The Fossé Cagnu

Starting from Saint-Pol-sur-Ternoise, the Fossé Cagnu route takes you along a few of the town’s narrow lanes, then along paths that are sometimes damp, followed by a short detour through the village of Troisvaux before descending the famous ditch.
Along the way, it’s not uncommon to spot a few deer.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.67 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 113 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 116 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 148 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 80 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park on Place Mitterrand, opposite the tax office.

(S/E) Cross Rue de Fruge at the pedestrian crossing, take Rue de la Calandre northwards and follow the yellow markings.

(1) Just after the restaurant La Saint-Poloise, take the small road on the left; after 50 m, turn right and take the stairs. You will arrive at Rue d’Aire; go right for 20 m, cross the road and take Rue de Conteville. Before the sharp right-hand bend, turn onto the path on the left heading north-east and follow the path. You are still following the yellow markings.

(2) At the health centre, cross the road and enter the Rosemont housing estate. At the first junction, take the small road opposite; after 20 metres, follow it to the right to reach Rue Matisse. Cross the road and take Rue Paul Gauguin opposite, heading east. At the second junction, follow Rue Claude Monet for 40 metres, take the path on the right and follow it to the left towards the hollow, heading north. Follow the yellow markings.

(3) At the end of the path, continue along the road opposite heading north-north-east.

(4) You will reach the D941, a busy road, so take care, follow it for about 150 m, keep to the left-hand side of the road, then turn onto the track on the left heading west-north-west. Follow it to the village.

(5) You have entered the village of Troivaux. Take the D87 on the right heading west and follow it to the second junction where you will turn left, after the right-hand bend, heading north-west, still following the yellow markings.

(6) At the junction, turn onto the path going uphill to the left towards the south.

(7) At the chapel, take the second path on the left heading east-southeast, passing alongside the sports ground. At the right-hand bend, follow the path opposite and, once you reach the road, turn right for 200 m and then right again. Keep following the yellow markings.

(8) At the four-way junction, continue straight ahead heading south-west towards the Cagnu ditch.

(9) At the crossroads with the public benches, turn left onto the road, walk past the cemetery then turn right at the first junction. Walk past the church, follow the road to the right and, after 10 m, take the small lane on the left heading south. This leads into Rue du Marais

(10) At the end of this street, follow the main road on the left heading east until you reach Place Mitterrand (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 85 m - Place Mitterrand opposite the tax office - Ternoise (rivière)
  2. 1 : km 0.17 - alt. 84 m - La St-Poloise Restaurant
  3. 2 : km 0.79 - alt. 123 m - Polyclinic
  4. 3 : km 2.58 - alt. 143 m - Crossroads at the end of the path
  5. 4 : km 3.49 - alt. 139 m - D941 road
  6. 5 : km 5.18 - alt. 138 m - Troisvaux
  7. 6 : km 6.19 - alt. 123 m - Crossroads
  8. 7 : km 6.97 - alt. 145 m - Chapel
  9. 8 : km 7.83 - alt. 133 m - Crossroads
  10. 9 : km 9.21 - alt. 82 m - Public benches
  11. 10 : km 10.45 - alt. 84 m - Rue de Fruge
  12. S/E : km 10.67 - alt. 84 m - Place Mitterrand opposite the tax office

Notes

Sturdy shoes and walking poles will be very useful for this hike.
Don’t forget your water bottle

Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5
Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
5 / 5
Ease of following the route
5 / 5
Route interest
4.5 / 5
Bouli62
Bouli62

Thanks for your comment

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immercurien
immercurien

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 31, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk on a Monday, so there weren’t many people about and the weather was pleasant.
A route that alternates between wooded areas and fields, with a bit of town.
You can still do it even if you’ve forgotten your map or smartphone, as it’s well signposted.
Thanks to bouli62 for this lovely discovery

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JUDAS Sylvaine
JUDAS Sylvaine

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely route that takes you through villages and the countryside... Pretty daffodils in the woods.

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benoitrando
benoitrando

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 24, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The route is perfect, just the way I like it, with plenty of elevation changes and lots of tracks and paths, and very little tarmac. Of course, at this time of year I got pretty muddy on the very muddy tracks. But then again, that’s secondary to the enjoyment this hike brings. I did, however, note one point where a bit more detail would be useful.
Point 5: the yellow markings are no longer in place. I think it would be helpful to indicate that you should turn left onto the first path, just after the right-hand bend, between the cultivated fields heading north-west.

Thanks Bouli62 for this lovely route

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Bouli62
Bouli62

Thank you very much

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Alain59*
Alain59*

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 16, 2020
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very pleasant route, mostly on footpaths. The start of the walk, along a narrow path between the houses, is quite surprising. There’s a short stretch of tarmac between points 3 and 4, and the return leg is mostly on grassy paths.

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