The banks of the Rance at Mordreuc

This route has two circular sections, allowing it to be completed in two stages. Both sections highlight the banks of the Rance and allow you to discover the hinterland, the former lands of the gabarriers and Cap-Horniers.

Details

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Creation:
Last update:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.96 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 66 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 63 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 37 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 6 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Start from the car park in front of the café at the Mordreuc slipway. You can also park at (6). Then simply follow Rue des Terre Neuvas to reach the starting point.

(S/E) From the car park, turn left onto Rue des Cap-Horniers. Continue along the first path on the right, 50 metres after the calvary and at the corner of the bread oven. Follow the path as it curves to the left and then to the right, and go down the steps to arrive in front of the Rance.

(1) Turn left. Take the first path on the left that goes uphill.

(2) Then take the path on the right. It runs alongside the Rance at varying distances and leads to a fork offering a view of the Moulin du Prat.

(3) Continue along the path on the left and you will reach the Chapelle de Mordreuc. Follow the street on the left and turn right onto Chemin de la Longueraie. Continue on the left until you reach a road. Note the aviators' memorial opposite.

(4). Turn left and, after about 100 metres, leave the road and take the path on the left. At the end, turn left and then right after 100 metres. At the road, turn right towards Ville Piron.

(5) At the crossroads, continue left and you will reach the D48 departmental road. Follow it to the left. At the roundabout, continue right into Rue des Terre-Neuvas.

(6) You can continue left on the road to return to the starting point 300 metres away. Otherwise, take the path on the right to follow the banks of the Rance on the path and continue on the left.
Please note: from this point to (7), the path is regularly flooded by a few centimetres at high tide but is always passable. Otherwise, refer to the "practical information" section below.
Cross the footbridge and follow the other bank.

(7) Take the path on the right (otherwise the bank is a dead end) and continue along the edge of the Rance.

(8) When you reach a road on the right, continue along the Rance, taking the upper path on the left marked "high tide". As you progress, you will see the two bridges that span the river.

(9) Walk past the campsite on your right and admire the view. Continue along this road which follows the headland to reach the hamlet of Les Villes Morvues.

(10) In the hamlet, turn right and continue south between the fields. At the T-junction, turn right.

(11) Continue along the road to the left. You will reach the D 48 departmental road. Cross it and turn right onto the protected path.
At the roundabout, turn right onto Rue des Terre-Neuvas.

(6) Turn left and return to the car park at the start (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 6 m - Mordreuc slipway car park
  2. 1 : km 0.75 - alt. 9 m - Coastal path on the left - Rance (fleuve)
  3. 2 : km 1.1 - alt. 24 m - Path on the right
  4. 3 : km 1.95 - alt. 25 m - View of the Moulin du Prat
  5. 4 : km 3.36 - alt. 30 m - Aviators' memorial - on the left
  6. 5 : km 4.53 - alt. 20 m - Road on the left
  7. 6 : km 4.99 - alt. 7 m - Path on the right
  8. 7 : km 5.75 - alt. 8 m - Path on the right - Rance (fleuve)
  9. 8 : km 6.59 - alt. 7 m - Path at the top left
  10. 9 : km 7.53 - alt. 10 m - Panorama - straight ahead
  11. 10 : km 8.33 - alt. 10 m - Road on the right
  12. 11 : km 9.33 - alt. 33 m - Road on the left
  13. S/E : km 10.96 - alt. 6 m - Mordreuc slipway car park

Notes

You may be lucky enough to see Josephine, the star of Mordreuc, sunbathing on the slipway. This female sea calf, aged around twenty, has made her home here. Although she will let you approach her to within a metre, she is still a wild animal and may react violently if frightened.

After (6), instead of continuing to the left, turn right and then immediately left. This path leads to the D48, which you should follow for 50 metres, then turn left and 30 metres further on, take the path on the left. You will reach (7).

Worth a visit

The Cider Museum: Pleudihen is one of the famous Breton cider vintages. It is made at the Ville-Hervy farm, where the Cider Museum is located. In the courtyard stands an old millstone, once turned by a team of horses, which weighs around 700 kg.

La Ville Ger: this remarkable natural site has the only known sand dune on the banks of a river in Brittany. Visitors can enjoy a 180° panorama stretching from Plouër-sur-Rance to Port Saint-Jean and Port Saint-Hubert.

The land of the gabarriers: The gabarre was a boat 9 to 10 m long and 2.50 to 4.50 m wide. The gabarriers mainly transported wood for bakers and private individuals in Saint-Malo.

Reviews and comments

4 / 5
Based on 9 reviews

Reliability of the description
3.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.6 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
@Yves
@Yves

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 02, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike in the southern part and along the riverbank. After point 9, the path seems to be unmaintained.
Between points 6 and 7, at the end of the marsh, the wooden bridge has collapsed. It's a shame, as the rest of the path through the reeds looked nice.
At point 3, it's worth making a return trip (+5 km) to the Lessard viaduct.

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Grand Fanch
Grand Fanch

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 26, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful views of the Rance, a bit slippery but that's normal as we're on the riverbank. And it's nice to go for a swim on the way back at the Mordreuc slipway!

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hervérob
hervérob

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 21, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful view of the Rance and the Moulin du Prat. Signposting is very disappointing, so you may get lost unless you have a good GPS or Visorando.

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Hamon Pascal
Hamon Pascal

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 16, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The signposting and markings are very poorly done, making it very easy to stray from the route, unfortunately!

The signage needs to be reviewed!

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godillot49
godillot49

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 13, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The high tide prevented us from completing the route along the banks of the Rance, but the section through the woods is fine.
L

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milau22
milau22

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 15, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It's November... the start of the second part, which is wet and slippery... but passable. Otherwise, it's great!

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Coquart
Coquart

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 11, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Alert users to the need to check tide times and coefficients to avoid entering areas that are difficult to navigate.

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JPED
JPED

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 01, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We did this route at high tide and were unable to reach point 3, as the passage along the banks of the Rance was too dangerous (note that the tidal coefficients were not very high: 60 on that day).
To reach the route and point 3 (its viewpoint over the Moulin du Prat), we followed a path that climbs up towards La Chapelle du Mordreuc, then retraced our steps.
In the end, we unwittingly created another route around the same theme.

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PierreMLS
PierreMLS

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 09, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful walk with two sections offering different atmospheres: the first section is through woodland, so it is quite shaded; the second section is along the polder dyke, which is more open with a wide view over Mordreuc Cove. There is a very pretty hamlet at La Chapelle de Mordreuc with typical granite houses.

For those who are near Moulin du Prat at lunchtime, a short detour to picnic at the mill will be richly rewarded with a magnificent view of the Rance, sheltered from the wind.

Route description: Please note that about halfway between points 2 and 3, you will come to a Y-junction: the right-hand branch goes downhill, the left-hand branch goes uphill --> Take the left-hand branch and do not go downhill. (Add to the description).

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