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From Lyon, take the D311 to Saint-Martin-en-Haut, then drive through the village to the main square. Go through the roundabout, then turn left onto the D122 and a little further on, turn left again onto Chemin du Parc. When the road crosses Route du Hameau des Plaines, turn left onto this road, then right at the next crossroads. Stay on this road, continuing straight ahead, and take the right-hand lane before the hamlet of Rabut, the one marked "voie sans issue" (dead end), and stop 300 metres further on.
Park on the side of the road that crosses, on either side, taking care not to obstruct traffic.
(S/E) Take the path heading east, following the property on your left. A few metres further on, ignore the fork to Les Fanges on the left and stay on the main path. Cross the Fontfroide path and continue straight ahead. After a hamlet on the left, the road descends slightly to a fork.
(1) Turn right onto Chemin des Templiers, a small road with little traffic, to reach the hamlet of Les Templiers. Go around the houses at the back to reach the house with the letterbox number 5109.
(2) Climb through fenced fields before reaching the forest and finding a more level path. Pass the ridge, continue through the forest, and ignore the path on the left that descends. Stay on the path that climbs slightly to the right. The passage through the undergrowth is very pleasant in hot weather and allows you to reach the crossroads with thePR® marker: Sagnirand without too much effort.
(3) Keep to the right and continue along the road that descends. When you reach the D613, keep to the right and a few metres further on take a path marked Signal de St-André. Climb until you reach a track that then turns right and climbs steeply to the Signal de Saint-André observation platform.
At the cross, a path on the left leads to the telecommunications antenna, but there is no view of interest.
(4) Continue through the forest and follow the red and yellow markedGRP® trail. When theGRP® descends steeply to the right, continue straight ahead through the undergrowth to reach a field entrance, and only then turn right and follow the path through the forest until you reach a wider, stony path.
(5) Turn left and climb back up the path between the fields. At the pass, enjoy the unobstructed view to the east towards Lyon and to the west towards the mountains. From there, the path descends steeply, curves to the right and joins the D613.
(6) Just after the pond on the other side of the road, the path continues its descent. At a crossroads further down, you will find mountain bike trail signs. Continue downhill until you reach theGR® La Villardière signpost.
(7) Turn right onto the path, which is quite grassy at first, before widening again at the tree line by the lake. The path continues until it joins a road; turn right and climb slightly. Reach the bend before the hamlet of Chez le Guyot.
(8) Take the path on the left opposite: be careful to take the lower path, not the upper one, which is only used for farming. The path descends between hedges and fenced fields until it crosses the Rieu stream. Then rejoin theGRP®, turn left and continue to the Croix de Rabut car park (S/E).
Visorando member
Difficult 
