The Greenway of Suisse Normande in Feuguerolles-Bully

This hike will take you along the Voie Verte de la Suisse Normande (Greenway of Norman Switzerland) and the banks of the Orne river in the municipalities of Feuguerolles-Bully and Bully.

Details

4887950
Creation:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.33 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 52 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 52 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 59 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 6 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the small car park located between numbers 26 and 28 on Rue du Moulin à Voide.

(S/E) With your back to the car park and the landscaped area separating the houses, cross Rue du Moulin à Voide with caution and take Rue de la Plaine opposite. Ignore Rue du Moutier on the right, continue to the bend, continue straight ahead along Impasse de la Sente and pass between the houses to reach the road (D147).

Cross carefully at the pedestrian crossing, turn left for a few metres and, at the calvary, turn right onto Rue de la Croix. Cross Rue des Hauts-Vents, then follow the path down to the Voie Verte de la Suisse Normande.

(1) Turn right, follow the path, pass under three structures (bridges and footbridge) and continue to the intersection with a road.

(2) Cross the Route du Béton Vibré with caution and take the path on the right along the Voie Verte, which is more wooded and suitable for walking. After passing a large building, cross the Voie Verte and take the path on the left along the Orne.

(3) Ignore the metal bridge crossing the Orne and continue along the path until you reach the bend.

(4) Turn right onto the path that goes up through the woods and take the right-hand bend. Continue along Chemin de la Bruyère de Bully and go straight on until you reach the crossroads. Turn right onto Rue du Bosq, take the left-hand bend and continue to the crossroads.

(5) Leave Chemin des Carrières on the left and turn right onto the path that crosses the fields. Continue to the end and turn left to join Route du Pont du Coudray (D147) and the two large plane trees at the entrance to the village.

(6) Cross the D147 with great caution (no protected crossing) to take Chemin du Béquet on the left and continue to the intersection. Turn left onto Route de Vieux, leaving Rue Henri Rosel on the right, and continue for about 50 metres.
Turn right onto Rue de la Place, ignoring Rue de la Boulangerie on the right, then turn left onto Chemin des Tourelles. Walk past the school and continue to the bend.
Turn right onto the landscaped area separating the houses, cross Rue du Moulin à Voide carefully between numbers 25 and 23 (this street is circular) to reach the car park. (A/D).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 58 m - Car park between 26 and 28 Rue du Moulin à Voide
  2. 1 : km 1.21 - alt. 12 m - Greenway
  3. 2 : km 2.48 - alt. 9 m - Route du Béton Vibré
  4. 3 : km 3.5 - alt. 10 m - Metal bridge - Orne (fleuve)
  5. 4 : km 4.09 - alt. 10 m - Chemin de la Bruyère de Bully
  6. 5 : km 5.62 - alt. 55 m - Path extending from Chemin des Carrières
  7. 6 : km 6.38 - alt. 55 m - Plane trees, road crossing
  8. S/E : km 7.33 - alt. 58 m - Car park between 26 and 28 Rue du Moulin à Voide

Worth a visit

The iron mines of Saint-André-sur-Orne and May-sur-Orne

Location of the mine
The May-sur-Orne mining basin is located about ten kilometres south of Caen. It is part of the May-sur-Orne syncline, which was the subject of 10 iron concessions during the20th century. The May iron mine exploited three of the four westernmost concessions: May-sur-Orne, established on 5 March 1896; Saint-André-sur-Orne, established on 1 September 1893; and Bully, established on 5 March 1896. The Maltot concession was only the subject of a small exploratory tunnel.

History of the mine
The May iron mine began operating at the end of the19th century and continued until 1968. Eight municipalities were affected to varying degrees: Feuguerolles-Bully, Fontenay-le-Marmion, Maltot, May-sur-Orne, Rocquancourt, Saint-Aignan-de-Cramesnil, Saint-André-sur-Orne and Saint-Martin-de-Fontenay.
At the peak of production, 700,000 tonnes of ore were extracted each year. Mining continued until 1968. The administrative closure was completed with the renunciation of the four concessions concerned on 4 December 1975.

