Le Drumont

Head to Bussang. Follow the signs for “Source de la Moselle”. Park in the car park by the spring.

(S/E) Walk down Rue des Sources, past the old hotel where Turenne spent the night of 16 June 1675, and continue to the via ferrata car park.

(1) Do not take the start of this route but take the path at the western end of the car park, opposite the pond. On the left, a dilapidated building bears witness to Bussang’s spa history. This is the former refreshment bar. After several bends through a meadow, you’ll reach the Route du Charat. Head straight up this road until you reach the hairpin bend, near a reservoir.

(2) As you come out of the bend, follow the path on the left which climbs up through the pasture, featuring two very well-maintained sections. The slope is steep, then levels off slightly. Ignore the path on the right that leads straight back down to the car park via the via ferrata and continue straight on. Just before the forest track, take the time to walk to the viewpoint, a few dozen metres to the right. Retrace your steps and rejoin the forest track.

(3) Turn left (marked with Blue Disc and Yellow Triangle). The forest track descends gently, giving you a chance to catch your breath. You will soon reach the Chalet de la Petite Montagne.

(4) Do not stay on the forest road; leave the Yellow Triangle markings and take the path marked with a Blue Disc on the right. It climbs steadily up to the Chalet du Plain du Repos and the monument to the young Jean-Paul SAC (*1). To the right of the monument, take a short detour along the path that descends towards the Reculons fountain.

(5) Continue opposite the chalet along the tarmac road, then turn left to follow the forest track marked with Blue Disc, Yellow Disc and Green Cross signs. After about 250 m, leave the Blue Disc-marked path, which climbs directly to Drumont on the right, and continue straight on, following the Yellow Disc and Green Cross markings. Leave the track and descend via a path on the left to the Étang du Drumont.

(6) Leave the pond and rejoin the path which, above the embankment, leads onto the track. Turn right, then left. After 200 metres, leave the Yellow Disc-marked path on your right once again; this climbs to the Drumont farmhouse inn, and continue along the Green Cross-marked path. This gentle stretch runs along the 1010/1020 metre contour lines. Once you reach a lovely road, follow it straight on, following the Blue Cross markings, until you reach a large crossroads at the eastern end of the Faigne des Minons.

(7) There are two options for reaching the summit of Drumont:
- head to the Auberge du Drumont (200 m below the summit of Drumont) via the Yellow Triangle-marked trail, which has a relatively gentle gradient and starts with a hairpin bend to the right;
- take the slightly more challenging route over the peaks, the route selected on the map and described below.

Head up the path in front of you and turn right to join the^GR®531Blue Rectangle trail. After about 200 m, take the path on the right which winds steeply upwards, using the old boundary markers as landmarks, the first of which bears the number 3132.
Beautiful clearings offer places to stop and enjoy views of the Thur valley, Lake Kruth-Wildenstein and the ridges.
Here at last is the Tête de Fellering, at an altitude of 1,223 m, followed by the Hasenkopf at 1,188 m. Continuing along the^GR®531Blue Rectangle, you emerge onto the stubble fields, then reach the summit of the Drumont (1,200 m), where the 360° panorama makes you forget the effort of the climb. The orientation table helps you identify the various landmarks visible from here.

(8) Descend to the farmhouse inn where you can sample local produce, not forgetting to pause for a moment of reflection at the monument erected in memory of the 16 fallen members of the Corps Francs Pommies on the way to the car park (*2).

(9) Exit via the back of the terrace and go round the inn to rejoin the^GR®531, then turn right towards “Col de Bussang”. Cross the stubble fields to the fence.

(10) Near the paragliding launch area, turn right onto the path known as the "des Russiers", which descends through the stubble field and then enters the forest. The descent is fairly steep and the path crosses several logging tracks before rejoining the tarmac access road leading up to Drumont. Continue to the left-hand bend.

(11) If you still have some energy left, you can make a short round trip to Étang Jean with its kiosk and the Lutenbacher monument (*3).

(12) Retrace your steps to rejoin the^GR®531

(11) Turn right to reach the Col de Bussang and the N66.

(13) Turn right, follow the N66 and take the^first road on the right, towards Source de la Moselle. You’ll reach it after 200 m, along with the car park (S/E).

This hike could be classified as of medium difficulty; however, the climb up Le Charat and, above all, that of the Tête de Fellerine suggest it is better described as difficult.
Food is available at the Drumont farmhouse inn.

(*1) On 21 September 1944, Jean Paul SAC, aged 16, was arrested by the SS and the Gestapo along with his family and other resistance fighters at the Drumont farm. Sentenced to death, on 24 September he was in the lorry taking him and five other comrades to the site of their execution at Sterngraben. In a desperate attempt to save himself, he managed to jump from the lorry and flee under a hail of machine-gun fire. Far from giving up the fight against the occupiers, he resumed his activities as a smuggler and intelligence agent. On 28 November 1944, whilst guiding a patrol of the famous ‘Pommies’ Free Corps in the capture of Le Drumont, he was struck down by German bullets on the outskirts of the Plain du Repos

(*2) The Auberge du Drumont was a key hub of the Resistance, organised by the entire Lutenbacher family, who owned the premises. On 21 September 1944, this family, the SAC family and several other patriots were captured and subsequently deported to Shirmeck or shot at Sterngraben. The farm and the surrounding stubble fields were set alight.
In the car park stands the monument commemorating the 16 members of the Corps Franc Pommies killed during the attack on Drumont from 28 to 30 November 1944.

(*3) Captain Emile Luttenbacher was the FFI commander of the Thillot and Bussang maquis. Arrested on 22 September 1944 by the SS at the Drumont farm, his fate remains unknown. His horribly mutilated body was not found near the Étang Jean until 26 April 1945.

On the way back, stop to fill your water bottles at the Marie spring, past the factory. (Naturally sparkling water with a high iron content; consume in moderation).