The Ravin de l’Étoile

Starting point: Monchy-Cayeux, a small square between the town hall and the school.

(S/E) Leave the square and turn left into Rue d’En-Haut. At the T-junction, turn left to cross the railway line and reach the D 343. Cross the road (Take care!) and take the wide path opposite. It climbs gently for 2 km until it joins a small tarmac road.

(1) Follow it for a few metres to the left, then turn right onto a (sometimes very) grassy track. When you reach the tarmac, turn left towards Fleury. Walk through the village, keeping in the same direction, until you reach a three-way junction.

(2) Turn left onto the Chemin de Falempin. Ignore the path that branches off to the left. 1 km further on, turn sharply left. After a right-hand bend, you’ll reach the hamlet of Falempin, which you pass through.

(3) Just before the T-junction, don’t miss the start of the Ravin de l’Étoile on the left (there are hiking markers). This path is very grassy and follows the ravine (walk in the hollow).

Pass through two gates in succession and continue down the gently sloping ravine (be careful: there are stinging nettles in the upper section and low-hanging branches in the lower section). You’ll eventually reach a small road (with livestock on the left) which quickly leads to the D 343 at Sautricourt.

(4) Follow it for a few metres to the right, then turn left into Rue de l’Église (Take care!). Cross the railway line, then the River Ternoise, and head up towards the church.

(5) Just before reaching the church, turn right onto the lovely path under the trees. Join a small road and follow it straight ahead. At the three-way junction, continue straight on. A lovely path crosses a stream via a footbridge and joins Rue de Tangry.

(6) Follow it to the left. At the junction, join the^GR® 121A (also known as^{the GRP®} du Ternois), which you’ll follow for a while. Turn right, then at the three-way junction, head straight on along the small, uphill road.

(7) At the junction, take the path straight ahead. Continue in the same direction until you reach a T-junction near a wayside cross.

(8) Turn left (the^GR® heads right) along the edge of the woods (where you might spot roe deer from time to time), ignore the wide path coming from the left and pass under the power line.

(9) Shortly afterwards, take the hairpin bend to the left to descend into the valley. Turn right onto a small road and you’ll reach the D87 at the hamlet of Béthonval. Follow it to the left and turn right onto the second track, onto the^{PR® route} to Saint-Benoît. At the Fork in the road, keep left and continue the climb. Turn left, pass the small wayside shrine of Saint-Hubert and reach a T-junction.

(10) Turn right towards Conteville for 300m
Alternative route: see § practical information ¹.
Turn left onto the D88, which descends steeply. At the very bottom (just before the^PR® turns off to the right), at the T-junction, turn left onto the D99 for a good hundred metres.

(11) Then take a good, ascending track on the right. Ignore the track coming from the right. Right at the end, turn left and, after a right-hand bend, you’ll reach a T-junction.

(12) Turn left towards the mast, then immediately right downhill. At the bottom, at the T-junction, turn right onto the^GR® and GRP^®.

(13) At the^first junction, leave the^GR® and^GRP® and follow the small road on the left to reach Monchy-Cayeux. After turning right, cross the Ternoise, walk past the castle and head for the town hall (S/E).

Apart from the Ravin, the paths are in good condition. Hiking boots are nevertheless highly recommended (if it has been a damp night, the grassy path at the top of the ravine gets just as wet as walking in a stream).

¹ Alternative route: by adding a detour of just over 3 km, you can avoid the D88 at Conteville.
=> After the (10), carry on straight ahead, pass the church (a lovely square with a table) and arrive at a three-way junction (chapel). Leave the tarmac road and take the path opposite. 700 m further on (a lovely tree on the right), take a path on the left (the opposite direction to the Sentier de Saint-Benoît). Head downhill to reach the foot of Hestrus (bench). Turn left to climb towards the village. At a farm, turn left onto a lovely path. After a short but steep descent, the path turns right to join the D99. Follow it on the left (grassy path) then turn left to take the Riez Patare. A lovely path, which leads to the D88; follow this to the right before turning left onto the D99 towards the (11).

Starting from Anvin or Fleury, you can easily combine this route with “Le mont de Fleury” for a long hike of around 30 km.

At point 5, you can continue on to the church. Passing to the left of the church, you’ll reach a T-junction where you’ll find the^GR®. Follow it to the left, then immediately left again to reach point 13. This route is about ten km long.