Underground hydrocarbon storage
After the four concessions were relinquished, the cavities were used for underground storage of liquid hydrocarbons. Following difficulties in 1982 due to the presence of methane-producing bacteria, the storage facility, whose strategic importance in relation to oil shocks was no longer evident, was shut down.
The final drainage took nearly four years, from 1984 to 1988. The configuration of the cavities, which had a low point used to pump out water during the mine's operation, made it possible to recover the hydrocarbons that had flowed to this low point. This was followed by the flooding of the mine, which occurred naturally after the pumping of mine water (groundwater infiltrating the mine) was stopped. This gradual filling provided an opportunity to agitate the water level in order to skim off any hydrocarbons that may have remained in the cavities.
Once the filling process was complete, the mine water was transported to DPC depots for reprocessing before discharge for nearly two years.
It was not until 1993, in view of the satisfactory analysis results obtained, that authorisation was given for direct discharge into the Orne river.
Storage was finally abandoned in 1994 by order of the Minister responsible for mines.
The closure procedure included securing the structures leading to the surface, which led to the various access points being sealed off. No visits to the cavities were therefore made between the closure of the mine and the reopening of the access points in 2005.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 7 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.7 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
domapied91
domapied91

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 25, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

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pmahieux@aliceadsl.fr
pmahieux@aliceadsl.fr

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike through the bocage countryside. Following the Guigne River is very pleasant. You can even see traces of old marble quarries. There are many trails, and the few roads are not very busy. The villages are very typical, built of stone, schist and granite from the Norman Suiise region.

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Loiseau14
Loiseau14

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 06, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful hike, well wooded,
very accessible elevation gain.

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Michelzaza
Michelzaza

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 08, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk.
What's more, we were able to see the inside of the facility in the Orne region where
migratory fish

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Jean-Paul BUTEAU
Jean-Paul BUTEAU

Hello Jean,
I understand your point of view, especially during the high season. On the other hand, from autumn to spring, when the weather is gloomier, the greenway is less busy, even though there are more people on Saturdays and Sundays.

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jeangazon
jeangazon

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 18, 2021
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The section on the greenway is very busy (mainly with bicycles).
The countryside section is nicer, with wild fields.
Only the very end is less pleasant, with cultivated plains and roads.

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RandoRosy
RandoRosy

Thank you. It's great to be able to use your descriptions to get some fresh air within a 10 km radius!
Kind regards

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Jean-Paul BUTEAU
Jean-Paul BUTEAU

Hello,

Your comment about the A147 road and your suggestion to take the bypass via a quieter route seem excellent to me. I completely agree and will modify the route accordingly. Many thanks for your contribution.

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RandoRosy
RandoRosy

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 20, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A pleasant short hike. To avoid walking along the main road at point 5, you can take the path on the right, about 200 metres before this road and the calvary. At the end of the path, turn left. You will arrive at point 6 to cross the road, just opposite the Chemin du Béquet.

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Jean-Paul BUTEAU
Jean-Paul BUTEAU

Hello,
Thank you for posting your comment. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed this route.

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Margluc
Margluc

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 11, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk along the banks of the Orne river, surrounded by horses

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Jean-Paul BUTEAU
Jean-Paul BUTEAU

Hello,

This route is a personal creation and is not marked as it does not follow any PR or GR trails.
I understand, and sincerely regret, that people who hike using almost exclusively official markings may get lost and find this frustrating.
Do you know where you went wrong? Perhaps the information and details are insufficient at the location in question, which I will endeavour to rectify as soon as possible.

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Littlemonster
Littlemonster

Hello,

A pleasant hike thanks to the setting and the weather, but...
very poorly signposted (or maybe I'm just useless!).

We got lost and had to turn back (unpleasant).

Have a nice day.

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