New Year's Eve at the abbey

Park in the Brunoy tennis court car park.

(S/E) Head to the back of the car park and take the path that leads to the Yerres. Turn left to walk along the river on your right. Take a footbridge and then turn left. Go around a lake on the left and pass by a playground. Reach the Yerres and walk behind the swimming pool.

(1). Cross the Soulins bridge to reach the other bank. Take the path on the left, before the Collège Pasteur, and follow the river on your left. Note the bandstand with its pepperpot roof, then leave the river and head towards a castle.

(2) At the crossroads at the edge of the lawn, take the path on the left. Go under the railway viaduct and follow the path, turning left at each intersection. After a slight climb, you will come to a cycle path. Cross it. Immediately cross the D94 at the pedestrian crossing and follow it to the left for about 75 metres. Enter the Parc des Deux Rivières on the right and walk along a playground.

(3) Go through a wooden gate and cross the Yerres via the footbridge at the abbey dam on the left. On the other bank, turn right and go through a gate.

(4) At the next fork, take the path on the left (do not take the footbridge) and walk along a branch of the river on your right. After about 400 metres, take the footbridge on the right.

(5) At the next intersection, turn left to reach a plot of land (usually) occupied by a couple of Highland Cattle. Retrace your steps.

(5) Go straight ahead on a wide path and follow the Yerres on your left. Cross a footbridge and you will come to a fork you have already taken.

(4) Continue straight ahead, go through the gate and cross the footbridge over the abbey dam again to cross the Yerres.

(3) Turn left and note the old water wheel of the abbey mill.

(6) At the end of the path, turn left to see the confluence of the Réveillon and Yerres rivers. Retrace your steps.

(6) Go straight ahead and cross the Réveillon, then a surrounding wall. Turn left and go up Rue Raymond Poincaré. Cross Rue de l'Abbaye on the left and take the next alley on the left (Rue des Vignes). At the end, turn right. At the fork, take Rue du Bois d'Enfer on the left.

(7) About 50 metres before the first houses, enter Parc du Clos Renaudin. Follow a wide path that crosses the garden diagonally (to the south-east) to reach a large gate. Return to Rue Raymond Poincaré and cross at the pedestrian crossing on the left. Then take Rue des Camaldules. At the fork, keep left on the same street. Turn left, pass the François Ràkoczi stele and continue along the street of the same name.

(8) At the crossroads, turn right onto Rue Paul Doumer. Stay on this road (which is not very pleasant) for about 800 metres. Then turn right onto Chemin du Pont de Paris (^PR® signposting). Stay on the signposted path and ignore the paths that branch off to the left and right. Pass under a high-voltage power line, turn right and ignore the paths on the left. Pass under another high-voltage power line and you will reach Le Réveillon.

(9) Follow the river on your left. After about 1.5 km, you will come to the Yerres communal orchard. Take the small bridge on the left to cross the river, then turn right onto Rue du Réveillon and continue straight ahead. Then turn right onto Rue du Clos des Abbesses. At the end, follow Rue Raymond Poincaré to the left. At the roundabout, turn left.

(10) Cross the stone bridge over the Réveillon and go around the roundabout on the left (cross three roads in succession at the pedestrian crossings). Then walk up Rue du Réveillon on the right-hand pavement. Go under the railway viaduct and continue straight ahead, ignoring all the side streets. Pass in front of the Robert Dubois-Corneau Museum and reach Place Saint-Médard. Then turn right and then left to reach the church.

(11) Opposite the church entrance, continue right along Rue Montmartel, which soon turns left. At the end, turn right and take Pont Perronet.

(12) In the middle of the bridge, go down to the left onto the island and turn right at the corner of the pavilion to reach the riverbank. On the opposite bank, note the two menhirs known as La Femme and La Fille de Loth. Retrace your steps.

(12) Continue over the bridge. At the end of the bridge, go down the stone steps on the right to reach the bank of the Yerres. Follow the path back to the tennis court car park (S/E).

Since the 12th century, the Val d'Yerres has become highly urbanised, and this walk alternates between natural spaces and urban areas. Please note that road traffic can make some parts of the walk very noisy.

Do not attempt this walk when both rivers are in flood. Wear sturdy footwear, as the banks of the Yerres and Réveillons rivers can be muddy.

There is a water source at the end of the hike, on the island of Pont Perronet, behind the old barn.

Accessible by public transport: Brunoy station (RER D).
Exit at Place de la Gare and follow Rue de la Gare. Then turn right to reach Place de la Mairie. At the crossroads at the foot of the town hall, follow Rue Pasteur opposite and immediately turn right into Rue Saint-Nicolas to reach the church. Start the hike at the point (11).

- Soulins Bridge.
- Brunoy Viaduct.
- Highland cattle used to clear the land on Panchout Island.
- Water wheel of the abbey mill.
- Former 12th-century Yerres Abbey.
- Rakoczi Square on the site of the former Camaldolese monastery.
- Robert Dubois-Corneau Museum in Brunoy.
- Saint Médard Church in Brunoy.
- Pont Perronet (architect of the Pont de la Concorde in Paris).
- Menhir de la Pierre Fritte.