The Château de la Grillière and the Collegiate Church of Saint-Georges

Parking is available in the square opposite the town hall/school in Faye-la-Vineuse (7 km south of Richelieu, via the D749 and D757).

(S/E) With your back to the town hall, head for the street running along the bottom of the square. Turn left, then take the^first right (Rue de Salvert). Walk downhill, ignore a street on the left and you’ll come to a three-way junction. Continue straight on (east), towards Marnay. At the junction (cross; elevation 76), veer left and cross a stream.

(1) At the entrance to Marnay (the former Saint-Pierre church), turn sharply right. As you leave the hamlet, the small road veers left, heading due south towards the Château de la Grillière.

(2) Just before the end of the road, after a clump of trees, take the path on the right which heads south-west and goes round the château on the right. Walk alongside the property wall on your left and continue in the same direction. Once past the wall, there is a lovely view of the château’s façade and its staircase. Reach the D311 and follow it to the right. Head slightly downhill and cross a stream. You’ll come to a small road; head uphill opposite.

(3) At the fork in the road, take the small road on the left (let the D311 veer off to the right towards the village of Faye-la-Vineuse). At a junction, make a zigzag turn right then left to take a path heading north. Ignore another path leading off to the right towards some houses and continue to a T-junction.

(4) Take the track on the right. After two short right-left bends, walk alongside a football pitch. Join a small road and follow it straight ahead until you reach the junction.

(5) Cross the D111 and follow Rue du Cimetière straight ahead. At the Fork in the road, turn right onto Rue du Champ Marteau. Then take the^first right onto Rue de la Corne de Blin. At the end, turn right onto Rue de Richelieu. At the end, follow Grande Rue to the right, leading to the entrance of the Collégiale Saint-Georges.

(6) Take the^first left onto Rue de l’Église and walk down past the church. Take the^first street on the right to reach the town hall square (S/E).

In wet weather, the dirt tracks become slippery.

Grocery shop in Faye-la-Vineuse, Rue de la Domade, between the school and the collegiate church.

A detailed map is essential (at the very least the one accompanying this description).

This walk has been completed a dozen times by the author, with various variations, the first on 30 December 1993 and the last on 29 April 2019.

In Marnay: the former Saint-Pierre Church (22nd century), now privately owned and used for agricultural purposes.

La Grillière Castle (16th–18th centuries), privately owned.

In Faye-la-Vineuse:
- Saint-Georges Collegiate Church (12th century), well worth a visit.
- Beautiful tuffeau stone houses.