Walk in the hills around Ratières

Date of your route : Feb 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful walk, but we couldn't see the tower up close because it's private, which is a real shame. When the weather is very clear, you should be able to see Pilat and the Alps, but the mountains were obscured. However, from point 7, we followed the Merdaret riverbed to point 8. At this point, there are two options: either go back up the road as indicated on the map, or continue along the Merdaret riverbed. At point 8, there is a tree and a yellow mark indicating that we should follow it, which is what we did. It is a very well-marked path (footprints, dog tracks, bicycle tracks, etc.). What's more, it's more enjoyable than the road; it's like being in an Indiana Jones film, but there's absolutely no risk as there hasn't been any water for a long time. We also saw several yellow markings. This adds about 2 km to your journey. You come out in a field and you can see the road above it. Turn right and you'll arrive in Ratieres. There's less tarmac if you go this way. I couldn't do this new route because I don't know how, but if anyone is comfortable with the app, they can map it out so that people will have two options for the return journey. All in all, thanks to the author. I didn't know the area, so it was a very nice discovery.

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Jan 27, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Easy and enjoyable hike

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Jan 27, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An easy hike with some beautiful panoramic views. Between points 8 and 9, we took the path to the tower, which was much more pleasant than the tarmac road. Please note: there are public toilets at the car park, next to the school.

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Apr 01, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An easy ride with lots of quiet little roads offering superb views from Chartreuse to Pilat.

Machine-translated

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

A lovely, easy walk.

Machine-translated

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

Far too many roads or wide tracks for me, as I prefer trails and forests (but you only need to look at the map to see that). However, it's worth doing when it's not too hot, as it must be quite tough going (there's hardly any shade along the way and a lot of tarmac).
For the section between 8 and 9, I recommend taking the PR that branches off to the right and goes up towards the tower; the climb isn't too steep and it's much more pleasant than going up the tarmac road.
The second part is generally more pleasant (from "Les Champs des Côtes", just outside Bathernay).
I didn't go to see the Carolingian tower and its garden, or the Mille et Une Cornes park, which might have made this walk less monotonous (depending on the weather; afterwards, there's nothing to stop you coming back by car; it's not very far).

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Mar 09, 2021
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

I tested the suggestion made by the author of this guide to stay in the Merdaillon valley after point 8.
It was magnificent and problem-free!
At point 8, stay in the valley and do not join the road.
You will quickly enter a superb, spectacular wild valley!
The path is wide and sandy, so you can walk without risk of getting lost (enclosed valley).
The slope is gentle at first, then becomes steeper, but always on sand.
You will eventually reach the D 207, which you take to the right to reach the village, on tarmac, but with a gentle slope and good visibility for oncoming vehicles.
Not to be missed, by the way, as this was the only part of the hike that was quite busy when I was there.

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Feb 28, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful walk with varied landscapes. We made a detour to the church in Bathernay to see it up close, as well as the old fortified house that has been converted into a communal lodge.
Be careful at the end of the route, on Chemin des Granges, when you arrive in Ratières, as the occupant of the house asked us to turn back because it was a private road. We took the dirt track below, which then turns right, and at the barns used as garages for agricultural machinery, we turned right again, with the path passing behind the house before joining the road.

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Oct 15, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

In front of the Mille et Une Corne park, description 6 is incomprehensible.

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Oct 08, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

I took inspiration from this hike but modified it slightly. I set off from Saint Avit and found a magnificent path known as "de la tour" (the tower) to minimise the amount of tarmac road. We therefore completed a 12.5 km circular route with an elevation gain of 380 m. The weather was splendid. From the Virgin of Bathernay, we had a 380° view with the Vercors on one side and the Pilat on the other.

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Mar 27, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Interesting hike with magnificent views

We followed the merdaillon until we found the road that took us back to Ratieres

Thank you

Machine-translated

Hello,

Lacks a bit of guidance towards the end.
Reliability of the map route: Average

Did the description or route cause any problems? If so, how can this be remedied?

See you soon

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Sep 03, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Lacks a bit of direction towards the end.

Machine-translated

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A beautiful walk in the hills of Drôme. A superb 360° view. It's a shame about the last part, which climbs for a kilometre on a tarmac road (the author warned us about this).

Machine-translated