The Montorient viewpoint from Saint-Laurent-la-Roche

A family walk that allows you to discover the Montorient site by crossing the village of Geruge.

The return journey is along the ridges, where the path crosses a pasture with superb views of La Bresse.

Details

2065999
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.44 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 176 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 174 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 555 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 420 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in front of the Saint-Laurent-la-Roche community centre at 10 Rue de la Vuarde.

(S/E) Walk along the old tennis court and take the small path skirting the Vuarde field on the right, then take the leftmost path at each intersection until you reach the GR®.

(1) Follow it towards Montorient and a few hundred metres further on you will come to a Y-junction.

(2) Leave theGR®59and take the path that descends to the right to Geruge.

(3) At the fountain, turn right behind the bamboo. Go up the small cobbled street and turn left onto Rue de la Chapelle. Find and follow theGR®59(road then path). Reach the crossroads at a place called Gravelle.

(4) Take the grassy path on the right that leads to the viewpoint.

(5) Keep left on theGR® for a few metres to reach the Montorient site.
At the fork, leave theGR® and take the stone path on the left that climbs towards Geruge.
At the top of the path, join the pasture via the passage to the left of the barrier.

(6) Follow the ridge in a south-westerly direction to join theGR®59.
Note: You can avoid the pasture by continuing along the stone path on the left and rejoining the outward route at (4).

(7) Cross the path and rejoin theGR® 59 opposite. You will come out at the Y-junction from the outward journey.

(2) Take the route back in the opposite direction to the outward route until you reach the first crossroads.

(1) Keep right on theGR® to quickly reach the summit of La Vuarde.

(8) Continue along theGR® until you reach the trail junction at the entrance to the village of Saint-Laurent-la-Roche.

(9) Turn left onto this path at a right angle to easily reach the car park of the Saint-Laurent-la-Roche community centre (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 498 m - Car park at the Saint-Laurent-la-Roche community centre
  2. 1 : km 0.93 - alt. 511 m - GR59 crossroads
  3. 2 : km 1.55 - alt. 478 m - Y-junction
  4. 3 : km 3.01 - alt. 430 m - Geruge fountain
  5. 4 : km 3.97 - alt. 461 m - Gravelle crossroads
  6. 5 : km 4.67 - alt. 463 m - Belvédère de Montorient
  7. 6 : km 5.21 - alt. 484 m - Crossroads barrier
  8. 7 : km 6.74 - alt. 457 m - GR59 crossroads
  9. 8 : km 8.6 - alt. 553 m - Summit of - La Vuarde
  10. 9 : km 9.07 - alt. 500 m - Crossroads
  11. S/E : km 9.44 - alt. 498 m - Car park at the Saint-Laurent-la-Roche community centre

Worth a visit

Things to see in Saint-Laurent-la-Roche:
- The church, listed as a historic monument, open to visitors every Tuesday in July and August from 2pm to 6pm. For more information
- La Madone sur la Roche: superb viewpoint.

 Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5
Based on 13 reviews

Reliability of the description
3.9 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.8 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
mariclsimone
mariclsimone

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 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 TRAIL MAGNIFICENT VIEW

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Primot Masson
Primot Masson

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 12, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Pleasant hike but lack of signposting; we took the wrong path several times.

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jesuisenrandonné07
jesuisenrandonné07

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 04, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful hike with beautiful scenery

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ValB6287
ValB6287

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 12, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

An easy family hike. However, we had some trouble following the route: we initially missed the Y-junction at point no. 2. The path is marked with a red and white cross (not part of the GR network), which is a more noticeable sign than what is indicated in the description, but it was overgrown and we didn't notice it. We turned back towards Geruge at point 7 to get back on the marked route. And we had a lot of trouble figuring out which path to take from Montorient. You have to be careful to spot the entrance to the path through the pasture, which requires opening a gate (easy) to enter the field.
I hope these details will help those who follow. It's a short walk, the views are magnificent and the Montorient site is superb!

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TJ39
TJ39
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 20, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Regarding the landslide, I cycled past on Thursday morning without seeing it. This route is not marked, but there is a GR cross at the start of the trail.
If you ended up on a cliff, it means you were far from the correct trail, which descends gently to Geruge.
Regarding the trail between (6) and (7), you have to enter the field and follow the ridge.
There are just a few trees that have fallen after you leave the field just before reaching the pass (landmark (7)).
At the start, an antenna has been installed. You need to pass to the right of the antenna and take each left turn until you reach the GR trail that descends from La Vuarde (there is a PDIPR post with directional signs at this location).

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Nivesse
Nivesse

Hello,
The landslide is located between 2 and 3 on the map.
I would add that the path between 6 and 7 does not exist (or no longer exists), so you have to go back to 4 and take the same route you took on the way there to 3.
This causes quite a few problems for a short hike.
Kind regards
Etienne

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bernardino
bernardino ★

Hello, and thank you for this very interesting comment. However, in order to make the route change you mention, we would need to know where this landslide is located.
Have a nice day.

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Nivesse
Nivesse

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 17, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

CAUTION: the path is blocked at one point. Attempting to continue will lead straight to the cliff, which is very dangerous.
You have to lift the barbed wire fence on the right, walk a few dozen metres across a pasture, and then lift the barbed wire fence again to get back onto the path. There are no signs.

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MARTDomi
MARTDomi

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 10, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Lovely walk.
The ridge sections offer some very pretty views.

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Benjamin BRAUD
Benjamin BRAUD
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 23, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful route in terms of scenery. The only downside is that the start is not very clear. There are two possible paths and you are told to take the one on the right, when in fact you should take the one that runs alongside the meadow.
The route can be done in the opposite direction, especially in summer or in good weather if you start in the morning. This is because the end of the walk, depending on the initial direction, is in an open area with little shade. This allows you to return through the shaded area. In addition, the climb to the top of Montorient takes place at the end, so it can be difficult for families if the children are tired.

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TJ39
TJ39

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 24, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

This route is not marked, but simply start by going around the Vuarde field on the right and then take the leftmost path at each intersection until you reach the GR.

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pilat42
pilat42

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 21, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hike with a section along the ridge and beautiful views.
Difficult start due to lack of signposting.

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nerophis39
nerophis39

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 06, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A pleasant walk without any major difficulties, offering beautiful views along the ridge. Walk completed with GPS.

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henri57
henri57 ★

Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to give your opinion.

In fact, some markings were missing.

Neither Visorando nor the author are responsible for the markings. Markings are often included in the description when they exist on the ground, but otherwise, the description and map are supposed to be sufficient for orientation. Visorando does not mark the proposed hikes.

Visorando provides a detailed description (which can be improved) and a 1:25,000 IGN map. And if signposting is essential for you, Visorando provides virtual signposting: a GPS application.

This tool, offered free of charge by Visorando, allows you to validate waypoints and thus remove any doubts you may have about your orientation.

See you soon!

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39190augea
39190augea

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 03, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Although the route offered beautiful views along the ridge, we had to do the route twice because it was not very well signposted once we had reached the starting point, even though we followed the map and directions.
In fact, some of the markings were missing.
Otherwise, it's an easy hike to do in clear weather to enjoy the panorama.

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