.B. On the 1:25,000 map, the roundabout is not shown and the D983 road appears as a dotted line (under construction), but both are clearly visible when zooming in. The detour via the roundabout is necessary due to the disappearance of a short section of^the old^GRP® (still shown in purple).
Go round the roundabout on the right (cross at the pedestrian crossings) and leave it at the second right towards Richebourg.

(3) Just after the sign for the hamlet of Le Four à Chaux, leave the road and follow the track to the right which leads back towards the D983. Climb slightly, cross a stream, pass a wooden gate and veer away from the road. Let the track veer off to the right towards the road and continue straight on (north-east) along a very grassy path. At the end, continue along a narrow lane until you reach the Stop sign.

(4) At the crossroads (small cross), take the first left towards the church (sign). Ignore Rue des Lavandières on the left, then walk along the church car park on your left. At the T-junction, turn left and go round the back of the church on the left. Then walk past the cemetery and rejoin the D983. Make a first turn left then right to take the Chemin des Pointes. At the next fork, continue straight on into Impasse Panu. At the end of the tarmac road, continue straight on along a gravel track (ignore the path, not shown on the map, which branches off to the right).

(5) A few metres past a masonry structure of the Avre underground aqueduct, the track veers to the right (north-north-west) to follow the course of the aqueduct (the path shown on the map, which is supposed to continue straight ahead, no longer exists). After about 250m, turn left at a right angle to the track. After another 250m or so, veer right; the track gives way to a wide dirt track.

(6) At the T-junction, follow a grassy path to the left (you are on the^GR®22but, due to a lack of signage, there are no markers indicating this). After about 200m, at a fork (house with a red-tiled roof in the distance on the right), follow the grassy path to the left (south-south-west), which is slightly narrower than the previous one and heads towards a high-voltage power line.

(7) At a small hillock, turn right onto a wide grassy path. Go round the hillock on the right then turn left to see the remains of the Roman villa (you can also climb the hillock for a panoramic view).

(8) Retrace your steps back to the path.

(7) Follow the grassy path south-south-west again. At the next junction, continue straight on along the path, which becomes very overgrown. Pass at the foot of a high-voltage pylon and continue south-south-west. Gradually, you will see Houdan church ahead, with the former Boldoflorine factory and the keep on the right. Ignore a path branching off to the right and emerge onto the D115 road.

(9) Follow the road to the left as it descends. At car park P1, move onto the pavement on the right (there is no space on the left). At the junction you passed on the way out, cross the road (at the pedestrian crossing), turn left downhill and head for Houdan station (S/E) on the platform towards Paris (to return to Dreux, take the underpass).

Best undertaken in dry conditions (avoid the day after rain). In wet conditions (tested), your feet will get thoroughly wet on the grassy paths.

This walk takes place across cultivated plains with virtually no shade. In summer, avoid the hottest days and times of day and ensure you have suitable sun protection. There is a water point at the entrance to Richebourg cemetery.

A 1:25,000 map is essential (at the very least the one accompanying this description). A compass doesn’t weigh much and can prove very useful.

Access:
- For train access, check the Transilien timetable.
- To get there by car (Houdan is located just north of the N12), park in one of the car parks in the northern area of the station, preferably car park P2, which is closest to the starting point. Car parks are chargeable on weekdays but free on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.

This walk can be combined with the “Medieval Walk through Houdan”, which also starts from the station. Allow for a total of around 14km and 4 hours’ walking.

Walk completed by the author on 4 June 2016.

Remains of the Roman Villa at La Pièce du Fient (1st century BC) (8). This is one of the oldest Roman villas in France of which any trace remains. The remains are mainly located between the hillock and a small pond. Do not expect anything spectacular, however, especially when the vegetation is at its peak: you will mainly see rows of stones at ground level that formed the base of the walls.

In Saulx-Richebourg, between (4) and (5):
- Beautiful houses adorned with flowers.
- At the corner of No. 6 Rue de la Croix de Saulx (the street you take after the Stop sign), follow a short path to the left behind a chain, which leads to an old fountain.
- Saint-Georges Church (12th–16th centuries).

Views of Houdan with its church and keep.