Country:
District:
Departure from Beynes station (Transilien line N, on the section between Plaisir-Grignon and Mantes-la-Jolie). Take the only exit, on the side of track 2 (in the direction of Mantes-la-Jolie; if arriving in the opposite direction, cross the tracks at the crossing - wait if the light is on).
Red and white markings
(S/E) With your back to the station, follow Avenue de la Gare to the left.
(1) At the stop sign, continue straight ahead. After a right-hand bend, cross the Mauldre river and you will reach the castle car park.
No signage
(2) Turn left onto Rue des Anciens Combattants and pass the "Mairie" bus stop. Note a small waterfall on the Mauldre River on the left (information sign) and continue along a narrow paved path. Keep a football stadium on your right, then a pond. At the crossroads at the end of the pond (footbridge on the left), continue straight ahead, still on a gravel path. At the end, cross the D191 at the pedestrian crossing and head for the bridge over the Mauldre (information sign).
(3) Follow the road to the right towards the town centre and take the first left, Rue Fleubert. Cross a residential area. Walk alongside allotments and then meadows until you reach the Salle Fleubert (an old farm, information board).
(4) Continue along the small road slightly uphill. Pass the entrance to the gas storage area on the right. Continue along a fence on your right and pass access points 7 and 8. After access point 9, the tarmac gives way to a gravel path. Note the beautiful view of the Mauldre valley on your left, with the siphon bridge over the river in the distance (information sign).
Red and white markings
(5) At a fork (metal gate opposite on the right), continue straight ahead on the path. Before the buildings of a horse riding centre, you will reach the siphon bridge of the Avre Aqueduct, which spans the Mauldre.
(6) Retrace your steps to the fork with the metal gate.
(5) Then take the path on the left that enters the woods. Ignore a trail that branches off immediately to the right and climb slightly. After a right-hand bend, you will come to a paved road. Cross this road and you will immediately find a forest track.
No signposts
(7) Make a right-left zigzag to follow a path heading north that enters the woods again (signpost "Les chemins de Gally"). At the intersection with a faint trail (yellow sign with two sides on the left), continue straight ahead. Further on, cross a paved forest road and continue straight ahead on the bridle path.
(8) At the end (forest barrier), turn left and follow a small road downhill. Ignore Rue de la Muette on the left, then Rue aux Chevreuils, and continue downhill through a residential area. At number 9, turn left onto Sente des Grives, which winds its way between walls and garden fences.
(9) Atthe first intersection, turn right onto Rue Henri Muret. Then take thefirst left, Rue des Clos (note an old water pump on the right). At the corner of the École Jacques Prévert, turn right onto the street, which is a no-entry road.
At the next intersection, cross Rue de la République and follow it to the left for a few metres. At the corner of the driving school, turn right at the foot of the church bell tower and you will come to a small courtyard offering a beautiful view of the old castle. Retrace your steps, turn right and walk along the church on your right.
Walk along Place Saint-Martin on your left and, at the end, turn right onto Avenue de la Gare towards the train station. You will reach a sign with a map of the hiking trails (on this map, we have just completed the green loop and are about to start the orange loop). Leave the street and follow a gravel path along the edge of the castle to the car park.
Red and white markings
(2) Continue straight ahead, cross Rue des Anciens Combattants, cross the Mauldre river and turn left onto the avenue.
Yellow markings (very rare due to lack of support)
(1) At the stop sign, turn right and cross the railway line at the level crossing. Turn right and go up a small road. Shortly before the top of the hill, at the entrance to some buildings on the right, leave the road and follow a farm track uphill to the left.
After about 75m, take the first path on the left (no signpost here). Head north along the hillside, cross a small road and continue on the path opposite. Continue north, skirting fenced gardens on your left and climbing slightly. At the top of the hill (beautiful view of the valley), the path descends, bending to the northeast. Ignore vague paths on either side and walk along a wood on your left.
When a path joins from the right (forest barrier just before), continue straight ahead and descend towards some houses. At the T-junction, follow the small road on the left.
No signposts
(10) At the crossroads, continue straight ahead into Rue du Lavoir. Cross the Mauldre and cross the railway line at the level crossing. Immediately after, take a small tarmac road on the left, follow the railway line on your left and note an old ruined mill on the left. Leave the railway line and pass a sewage treatment plant on your left. Enter the woods and you will reach the old Moulin des Fourneaux (restored, information board).
(11) Continue along the road through a residential area. Cross a street and continue straight ahead into Rue du Pont Barrat. At the fork that appears immediately, turn left. At the next fork, climb the stairs on the left. At the top, turn right and head towards Beynes station (S/E).
Visorando member
Easy 
Difficult 
