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District:
Park in the picnic area at the Fontaine à l'Ermite roundabout located at the end of the paved section of the Route Forestière de la Balingue, signposted "Massif Forestier" on the D65, on the left after the water tower crossroads when coming from Fontenay-le-Comte.
(S/E) Follow the yellow marked trail no. 4, which heads east from the picnic area towards the Arbre Remarquable (Remarkable Tree). Leave the tree on your left and continue until you reach a forest path. Cross it and after about 400 metres, turn left and then right a little further on to reach the D65.
(1) Cross carefully and head to the right. Pass the restaurant entrance and immediately turn left onto the Lutins trail, which enters the woods. When you reach the road, turn right.
(2) Just before the crossroads, enter the bakery car park, cross it and head left to take the cycle path. After about 600 metres, leave the path on the left that leads to Saint-Michel-le-Cloucq and continue to the next path on the right (about 200 metres).
(3) Turn right to follow the boundary wall of the Château du Mazeau (GR® de Pays de Mélusine marked in red and yellow). Continue to the road. Cross carefully and turn left to follow the road for about 50 metres.
(4) Take the path that descends to the right. Ignore the path that branches off to the left after the stream (marked yellow 4). Continue on theGR® de Pays, which climbs back up to join another road further on.
(5) Turn left. Leave the Allée de Puy Chabot on your right and continue straight ahead at the fork, to the right of the antenna pylon.
(6) Shortly before the stop sign, turn right onto a grassy path between the field and the woods. After the field, continue along this path which descends towards the Vendée (path slippery in wet weather). At the bottom, turn right to reach the banks of the Vendée.
(7) Cross the footbridge (which can also be very slippery at times) and climb up to the path on the right that runs alongside the barbed wire fence. Here, you leave theGR® de Pays and rejoin the yellow markings for trail no. 4. Continue to follow this fence until you reach the Vendée. The path, bordered on the left by the cliff, climbs up the Vendée to the dam road.
(8) Take the road to the right towards the dam. Cross the dam and continue along the winding road uphill.
(9) At this point, you can go directly to the Fontaine à l'Ermite roundabout (S/E) by continuing right on the road. Otherwise, turn left at the top of the three bends onto a path that descends steeply and joins the lake shore. Follow the shore to the right. Caution! Some sections are difficult!
(10) About 500 metres after the peninsula, leave the shore and climb up to the right onto a very steep, stony path.
(11) Turn right onto the forest road and head to the Fontaine à l'Ermite roundabout (S/E).
Association / Club / Walk leader
Difficult 
Visorando member
Easy 
