The Forts of Haut Bois and Bois d'Oye

Hello,
I would like to know if there is a passable path between point 414 and point 3 in your description. I am planning to take a group of hikers to explore this site.I have done part of the route, starting from Banvillars and taking a fairly steep path through the woods to arrive near your point 3. I am looking for an easier route, so please could you provide me with information about the section between point 414 and point 3.

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Date of your route : Apr 09, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : Not used / Not applicable
Very busy route : No

Very poorly signposted by the person who organised this hike!!!!!!!!

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Date of your route : Sep 30, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant walk offering a glimpse into the past with the dolmen (2500 BC), the boundary stone trail (1792), and the remains of military structures dating from after 1870 (although access to these is prohibited to the public), as well as a chance to pay one’s respects at the memorial to those shot in Banvillars in October 1944.
One minor drawback: the route and directions are confusing between elevation 414 and point 3. Following the meadow to the left after crossing the power line, we couldn’t find a track. Once we reached the woods, we had to cross a field of brambles for several hundred metres before finally finding a path that led to the other side of the fort.
Otherwise, all is well.
A few suggestions.
At the start, head to point 16 by following Rue de la Chevrette, then towards Les Champs Morel (Rue du Vô) – follow the GR markings. Then follow the signs for the dolmen (Red Triangle). Then head to point 1. This avoids having to go back and forth at the end of the route.
At point 11, go round the Fort du Bois d’Oye on the left, following the path that skirts the fort to the east and south. You’ll come to the Red Disc markings and, as you climb the hill, a view of the Vosges and the Swiss Jura will take your breath away.
At point 15, you can make a round trip to the Bethoncourt mines trail (3 km and an extra hour).

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Date of your route : Aug 10, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, interesting walk to follow on a GPS. The first minor difficulty is reaching point 2 on the other side of the cow pasture, which is certainly private property – why doesn’t the route use the gate on the left? It’s certainly easier than crawling under the barbed wire! (I’m not familiar with elevation point 414). It should also be noted that entry to the fort is prohibited. After point 9, the route leads into an impassable maize field that would take too long to go round to reach point 10, so I turned back and made my way to the shooting range through the woods. It should also be noted that the hiking trails are off-limits during military activities. The last few kilometres in the blazing sun were gruelling. All in all, 17km, skipping points 10 and 11, in 5 hours including breaks – thank you.

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Hello,
I’ll see what I can do, but I don’t currently have any digital tools or GPS for sharing.
Kind regards

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Good evening,
Thank you for your comment and your suggestions for changes.
I’m originally from Brévilliers, which I left a long time ago, and I wanted to revisit the area.
I planned this walk using a paper map and Basecamp (Garmin GPS).
The path you mention after the shooting range does not appear on my maps. Could you please send me either the GPX file or a route marked on a paper map? Regarding the viewpoint behind the Fort du Bois d’Oye, I will make the change.
As for Banvillars, my aim was to walk past the memorial to those executed by firing squad and revisit Banvillars.
For communication and sending files, I suggest using my Facebook page via private message: Gérard Nardin from Brévilliers

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Date of your route : Apr 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Hello everyone,
Living in Châtenois, this was our starting point. We wanted to take more of the small paths than the main roads or minor roads. We took a path on the right, after the shooting range on the left of the road. We followed this path to a farm and there, we turned left to stay in the forest. We came to a T-junction, where we turned left, then at the second junction we kept left, heading towards Chemin de Brévilliers. When we reached the crossroads, we found ourselves facing Chemin des Bornes. This route is more picturesque and avoids the tarmac of the Route de Brévilliers. We then followed your route before deviating at a farm near Brévilliers. We didn’t go through the village but headed towards the Dolmen. Then we turned left, then right to reach Banvillars. Just past the pile of ageing logs, there is a path through the forest which we took to avoid walking towards the four-lane road and crossing the village on the tarmac. At the end of this path, we turned right, then left, towards Bermont (returning to a small section of the starting route), but upon reaching the farm, we went straight on towards La Chapelle, continuing straight ahead. When we reached the gate of Fort de Bermont, we turned left onto a small path and then right after 50 metres to climb up to the 360° viewpoint at Bermont. You return to the shooting range by heading off to the right. These changes bring the total distance to 20 km starting from Châtenois, Rue du Fort. Thank you for your route; it allowed us to discover a beautiful viewpoint towards the mast from where we could see the Chasseral.

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PASCAL Gérard

Recurring issues with the IGN servers, sorry about that. If you’re a club member, you can change the base map and use OSM

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I couldn't download the file properly; in fact, large sections of the map were completely black!!!

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Date of your route : Mar 29, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

I had a bit of trouble finding the chapel
Luckily I had a hiking GPS
At one point, under the power lines, you have to turn left

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