Les Ventrons

Date of your route : May 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike completed on 08.05.2024
Difficulties in understanding the description, which lacks obvious landmarks (refuge, tree, house, farm, etc.). Not always very clear.
Please note:
1/ The access road to the car park is still closed, so the hike starts from the entrance to the Schlossberg campsite
2/ Following the introduction of capercaillie, the GR531 is temporarily closed from the Bockloch pass and the summit of Grand Ventron
Why doesn't the trail stay on the GR531 to pass through Haut de Felsach, which is really worth the detour?
Points 6 and 7 are incomprehensible + a sign pointing to the left instead of the right
At point 1 (Abri du Tal), there are no explanations and you have to look for the path that leaves the forest road.
After point 7, at altitude 747, the trail branches off to the left (the one on the right marked with a blue disc does not exist)
After the Felsach farmhouse inn, at elevation 993, we couldn't find the trail leading to Frenz. We took the descent of the old ski lift. In fact, after elevation 993, you have to take a path on the left marked with a blue triangle.
Finally, the final descent (after elevation 747) is in poor condition and very demanding. If I were to do this circuit again, I would descend towards Kruth via the blue triangles and finish on the south-north trail at the foot of the slope. You could also start from the football pitch car park.
All in all, I am very disappointed by the inaccuracies in the description, but it is still a superb walk.

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Date of your route : Jun 10, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, with a gradual climb through the forest, making it ideal in hot weather. The descent via the Felsach FA allows for a short break. The descent is very steep and the path is in poor condition at the end of the route. Moderate difficulty, but only suitable for regular walkers.

Please note that the dam road is closed, so park along the main road

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Date of your route : Mar 27, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike on Saturday 26/03/22 accompanied by my dog.
No problem for dogs, they just need to be fit.
The road leading to the dam is closed 500 metres before, so just park in the lower car park.

A beautiful trail starts along the Bockloch waterfalls, which are flowing nicely following the recent snowmelt, and leads to Grand Ventron.
It's a majestic spot with a 360° view and beautiful stubble fields. There's still snow in some places, it's just magnificent.
A short detour to Haut de Felsach is a must, and you'll quickly find your way back.
In the last 5 km, there are about 3 km of rough track that crosses an area damaged by heavy vehicles, but it is still passable with good footwear.
The map route is almost perfect, but the explanations are not very clear! Just follow two or three major signs and you'll get there.

Final route of 20 kilometres

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Date of your route : Feb 26, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful walk, except for the end of the route.
Forestry machinery has severely damaged the paths, making them very muddy.

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Date of your route : Sep 25, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

loop starting from Grand Ventron (overnight stay at the refuge), taken in the opposite direction towards Col du Bockloch to begin with.

beautiful hike, rolling descent to the lake with sections on rocky single tracks in the forest then wide paths.
We had lunch on the dam... at the edge of the lake (which is dry at the moment) but the view of the Alsace valley is quite nice.

On the way back, given the increasing number of kilometres, we took a shortcut at Frenz. In the village, we followed the trail marked with a red circle with a white interior, called "le tour de Frenz", before returning to the trail marked with a yellow circle.
This climbs back up to the GR531 at Chaume de Vintergès via a beautiful (very beautiful, in fact) winding path. There's a small hut at the top where we stopped for a well-deserved snack!
then we returned to the refuge via the GR531 (Vinterges, Tête du Chat Sauvage, Petit Ventron and Grand Ventron...)
Kilometre marker at the end: just under 21 km... Measured by a Garmin fenix 6, which is fairly reliable for this!

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Date of your route : Jul 13, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Departure disrupted due to asbestos removal from the bridge, so detour through forest and fields.
Lovely walk, good climb to reach Le Ventron, then walk along the ridge to
the farmhouse inn. Short stop to enjoy a good beer and some fromage blanc with kirch
and descent via a slightly slippery stony path and return to the
first car park via a detour due to roadworks.

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Date of your route : May 18, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

it's very good for summer and spring, but in winter it's very risky because of the water and stones, which are very slippery when climbing or returning

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Date of your route : May 17, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The walk begins by crossing the Kruth Lake dam. In May 2020, the lake is dry and the dam is under construction. Therefore, it is forbidden to the public and illegal to cross the dam. After that, the path to point 1 is closed to the public due to fallen trees. There is a detour via a road. The description is sometimes ambiguous, but the map is correct. The "problem" is that there is no network coverage in the forest, so do not rely on your phone's GPS. The walk is very pleasant, quite tiring, with beautiful panoramic views and a diverse forest. Take some cash with you as you will pass a farmhouse inn that makes very good cheese.

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Date of your route : Feb 25, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

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Date of your route : Feb 03, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

you need to wear good waterproof boots, otherwise it's fine

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Date of your route : Aug 17, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike and reliable route, which we followed with one or two minor variations (map 3619OT in hand), and which included an overnight stay at the Felsach farmhouse inn with a marcaire meal. A lovely weekend, beautiful views, a challenging route but still suitable for the general public. We recommend it!

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Date of your route : Feb 18, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Couldn't complete this beautiful hike because the snow was too deep to walk through

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Date of your route : Aug 29, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very varied route, forest, stubble fields, etc.
I recommend this hike, which is magnificent.
If you don't want to cut corners... follow the blue rectangle
. For my part, I clocked up 19 km.

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the hike took place on Sunday, 5 August.

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Date of your route : Aug 10, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike that really begins on the winding trail along the Blochloch waterfalls. It's a shame that this trail is used as a toilet (clearly visible piles of soiled paper) by wild campers who have set up camp all along the trail below, despite the no camping sign. On this Sunday in early August, unfortunately, the waterfalls were reduced to a trickle. But the hike is ideal in hot weather as it is mostly in the undergrowth. The final descent is a bit hard on the knees. But we really enjoyed the route and will do it again in the spring, hoping that the waterfalls will reveal themselves in all their beauty.

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