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Departure from Avenue de Lorch, at the Saint-Nicolas car park (carpooling area), in front of the Saint-Benoît hiking signs.
(S/E) Leave the car park and turn left onto Avenue de Lorch. Go under the railway bridge and turn into the first street on the left (Route de Passelourdain).
(1) Very quickly, leave the road via the first path on the right that enters Strunga Park. Cross the park along the Clain river, heading towards the bridge. Pass under the last arches before the Clain, where there is a climbing course. Continue on the path between the bushes that runs along the Clain, passing behind the campsite.
Cross the small bridge and enter the riparian forest. Continue along the path beside the Clain.
(2) At the fork, you can turn left towards the Jardin de Bayou as indicated on the map, or stay to the right along the Clain. The two paths meet just before you leave the riparian forest.
Go under the railway bridge and continue straight ahead, still along the Clain.
At the two successive crossroads, turn right each time, taking the fork closest to the river. The path passes in front of a public ferry.
Pass under the second railway bridge; the Passelourdain cave is on the right shortly afterwards.
After the small water collection station, the path widens and curves to the left.
(3) After going through the gate via the pedestrian crossing in front of the pumping station, turn left towards the forest. Follow the main path, which climbs gradually and crosses the railway line. Ignore the path on the right.
(4) At the top of the hill, in front of a grey gate in a stone wall, turn left. Follow this path to the road (Avenue des Grottes de Passelourdain); take this avenue on the left, then opposite a small staircase, turn right onto Chemin de Piégu. (You can climb the small staircase on the right to reach a viewpoint over the Clain valley. Be careful of the cliff, however!).
(5) Just after No. 16bis, turn left onto a white path that descends and bends to the right. In front of the wooden signs, continue straight ahead to cross the Clain on the old railway bridge (Saint-Benoît viaduct).
Shortly after the bridge, take the stairs on the right that descend towards the Mon Repos road.
Cross this road and continue straight on towards the village of Saint-Benoît; cross the bridge over the Clain and pass under the railway bridge again.
(6) Just after crossing the small stream (the Miosson), behind the new building, turn left onto the small path.
Continue along this path alongside the Miosson and then the Clain. Under the four-lane bridge of the south-east ring road, the path leaves the Clain and enters a wood; follow this path without climbing the hill on the right.
(7) At the second fork to the right (shortly after leaving the woods), take the right-hand fork that goes up the hill, making a hairpin turn to the right a third of the way up, then a right-angle turn to the left along a stone wall.
At the top, on the road, turn right and continue on the path that passes in front of the Jardins de l'Éveil.
After passing La Conciergerie, the path crosses the Rocade Sud-Est again above the tunnels.
At the junction with the dirt road, turn right and then immediately take the path on the left which leads to a housing estate on Chemin de la Mérigotte.
(8) Continue straight ahead to reach the Route de Poitiers (D88) and take it to the right. Turn at the second street on the left (Chemin de la Cybellerie).
(9) Just before the large gate at No. 4, take the small path on the right. Stay on this path until it ends in a small park with fitness equipment. At this point, continue straight ahead, following the signs. After the second sign, on the area overlooking the village of Saint-Benoît, go straight ahead and slightly to the right towards the church; the path crosses a low wall and descends two flights of steps into the rear courtyard of a building. Exit to the right onto the street by crossing the porch (this passage is a little surprising, but the markings clearly indicate that it is part of the route).
Once on the street (Rue du Pilori), continue to the right to reach the Poitiers road; cross this road and follow it down to the left, then around the bend to the right (towards the town hall), then continue straight on along Rue de la Cure, which joins Rue Paul Gauvin.
Turn right and continue along Avenue de Lorch to the car park to return to the starting point (S/E).
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