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(S/E) Swimming pool car park, Rue de Lonege in Ornans. Yellow-blue and yellow-red signposts.
Leave Ornans on the D.241, with your back to the swimming pool. Go past the roundabout, leaving the signposted Chauveroche path on your left. At the Passage de Sevirey sign, turn left towards Monts d'Ornans - Grand Barmaud. Take the Chassagne road.
(1) At the last house, turn left onto the gravel path. You will soon pass some beautiful rocks. After the third hairpin bend, at the top, where there are numerous signs, look out for the red cross of a mountain bike signpost in front of you and climb up a path on the left, up the wooded hillside towards Chassagne-Saint-Denis.
(2) When the path reaches a plateau and turns 90° to the right, a path branches off to the left towards the small opening of the unsecured Mont d'Ornans viewpoint (altitude 509 m). Head back towards the VTT28 circuit. Like a wolf, you will emerge from the woods and cross a meadow.
(3) When the path becomes stony at a signpost, leave the trail and head into the field on the right towards the edge of the woods, following the power line. At the edge, the path becomes stony and you will find the mountain bike trail again. You will quickly rejoin the path you left earlier to climb Mont d'Ornans. Turn left, still following the MTB28 route.
(4) One kilometre further on, at two mountain bike markers, the path splits, forming an oval shape. Keep right towards the edge of the cliffs and the Belvédère de Barmaud. Leave the viewpoint via the small tarmac road which quickly joins the D.241. Follow this road to the left for about ten metres, then turn right onto the stony path.
(5) When the path turns 90° to the left, look for a small trail on the right (ONF sign no. 6, direction La Facle) that enters the woods and leads you to the third viewpoint, the most beautiful, overlooking Notre-Dame du Chêne, La Roche du Grand, the old Tacot viaduct and the Brême valley. At the first viewpoint, turn left, carefully skirting the edge to reach the second viewpoint, then continue along the cliffs. The sharp limestone pavement trail is treacherous for ankles.
(6) At the ONF signpost no. 10, you will arrive at La Facle, a narrow, picturesque fault that cuts into the cliff and allows you to descend back into the valley. Leave the signposts behind. About fifty steps after this beautiful path merges with a stream bed, take a path climbing up to the right. You will soon arrive at a pleasant, quiet paved road where you will turn right and continue for 300 metres.
(7) When the road begins to descend slightly, look for a large green sign on the right marking the start of the path that will lead you to the erratic blocks, enormous masses of stone weighing over 130 tonnes carried by the glacier. Go through a fence using a log ladder and climb up to the right to reach the first boulder. I must admit that I couldn't find the second one, even though 145 tonnes of rock shouldn't be that easy to miss. If you find it, please let us know here. Return to the ladder and head towards the pasture, then follow the upper edge on your right to enjoy a beautiful view of the Roche du Grand. Then descend towards the passage at the end of the meadow to find the road that will take you back to Ornans.
(8) You will pass the campsite. While the small road that took us back to Ornans was pleasant, Rue du Chanet is endless, but it does offer some nice views of the mountains and the castle. You will join the D.241 and descend to the left towards the roundabout and the car park (S/E)
The route includes cliff-side paths and unsecured viewpoints. The paths are rocky and slippery in places. Good footwear is essential and walking sticks are recommended.
Visorando member
Moderate 
Very difficult 
