The Menhir of Saint-Uzec and the Chapel of Saint-Samson

Start from the Menhir de Saint-Uzec car park in Penvern.

Yellow markings
Signposts at major junctions and, from time to time, signs reading ‘Menhirs and chapels in Pleumeur-Bodou’.

(S/E) From the car park, head uphill, keeping the menhir on your right. Immediately turn left onto the^PR®® trail, a wide gravel path. Stay on the main path and, at a three-way junction (marker 41), turn right. Ignore a path branching off to the right and continue straight ahead. Continue along a small road and pass through a hamlet. Continue along the road, ignoring the side paths. At a fork in the road, go left.

(1) At a place called Keryvon, cross a road and continue straight on towards Hent Kerewan. At the next junction, turn sharply right towards Kerviziou. Stay on the road which climbs and turns left.

(2) At Kerviziou, turn left at the corner by an EDF substation (ignore the yellow signpost indicating a right turn; two^{PR®® routes} cross here). After a house on the left, the tarmac gives way to a sunken path leading downhill. Cross a stream near a house. Pass a wash house on the left and continue past the houses.

(3) At the junction, first turn left then right to follow the Route du Bouster.

Yellow + Red and White markings

At the next junction, continue straight on along Hent Toul Truez with the^GR®®34. Soon, the tarmac gives way to a footpath. At a crossroads, first turn right then left to take Hent al Lann towards Saint-Samson golf course.

(4) At the next junction, turn right, still heading towards the golf course. At the roundabout (marker 49), veer right onto Route du Guiderm and follow the golf course on your right. Take the^first left, Crec’h Moustero, towards a riding school. At the next junction, go straight on (ignore the entrance to the riding school on the left).

(5) At the crossroads, turn right. After a good fifty metres, take a path on the right. Walk alongside meadows and woods. At the end, follow a road to the right. At the junction immediately ahead, cross the road and continue straight on along a shaded path. Then cross the golf course (take care) and head towards a sign marked No. 8, keeping small rocks on your right.

(6) Just before the sign, follow a path on the left. Walk alongside the golf course on your left (wet patches). At the end of the golf course, continue straight downhill and you will reach a road.

No signposting

(7) Cross the road and walk past the small car park at the Chapelle Saint-Samson on your left. Just before a gate, turn right and head towards an old fountain in the undergrowth. Retrace your steps and turn right to go through the gate. Walk to the chapel and go round it to reach its porch, in front of which an old small menhir has been placed. Retrace your steps back to the road.

Yellow + Red and White markings

(7) Returning from the chapel, follow the road to the right. Ignore a path branching off to the left and, at the next junction, turn right onto Hent a Groaz. At a wayside cross, turn left. Pass a green shed (at a place called Porz ar Lan) then ignore a path branching off to the left. Pass a dead-end on the right and continue straight ahead along a path.

(8) At the junction, take a wide path on the right and follow a fence on your left. Pass an eco-centre and, at the entrance to an adventure course, turn left onto a tarmac road. At the T-junction (antenna on the left), turn right. At the crossroads immediately ahead, turn left.

(9) At the Stop sign (radome opposite), cross the road and follow it to the right behind a railing. After about 40 metres, turn left onto a path and walk under the pine trees alongside a wire fence on your left. At the junction at the corner of the fence, go straight on. At the Fork in the road that appears shortly afterwards, take the path on the right.

(10) Further on, turn right and climb a slope. Go straight on along the crest of the slope (the area below is very damp). After about 150m, turn left, leave the slope and continue along a path. At the end (elevation 41), follow a small road to the left. After a house, turn left onto a grassy path.

(11) At the junction, cross the Chemin du Clos-Moulong and continue straight ahead. Cross a housing estate then continue along a grassy path. At the next junction, turn left. Then cross a roundabout and continue straight ahead along a small road. After house no. 19, the tarmac gives way to a path. Go straight on; further on, the track gives way to a path, which then gives way to a track again. Follow this track to the car park where you started (S/E).

Good trainers or walking boots are recommended.

No water points marked on the route.

This walk follows a^PR®® trail designed and signposted by the FFRP committee of the Côtes d'Armor. A detailed map is required (at the very least the one accompanying this description).

Hike completed twice by the author, the first on 27 August 2005, the second on 29 June 2019.

- Saint-Uzec menhir (S/E), dating from the Neolithic period and Christianised in the 17th century with the addition of a cross at the top and bas-relief carvings with religious motifs.
- Saint-Samson Chapel (7). The chapel was built between 1575 and 1631. A fountain was constructed nearby in 1632. A small menhir located in the vicinity was moved to stand in front of the chapel porch.
- Pleumeur-Bodou Telecoms Complex, including the radome (9) built in 1961.