The Erdre footpaths from Bonnœuvre

This is a pleasant, varied route with numerous sections through the forest, along farm tracks and finally alongside the beautiful River Erdre, which we follow at the end of the route.
This route follows two sections of marked routes, in yellow but in a very random manner; one on the Layons route and the other on the Erdre route.
Several sections are on authorised private land. Please respect these areas.

Details

14742082
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 11.08 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 72 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 75 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 63 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 21 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ District: Bonnœuvre (44540)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 47.527528° / W 1.236904°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 1321SB, 1322SB
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

Parking: Place de l'Eglise.

(S/E) From Place de l'Église, turn left onto Rue du Prieuré.

(1) Turn right onto Rue des Mauvillons. The road becomes a path. Continue towards La Renardière, ignoring the paths on your left. At the crossroads, before La Renardière, turn left.

(2) Shortly before the large clearing, turn left again onto the long path straight ahead. At the two crossroads, continue straight ahead.

(3) At the third crossroads, at the end of the unwooded plot, turn left. At the new crossroads, continue straight ahead and then turn left. You will come to a crossroads with a stony path; turn right and you will arrive at the road.

(4) Turn right and, just after the bend, leave the road and take a small parallel path on the left. There is no clearly marked path, but it is easy to find.
Enter the field via the designated passage and cross the footbridge over the Erdre opposite.

(5) Take the path on the left 50 metres after the footbridge. After walking alongside a pond, turn right at the intersection onto the path that climbs slightly. Take the path on the right

(6) Leave the gravel path and enter the field. You will then walk along the hedge. Open the wooden gate to enter the path. Continue until you reach the Croix des Hauts Bois on your left.

(7) Continue and, at the end of the grassy path, turn left. At the intersection of paths, leave the grassy path on your right and turn left to reach Les Hautes Provostières

(8) Turn left and then immediately right towards Collerais. At the last house, take the path on the left. Further on, at elevation 53, take the gravel path that goes up to the left. Join a road and turn left to reach the hamlet of Le Grand Épinay.

(9) Take the road on the left, pass thefirst road on the right and take thefirst path on the right.
Continue straight ahead along the path at the edge of the forest. Leave the path on the left. When you reach the crossroads, take the path on the right. Turn left and walk between two rows of poplar trees.

(10) Cross the wooden bridge and take the path parallel to the road. Enter the field via the wooden passage, then take the small wooden footbridge and exit the field.

(11) After walking along the Erdre, you will come to a pretty stone bridge. Take the road on the left (Rue du Moulin). When you reach Rue du Prieuré, turn right to return to the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 41 m - Place de l'Église
  2. 1 : km 0.23 - alt. 43 m - Rue des Mauvillons on the right
  3. 2 : km 2.12 - alt. 51 m - La Renardière. On the left
  4. 3 : km 3.21 - alt. 52 m - Crossroads, on the left
  5. 4 : km 4.48 - alt. 26 m - D33
  6. 5 : km 4.8 - alt. 22 m - Footbridge over the Erdre
  7. 6 : km 5.81 - alt. 43 m - Path on the right
  8. 7 : km 6.19 - alt. 60 m - Croix des Hauts Bois
  9. 8 : km 7.09 - alt. 47 m - Les Hautes Provostières
  10. 9 : km 8.77 - alt. 51 m - Le Grand Épinay
  11. 10 : km 10.1 - alt. 23 m - Crossing the - Erdre (rivière)
  12. 11 : km 10.85 - alt. 28 m - Pretty stone bridge
  13. S/E : km 11.08 - alt. 41 m - Place de l'Église

Reviews and comments

4.2 / 5
Based on 7 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.2 / 5
Ease of following the route
4 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
Bernard 10
Bernard 10

It’s a lovely walk. However, there are no signposts along most of the route. You’ll need a 1:25,000 map and a GPS. That way, you’ll have no trouble at all.

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User 28942778
• Edited:

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 20, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk through the forest, with views of the Erdre, and to top it all off, the sun was shining ☀️ – it was magnificent, but there were no signposts, so we ended up going the wrong way... Otherwise, I’m a big fan of Visorando; generally speaking, everything’s spot on... Best regards

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Bernard 10
Bernard 10

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 24, 2025
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Nice hike through the woods. We changed the route a bit.
At point 2, we joined the "Layon du Breuil" lane and then took the "Chemin de la Grande Balise". Note that "Le Chêne aux clous" (a popular pilgrimage site) was nearby (on the right). We then reached point 3.
From point 5, we went straight to point 10.
Please note that to reach point 11, you will need to cross pastures with livestock. Not very appealing!
From point 10, I suggest crossing the road and taking the path opposite that leads into the forest. Turn right quickly and follow a narrow path that will take you back to point 1.
This circuit is 8 km long.
No access during hunting season. Be careful!

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Michel PASSELANDE
Michel PASSELANDE

I am glad that, like me, you enjoyed this journey.

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F C
F C

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 02, 2023
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant walk during which we had the pleasure of using almost exclusively footpaths! A beautiful mix of forest and hedgerows.
As usual, we only used GPS, so there was no trouble following the route.
Thank you to the creator of this walk! This 2½-hour break on our holiday route was a great opportunity to relax.

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Filou Phil
Filou Phil
• Edited:

We walked slowly, and without the meal we would have taken at least thirty minutes less.
At a normal pace, it takes at least an hour less.
Without the GPX, don't do it because it's impossible to find your way around. The wooden arrows with yellow markings are more confusing than helpful.

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Michel PASSELANDE
Michel PASSELANDE

Indeed, this route requires you to follow the GPX track.
As for the duration, it took me much less time than indicated, but Visorando is the one who corrects the duration.

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Filou Phil
Filou Phil

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 02, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Thanks for the GPX map, otherwise we would have got lost a lot.
The route is nice, but nothing more.
The mileage is good, but the duration is snail's pace because we took our time and included a lunch break.

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Michel PASSELANDE
Michel PASSELANDE

We're glad you enjoyed the route. It's on routes like this that the pleasure of walking becomes ingrained in us. Thank you for your comment.

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adija12
adija12

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 11, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello, we went hiking this morning, 11/06/23, but a little late, setting off at midday to the sound of church bells, with an almost blue sky, bright sunshine and temperatures above 25°C. We enjoyed the varied landscapes, the views of the Erdre and the countryside, and the shady passages through the woods. We saw two deer. The Erdre is a small river at this point. We had no trouble finding our way with the download of the hike. There are several places to stop for a picnic. Really enjoyable, we'll do it again in the autumn, a little earlier in the morning. Thank you for this pleasant route.

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Michel PASSELANDE
Michel PASSELANDE

Thank you for your comments. Glad you enjoyed it.

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tugny44
tugny44

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 15, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant discovery of this trail. I will return with friends. Very pleasant passages through the forest and countryside. Today, with all the rain we've had over the last few days, the Erdre river was overflowing its banks. So we encountered muddy sections in two or three places. But as we had planned for this, everything went well. The trail is very well described and easy to follow with the Visorando app.

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Michel PASSELANDE
Michel PASSELANDE

Hello,
Indeed, I understand that this route can only really be followed using the app on a phone or downloaded to a GPS watch, which is why the Viksorando app is so useful.

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Le barbu en marche
Le barbu en marche
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 20, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Pleasant hike.
The signposting is largely inadequate, if not non-existent.
Without guidance from a smartphone, it is impossible to complete.

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