The banks of the Doubs, Les Chapelles and the Corniche de Goumois viewpoint

Start at the free car park at the ‘Les Bisons du Sachuron’ farm on Route de Roichenoz Damprichard.

(S/E) Walk down the road, past a small monument, then take the path leading uphill to the left towards the Belvédère du Kiosque, with a view over Damprichard. Then continue uphill towards “La Crête du Côtard”. You’ll reach a road; follow it to the left, taking care, until you come to the start of a path on the right

(1) Cross the road carefully and turn onto the path leading uphill to the right. About 150 metres further on, take the path leading uphill on your right; it is clearly signposted. Further up, at the crossroads, carry on straight ahead towards “La Crête”. (There is a sign pointing towards the trees). Stay on the main path, and at the next junction, carry on straight ahead towards “La Montée”, then keep left until the next junction.

(2) Turn left towards the house and leave it on your left. The path becomes a track until it reaches the road. Walk along the road to the right for about a hundred metres and look out for the signs on your left to cross the field, heading towards “le sentier de Talus”.

(3) Go through the fence via the designated gap (crawl-through) then follow the hedge until the next gap. Keep an eye out for the successive gaps in the distance as you continue to the forest entrance. Carry on through the forest heading east; this section is quite wild, but the markings are clearly visible. You’ll come to a junction.

(4) Turn sharply right onto a path leading to the “Creux Gernet” farm. Look out for the slightly hidden gap near a small embankment on the right, then head downhill alongside the fence so as not to miss the gap at the forest entrance on the right. Continue downhill to the road and arrive at the place known as “Sous Creux Gernet”.

(5) Cross the road carefully and continue towards “Sentier de Talus”. Please note that the signposting is less frequent on this section, so follow the track closely. Cross the field (do not go down it!) straight on to the trees, take the path that goes downhill and then keep to the right. The path becomes clearer. You’ll reach a place called “Talus”; head down and take the path – the signposting becomes more frequent here, and it’s a superb trail. You’ll come to a crossroads (elevation 587).

(6) Turn left towards “La Goule” onto a descending path which quickly reaches the left bank of the Doubs. Follow the Doubs to the next junction at the Verrerie bend on the GR®5.

(7) Continue left along this small, ascending road, towards “Le Bief d’Étoz”. Keep going straight on until you reach the Notre-Dame des Ermites Chapel. The door is always open; you are welcome to go inside.

(8) After your visit, leave the small road and take the path leading downwards towards “Goumois”, staying close to the riverbank on the GR®. As you come out of a bend to the left, you’ll reach a Y-junction near a hut (which was open when I passed by, elevation 512).

(9) The path leaves the riverbank and heads left, climbing towards Valorielle. Continue along this path until it joins a forest track. Turn left onto this track, then right shortly afterwards to reach a tarmac section at a place called Valoreille.

(10) Carry on straight ahead until you reach the D437a road. Follow this carefully to reach the Goumois viewpoint and its Corniche at the exit of a sharp left-hand bend.

(11) Continue down this departmental road with care for about 1 km until you reach the junction, just after a slight left-hand bend, where the road meets a track that veers off to the left.

(12) Leave the D437a and head up to the left along this rather overgrown track; at the junction, continue uphill, then descend, keeping to the right, until you rejoin a road. Take care as you head up along this road.

(13) Look out for a small gap on the left, allowing you to ‘cut across’ the bend through the fields. Return to the road and continue leftwards. Then, after about 150 m, before the farm, take the path leading uphill to the right, towards ‘Urtière’. At the next signpost, turn right onto the “Route d’Urtière” path, which climbs through the Grépi woods heading north-east. After a hairpin bend to the left, head south-west and leave the woods. Carry straight on to see the old “Beurion” well, and join the D342 road (signposting is sparse).

(14) Turn left along the D342 to reach Urtière and its magnificent wooden sculptures, dotted around various spots. Stay on the D342 until you see the Saint-Roch Chapel on your left. See Practical Information.

(15) Turn left, go through the gate (which was open when I passed through) and enjoy the visit – it’s superb.
Walk through the village until you reach the road. Turn right, towards Damprichard. On leaving Urtière, cross the D342 with care, and continue straight ahead onto the forest track. A little further on, ignore the sign for ‘Le Chalet’ on your left; stay on the main track until you reach a junction at a left-hand bend.

(16) Turn left onto a footpath. It leads to The Buffalo Saloon Farm Inn; the signposting is clear. As you pass, take note of the bison in the meadows, then head to the car park (S/E).

(9) If you don’t want to walk along the road, you can take the road leading downhill towards “La Goule” and take the path on the left to rejoin the road a little further on at Chemin de la Marie.
(12) Picnic table.

(15) If the gate is closed, you’ll need to carry on along the D342 until you reach the exit for Urtière (after the left-hand bend), then rejoin the route by turning right onto the forest track.

One slight drawback of this circular route is that it includes several stretches of narrow roads. The walk took 5 hours 50 minutes.

Pays de Maîche Community of Communes

Le Bief d’Etoz and its Chapel of Notre-Dame des Ermites: This hamlet takes its name from a small stream known as ‘leat’ and the ‘toz’, a species of pine tree. Although the site is now deserted, it was the scene of intense industrial activity until the end of the 19th century, with grain mills, a nail-making workshop and a cutlery factory. The Essarts Cuenots glassworks, founded in 1684, continued to operate until 1850. The floods of 1910 and the fire of the winter of 1917–1918 spared only the chapel and one house. Dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits (Einsiedeln, Switzerland), the chapel was built in 1694 and bears the name of its founder on the lintel of the bell tower’s entrance door. Indeed, after suffering a serious horse-riding accident, Jacques Rondot, a miller, vowed to have a chapel built if he survived. He kept his promise. The original bell was later joined by a second one, donated in 1739 by the master glassmakers of Leat d’Etoz.

See also

The chapel is also linked to the story – to a greater or lesser extent a legend – of Princess Esterhazy: born in 1764, Jeanne Gabrielle was the daughter of the Hungarian Prince Nicolas Esterhazy. She refused a forced marriage to the Crown Prince of Hesse-Darmstadt in order to marry Baron Rodolphe de Thenhausen, her father’s secretary, in secret. Faced with her father’s wrath and to escape this marriage, the two lovers fled separately. Disguised and accompanied by a loyal companion, the princess found refuge in Franche-Comté, near the Chapel of Le Bief d’Etoz, where she was taken in by the Rondot family. For several years, she lived incognito, playing the harpsichord and painting portraits. A local doctor happened to tell her that a seriously ill man, matching the description of her beloved, had been treated not far away. Tracking him down, the two lovers were eventually reunited after many trials and tribulations.

Information from Wikipedia.