The Génie Trail in Gex

From the centre of Gex, head towards Rue de Gex la Ville and take Rue de la Forêt de Disse until you reach a small bridge where you can park.

(S/E) Cross the bridge and follow the road to the first houses, at a place called Chaumois. You’ll notice a very colourful wooden building on the right; this is one of the oldest apiaries in the Pays de Gex.

(1) Take the path on the left, at an acute angle, towards Le Turet. At the crossroads about 150 metres further on, take the middle path. Head uphill in a north-north-westerly direction.

(2) You’ll come out onto a wide forest track; follow it to the left, keeping to the signposts.

(3) After about 500 m, leave the track and take a path on the left (at the corner of logging area no. 86). Immediately afterwards, leave the Turet route and take the path climbing steeply to the right (Yellow Cross), which runs alongside logging area 86 until it reaches a level track; cross this and emerge onto the Creux du Cerf forest road at a bend.

(4) Then take the Génie path, a track that branches off to the right (north), following the contour line. After a short while, the track turns into a path that cuts across a steep slope through the trees (this is the most worn-out section of the route) to join the Vesancy forest road.

(5) Follow the road to the right and take a hairpin bend to the left. About 700 m after this bend, you’ll reach a junction with the Toupinet path, which crosses the road (no signposting but obvious).

(6) Head down to the right along this steep path. You’ll come out onto a forest road; follow it to the right and take a hairpin bend to the left.

(7) Shortly afterwards, take the path branching off to the right. Walk through a fir forest, part of which was recently devastated by a storm. Keep heading south-west and ignore the side paths.

(8) You’ll come out onto a track; follow it to the right.

(9) At the junction at a place called La Pinière, turn left and head downhill.

(10) At the next junction, turn right and follow the road to Chaumois.

(1) Continue left along the road to return to the starting point (S/E).

Between points (3) and (6), the IGN and OSM maps differ slightly regarding the trails; I have based this on the IGN map.

There are several possible starting points, including from Gex itself.
You can reduce the elevation gain slightly by setting off from the end of the Route de la Forêt de Disse (8) and either following the main forest track to reach (2), or taking a shortcut via the steeper track that passes to the left of a water catchment and leads directly to (3).

Sturdy footwear is recommended; walking poles are not essential but are useful on steep sections.

The route runs wholly or partly through the Haute Chaîne du Jura National Nature Reserve. Please respect the reserve’s regulations: https://www.rnn-hautechainedujura.fr/reg...

Between points (3) and (4), you can see for yourself the damage caused by the bark beetles attacking the fir trees. The ONF has carried out felling to contain the infestation, creating numerous clearings in the landscape.

Accessible from (7) via a short detour, the Riamont Chapel, perched on its hill, offers a magnificent view and is an ideal spot for meditation (with an orientation table).
To get there, walk down the road to a gate, then follow the track that climbs up through the pasture on the left to the cluster of fir trees sheltering the chapel.
Return via the same route; at the gate, take the path opposite and, after a short climb, rejoin the route leading back to Saint-Martin upstream of the Ganguillette.