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Starting point and access: Champigny station.
- RER - Line A, on the section between Paris and Boissy-Saint-Léger.
Take exit 1 Place de la Gare (at the rear of the train when coming from Paris).
No signposts
(S) When leaving the station, turn left and, at the end of the bus station, turn right and cross Boulevard du 11 Novembre. Immediately cross Boulevard de Champigny and follow it to the right. At the end, cross Quai du Parc and take the bridge over the Marne. Just after a bus stop, go down the stairs on the left. At the bottom, continue straight ahead to the banks of the Marne.
Red and yellow + yellow markings
(1) Turn right, with two options:
- Follow the slightly elevated quay (this is where the markings are located).
- Follow a narrow concrete path along the riverbank. N.B. This path is impassable in the event of flooding and remains muddy for a long time during the winter.
Walk along the Marne on your left. Pass the footbridge that leads to Île du Martin Pêcheur (go under it if you are on the cement path along the river). Then turn left and walk along a playground on your right. Go under a railway bridge.
Shortly afterwards, return to the quay to go around a water sports centre on the right. Further on, you will find a wide concrete path below, between the quay and the riverbank: follow the river as closely as possible, depending on the conditions. About 1.5 km from the railway bridge, pass under a road bridge (Pont du Petit Parc on the map).
No markings
(2) Just after the bridge, climb the steps on the right. Cross the Marne on the bridge and, on the other bank, cross Quai Beaubourg and follow it to the right. Take the first left, Rue du Château de Condé. Pass two dead ends on the right and turn left with the street. At the end, follow Avenue Auguste Gross to the right. Then continue along Avenue de la Libération.
At the traffic lights, turn right onto Avenue de Condé. Continue straight ahead until you reach a small square, ignoring all the turnings on the left.
(3) Then turn right into Square de l'Abbaye. Opposite a sculpture, turn right and find an opening in a hedge. Take the path that winds downhill.
At the bottom, turn right, go through a gate and visit the ruins of the abbey (indicative route). Retrace your steps. After the gate, go straight ahead along a path lined with yew trees and pass by the foot of the Tour Rabelais. Leave the square and follow the street uphill to the left. Pass a small car park on your right, follow Rue du Four and walk alongside Saint-Nicolas Church on your right.
(4) At the corner of the church, turn right into Place d'Armes (beautiful building of the Lycée Teilhard de Chardin). Turn right again into Rue de la Procession. At the end, turn left, enter Joinville-le-Pont and go straight ahead into Rue de Paris. Take thefirst left, Rue Robard.
After about 30 metres, turn left into Parc du Parangon. Take thefirst concrete path on the right and walk along a playground on your right. Then first turn left then right to walk along a small basketball court on your right. Pass a statue on your right, turn right and leave the park. Follow the street to the left, cross Boulevard du Maréchal Leclerc and follow it to the right.
(5) Take thefirst left, Avenue de la République. Go straight ahead and ignore a dead end on the right and then one on the left. Turn right (do not go down the boulevard below) and walk along the railway line. At the next intersection, turn right into Rue Eugène Voisin.
After No. 4, turn left onto a small tarmac path that passes under the railway line. Ignore the ramp on the left leading to a nursery school and go down a flight of steps. Cross the boulevard, enter the Résidence de l'Espérance and immediately go down a flight of steps on the right. At the bottom, turn left and walk past the Red Cross premises. Continue straight ahead and go through a metal barrier.
Cross Rue Henri Barbusse and follow it to the right. At the traffic lights, cross Avenue Pierre Mendès-France and take the bridge over the Canal de Saint-Maur.
(6) Before crossing the canal, go down the stairs on the left. At the bottom, continue along a path and walk along the canal on your right. Continue along the Chemin de Halage (tarmac path) and walk past a black building with the number 17 written in large letters (river brigade of the Prefecture of Police). At a small bridge on the right, continue straight ahead until you reach the Marne.
Red and white markings
(7) Turn left and pass under the Maisons-Alfort Bridge (under construction in February 2019). Continue along the tarmac towpath. Cross a perpendicular canalised river and continue along Quai Schaken.
(8) At the end, turn left onto Boulevard du Général Ferrié. After passing a playground on your right, take the central tarmac path. At the crossroads, take the pedestrian crossing, turn right, pass a kiosk on your right and continue along the central path lined with plane trees.
At the next kiosk, turn left onto Avenue Noël. At the end, turn right until you reach the pedestrian crossing. Cross Rue du Pont de Créteil and first turn left then right to follow Rue Leroux. Turn left to reach Saint-Maur - Créteil station (E).
very pleasant route.
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