The Vallée des Vaux and its vineyards around Montabon

Start from the crossroads in front of the church.

Yellow signposts

(S/E) From the signpost, go round the church on the left and quickly take the signposted path to the right. Continue straight on until you reach the hamlet. At the fork, turn left then right onto Chemin du Charlet. Walk a few metres.

(1) Turn right opposite the car park, towards ‘Four Bassot’, to reach Rue des Fougères.

(2) Follow the road to the left for 100 m, then turn right at a 90° angle onto the grassy track leading into the woods, Montée de Pommier. Walk along the edge of the woods to reach the hamlet of the same name.
At the top, enjoy the view over Saint-Denis-de-Vaux.
At the wayside cross, turn left, then immediately at the fire hydrant, turn left again (path closed to all vehicles), heading towards ‘Bois de Saint-Martin’. At the three-way junction, turn right and continue until you reach the sign for the ‘Paquier de prés’ washhouse, indicated by a green arrow.

(3) Turn right at the bottom of the valley, then turn left to follow the first valley floor. At the end of this, turn left and continue uphill to the summit.
The route follows a forest track for 4.2 km: chestnut trees, oaks, hornbeams, black locusts (acacias) and a few firs.

(4) At the summit, take in the view over the Couchois. Continue to the right, crossing the fir forest and then another deciduous woodland.

(5) Once you reach the road, watch out for traffic. Continue to the right, downhill for 450 m.

(6) At the bend to the right, turn left twice and walk alongside the fields belonging to the Ferme de la Forêt.

(7) About a hundred metres before the farm, turn right towards Blaisy, pass by the small ponds and carry on straight ahead.
Follow the green signposts to join the Charrecey route.
At the end of the forest trail, after the long descent, you’ll come across Blaisy Castle and a view of the Château Beau cliff top above the vineyards (a prehistoric site).

(8) Turn left and follow the road, Rue du Blaisy, for 350 m until you reach the crossroads with the wayside cross and the chestnut tree.

(9) Take the first path on the right; this route is shared with Saint-Martin-sous-Montaigu and then with Saint-Jean-de-Vaux.

(10) First turn left then right to cross the road between Saint-Mard-de-Vaux and Saint-Martin-sous-Montaigu. After 150 m along the road, follow the path to the right. At the wayside cross, continue straight on.
View towards the east over Saint-Jean-de-Vaux and Saint-Denis-de-Vaux in the distance.

(11) Cross the road (D124) with care. Pass the chicanes opposite, then take the first path on the right. Continue through vineyards and meadows with a beautiful view of Saint-Mard-de-Vaux and, to the west, Barizey and Châtel-Moron.
At the lowest point (250m), turn right and rejoin the route taken on the way out.

(1) Carry on straight ahead to retrace your steps and return to Saint-Mard-de-Vaux (S/E).

(3) You can visit the wash house, which is about thirty metres away.

As well as wine-growing, the village has long relied on the forest, which covers two-thirds of the area.

This forestry tradition gave rise to the nickname for its inhabitants, the ‘Loups’ (Wolves). Over the centuries, the parish changed its name several times: Saint-Médard, Saint-Marc, Montabon during the Revolution, and finally Saint-Mard-de-Vaux in the 19th century, with ‘Mard’ being a contraction of ‘Médard’, the 6th-century Bishop of Noyon.