Montées et descentes dans les collines de Gratens

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With the Pyrenees as a backdrop, this route takes you along wide paths where you can enjoy the charm of the countryside with its oak woods, lakes and pretty houses. Walkers should note that much of the route is on tarmac or stone paths, which is ideal in wet weather but may not be to everyone's liking.

Details

n°19002258
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 11.30 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 123 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 124 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 327 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 248 m
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Description of the walk

Park in the small car park behind the church.

(S/E) Head west up Rue des Jardins towards the school.

(1) At the school, turn right onto Chemin des Pèlerins, which descends to the bottom of the valley and crosses the Ruisseau le Peyre stream before climbing back up to a tarmac road.

(2) Turn left onto Chemin de Barut, a ridge road offering views of the Ariège peaks in some places. Stay on this road, ignoring the yellow markings that invite you to turn left to reach the Barut farm. A few hundred metres further on, ignore the path opposite that leads to the Blazy farm and stay on the road, veering slightly to the right.

(3) At the T-junction, opposite the beautiful Régine residence, turn left onto Chemin de Castelnau. Ignore the roads that branch off to the left and then to the right and continue along Chemin des Moussats.

(4) At the bottom of the valley, just after the bridge, take the dirt track that climbs up to the left and turns right at the top.
Follow it to the junction with the Pouy de Touges road - D626b.

(5) Continue straight ahead on Chemin de Gratens, another tarmac road that descends into the woods before climbing again after crossing the Riou Tarac. A lake is visible on the left and you will reach Chemin de Monrous, which branches off to the left.

(6) Continue straight ahead until the next junction. You will see a second lake on your left and the Pyrenees opposite.

(7) Turn left onto Chemin d'Aurheillan and, at the next junction, left again (Chemin d'Argelès) and follow this road to the junction in the valley near a pond.

(8) Turn left and continue straight ahead until you reach the junction with the C4. Turn left until you reach a fork at a place called Danis.

(9) Follow the left-hand lane for 30 metres, then turn right onto Chemin de Biros. This tarmac road runs alongside a wood, passes below the village of Marignac-Lasclares, whose bell tower can be seen, approaches the Canal de Saint Martory and climbs to join Gratens via Chemin de Jouandas. Continue straight ahead, passing the beautiful town hall on your right, then at the foot of the water tower, rejoin the route you took earlier.

(1) Turn right to return to the church and the car park where you started (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 282 m - Car park behind the church
  2. 1 : km 0.2 - alt. 283 m - Chemin des Pèlerins - school
  3. 2 : km 1.02 - alt. 284 m - Chemin de Barut
  4. 3 : km 3.12 - alt. 309 m - La Régine
  5. 4 : km 3.82 - alt. 298 m - Bridge over the Peyre
  6. 5 : km 4.58 - alt. 325 m - Crossing the D626b
  7. 6 : km 5.91 - alt. 314 m - Crossroads
  8. 7 : km 6.57 - alt. 312 m - Chemin d'Aurheillan
  9. 8 : km 8 - alt. 271 m - Crossroads
  10. 9 : km 8.83 - alt. 263 m - Chemin de Biros - C3 - Canal de Saint-Martory
  11. S/E : km 11.3 - alt. 282 m - Car park behind the church

Notes

Alternative
(6) You can turn left onto Chemin de Monrous and join Chemin de Biros (9), which shortens the hike by about one kilometre.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 6 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
4.3 / 5
Olivier Bel Air
Olivier Bel Air

Thank you for making these changes and suggesting alternatives. The description is now perfect!

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Denis26
Denis26 ★

Thank you for your comments. I have just updated the information sheet to mention the possibility of shortening the route.

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Olivier Bel Air
Olivier Bel Air

We repeated this hike on 22 January (rainy season, looking for paved routes) and changed the itinerary between points 5 and 6: about 100 metres before point 6, at the top of the hill, near Monrous, we took the small paved road on the left that crosses the hamlet of Pujeau and leads directly to point 8. This is an alternative to the solution proposed by the moderator (following the closure of the passage before the Naudet farm), who suggests turning left - but after point 6 - onto the tarmac road after Faucon, which leads to Canitrot. The choice can be made depending on the length of the hike: either shorten it by just under 1 km, or lengthen it by about the same amount compared to the description.

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Laetitiette
Laetitiette

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 09, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike completed in February, on a rare sunny day between two periods of heavy rain. Lots of tarmac, but it was perfect for this time of year. The route is easy to follow (except at points 6 and 7, but this is indicated on the map and in the description; just continue along the road).
Very beautiful view of the Pyrenees, very slight inclines, no difficulty. It took us less time than expected to complete the route, even though we added an extra kilometre. Perfect for getting back into it gently.

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bigfoot
bigfoot

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 18, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant despite the persistent humidity of the previous days: stone or tarmac paths and beautiful views of the Pyrenees.

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Shrando31410
Shrando31410

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 06, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The route is nice. At points 6 and 7, we found a path in the field along the farmland that leads to the small road to Argeles. We descended on the left, passed the Canitrot farm, and then turned right at the irrigation reservoir, crossed the ford and took the path on the left (yellow markings) into the woods for 100 metres. We returned to Gratens via Coujoun.
This avoids a large section of tarmac road and requires a slight repositioning with the Ign.

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grandin
grandin ★

Olivier Bel Air

So, can you change the route and description? Or would you prefer us to remove this hike from the website?

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Olivier Bel Air
Olivier Bel Air

Thank you for your research, and yes, unfortunately, I don't see any other solution than to continue on the road, which is regrettable, penalising and detracts from the appeal of this hike, which already included quite a bit of tarmac... best enjoyed in winter, or after a rainy period...
We often see this kind of more or less legal "reclamation" of land by farmers, thus interrupting routes for walkers...

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grandin
grandin ★

Bernard CONDAMINES

Thanks for the info. I've added notes to the description.

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Bernard CONDAMINES
Bernard CONDAMINES
• Edited:

I am writing to provide additional information regarding my message dated 8 July 2022.
Although there was a path between points 6 and 7 listed on the IGN map, it has been ploughed over by the owner of the agricultural plots. The latter "does not intend to allow hikers to pass through". It is therefore necessary to go around the obstacle. Unfortunately, at present, I can only see one solution, which is to continue along the road. More tarmac. If anyone has another solution, it would be welcome.

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Bernard CONDAMINES
Bernard CONDAMINES
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 07, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

A pleasant short walk offering beautiful panoramic views of the Pyrenees.
Not recommended for those who dislike tarmac (lots of small, quiet roads) and best avoided in very hot weather (long stretches without shade).
The small grassy path between 6 and 7 has disappeared under ploughing, which can be a problem when the crops are tall or after a rainy period.

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bolies
bolies

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 01, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

well-marked circular route along two hilltops; beautiful views

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Marcus
Marcus

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

Some possible confusion with other routes marked with yellow markings between Chemin des Pèlerins and Barut, and before La Regine.

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