The Tramolé to Culin loop

(S/E) Leave the church car park by heading right, north-east. You’ll pass the sign for “Culin – alt. 500m” and walk past the Town Hall, leaving a small street on your right. At the next fork, turn right onto Chemin de Laurendière. After a bend to the right, ignore the small lane coming from the right.

(1) You’ll come to a crossroads (sign for “Barracand – alt. 490m”). Continue straight ahead towards Brin. The narrow road leads to a three-way junction.

(2) Turn right, then pass the few houses in Brin before reaching the hamlet of Le Plan.

(3) Turn left, following the yellow markings, which you must not lose sight of. Very soon, continue straight on along a stony path. At the end of the field, ignore the path leading down to the left into the forest. Walk along the edge of the woods.

(4) When you reach a hunting blind, the path turns to the right. Head down into the forest opposite.
After a while, the path becomes very steep and deeply rutted. This may be a problem for walkers unaccustomed to rough terrain. This is the only difficult part of the walk. You come out onto a small road. Turn left and cross a bridge.

(5) Just after the “Combe Valausin” sign, turn right towards Éclose. This small road leads you to the hamlet of Le Molard.

(6) At the fork, take the right-hand path, the Chemin du Calvaire. At the T-junction that follows, turn right again (still following the yellow markings).

(7) A little further on, at the fork, turn left this time, and further on, turn right (the yellow markings are still visible).

(8) You arrive in front of a grand villa with a swimming pool and a beautiful pond. You make a zigzag turn and walk along the pond. At the next crossroads, take the dirt track opposite.

(9) It leads to the hamlet of Chardonnet (signposted “Chardonnet – alt. 507m”). Turn right, towards Les Hauts de la Biesse. Further on, at a T-junction, turn left (Chemin du Morlionay).

(10) At Morlionay, take the path branching off to the right. After a short while, it joins a small road; follow this to the left. At the hamlet of Bessey, leave the small road and take a lovely grassy path, also on the left. Ignore another path coming from the left. You’ll reach a ford where you can either cross with your feet getting wet or go over it by taking the footbridge on the right.

(11) You come out onto a small road. In front of you lies the Étang d’Arpieux. Look at its odd shape on the map. It looks like a hand. Cross the road and head right, walking as close as possible to the edge of the pond. You’ll notice that between each finger of the hand there are magnificent poplars planted. At the end of the pond, ignore the grassy path on the left and take the road that climbs up, directly in front of you. When it curves naturally to the right, continue straight ahead on the dirt track.

(12) You’ll reach the sign for “Les Hauts de la Biesse – alt. 550m”; head straight down towards Culin (1.1 km – the stables are nearby!).

(13) Your path leads onto a small road, which you take to the right. You then turn into the first lane on the left, then right, to return to the church, the starting point of the walk (S/E).

Head to Culin, a small village in northern Isère, situated south of Bourgoin-Jallieu and east of Saint-Jean-de-Bournay.

Park in the car park next to the church.

The entire route is marked in yellow. Major junctions are signposted with signposts.

Two-thirds of the route is tarmac, making it an ideal walk for wet and therefore muddy periods.

It passes through very little woodland.

The nearest amenities are in Saint-Jean-de-Bournay.

The countryside of northern Isère is pleasant and undulating.

On a clear day, you’ll enjoy occasional views of the Monts de l’Ain, the Chartreuse and a few peaks of the Vercors. On a very clear day, I think you might be able to spot the summit of Mont Blanc. If so, please let us know, and if possible, tell us exactly where.