Rocher du Grand Sangle loop starting from Chaley

The route starts in Chaley near a bridge crossing the Albarine River and a lake (there is a car park).

(S/E) Cross the bridge and head towards the village, following Rue du Centre on your left.

(1) When you reach the town hall, continue right into a narrow street (Impasse de la Gorge), passing a wash house, then continue on an uphill path.

(2) At an intersection, cross a path (corresponding to the former layout of the "Train Fantôme" railway line) and continue along the path until you reach a small cave visible on the right about 20 metres from the path (this cave is not very deep).

(3) From this point, there are some minor difficulties on a section marking the entrance to Combe Suzaire and for a short while afterwards. Follow the path northwards, over rough terrain. Further up, you will come to a spring (marked on the IGN map). Continue to the right at an intersection, then follow a meadow on your right.

(4) At a clearly marked intersection, follow the carriageway to the right uphill, ignoring a right turn at a hairpin bend. Then keep to the right.

(5) At the intersection, follow the path to the right towards Prés Roux, then, a little further on, begin a short descent.

(6) At the bottom of the valley, you will come to another path: continue uphill, following the various signposts.

(7) At the top of the climb, turn right at an intersection. Be careful, as there are some difficulties at this point on a route not shown on IGN and OSM maps ; for more details, see the Practical Information section. Quite quickly, continue left on a poorly marked path and then, further on, continue on a trail that is moderately visible in places (be careful of your direction), staying more or less close to the edge of the plateau.

(8) After a while, you will come to a long crevasse (be careful), which you should go around on the left, then continue on to a viewpoint not far away with a beautiful view of the valley (be careful at the edge of the cliff). Continue along a path with average visibility (be careful of your bearings), then you will reach another viewpoint. A little further on, follow a very slight left turn.

(9) The path disappears for the last few metres near the Gouffre Caché (marked on the IGN map but not seen on site... it seems to live up to its name). Follow the pink markings to turn right twice, then continue on a wide, clearly visible path.

(10) Shortly afterwards, you will come to a viewpoint offering a beautiful panorama of the valley. Be careful of cliffs and crevasses in this area (take care). Retrace your steps, staying on the path and ignoring the path you took to get there on your left.

(11) At the intersection, continue along the path on the left and, not far ahead, follow a path on the right.

(12) You will reach the statue of the Virgin Mary of Lacoux, with beautiful views towards Lacoux and Hauteville. Continue along the route until you reach a path, which you follow for a few metres. You will come to a crossroads (there is a memorial stone here).

(13) Continue almost straight ahead towards La Bertinière. At the^first intersection on the right, follow a path downhill to the road, then follow it to the right. Continue left at the^first crossroads. You will soon reach another crossroads.

(14) Keep right and then, fairly quickly, turn left (passing a goat farm). A little further on, ignore the two intersections on the left and join a road (RD53).

(15) Continue straight ahead on the path and, fairly quickly, keep right at the^first intersection you come to: continue until you rejoin the RD53.

(16) Follow this road to the left, downhill, until you reach the^second hairpin bend.

(17) Continue along the road for a few metres, then turn right onto a path. Further down, you will reach a crossroads.

(18) Continue straight ahead towards Moulin de Charabotte.

(19) Shortly after crossing a bridge, keep right on the path (nice area).

(20) At the bridge, continue straight ahead on the path overlooking the river.

(21) After a short while, keep right at the^first intersection, cross a bridge and head towards a lake (another pretty area). After crossing a bridge on the left (the^{second one} you come to), you will find the car park (S/E).

The starting point can be viewed on Google Maps: click here

Good walking boots and walking poles are recommended.

Please take your rubbish away with you – nature cannot break it down.

The route originally included a section through the Combe de Vaux de Bœuf. This option was not chosen due to the difficulties encountered in this area:

• fairly steep slopes on scree with a potential risk of rockfalls,
• the presence of numerous fallen trees

Below is a difficulty rating by section (a route is not uniform):
- green: fairly straightforward walking with no significant elevation changes or major difficulties.
- blue: slopes and/or elevation changes are more pronounced on a well-marked route.
- Orange: routes presenting some technical difficulties and/or poor route conditions (markings or visibility of the path)

From (S/E) to (1): Green difficulty
Follow a small road leading to the village of Chaley.
Unmarked section.

From (1) to (3): Blue difficulty
Follow a path with a few steep sections but no terrain-related difficulties.
Yellow markings.

From (3) to (4): Blue difficulty
The route becomes more challenging after passing a small cave: following a short traverse across scree, the path then becomes rather rugged, even requiring you to use your hands briefly at one point. After crossing the stream bed (it was dry when I passed through) and a short climb, the route is then fairly easy.
Yellow markings.

From (4) to (5): Green difficulty
You follow a track suitable for vehicles, with no difficulties to be encountered.
Signposts at junctions.

From (5) to (7): Blue difficulty
The route is fairly easy to follow.
Signposts at junctions.

From (7) to (8): Orange difficulty
Please note that the route follows a little-used path up to point (10), where finding your way is not always straightforward. The route is not shown on either IGN or OSM maps (which, in my view, justifies the Orange difficulty rating)
Initially, you follow a path through vegetation that varies in density depending on the season (the route was also completed in March but with a different assessment); you may come across a small section marked by brambles, which can be avoided by keeping to the right (as I observed on my last visit). The route then continues along a track running fairly close to the edge of the plateau. Watch out for a small cliff at the^first viewpoint you come to.

From (8) to (9): Orange difficulty
Watch out for a relatively deep crevice and the cliff edge at the viewpoint. Continue along a route that remains moderately visible at times and head very slightly to the left after another small viewpoint.

From (9) to (10): Orange difficulty
Towards the end of this section, the path disappears for a short distance. Head left, following a few pink markers, to reach the Rocher du Grand Sangle viewpoint a little further on.
Unmarked section.

From (10) to (11): Blue difficulty
Take care of the cliffs and crevasses in the vicinity of the viewpoint. From there, the route follows an easy path.
A few old yellow markings + signposts at junctions.

From (11) to (13): Blue difficulty
You’ll follow a track suitable for vehicles for a good hundred metres, then continue along a path with a series of short ascents and descents.
Signposts at junctions.

From (13) to (14): Blue difficulty
The route^initially follows a track before continuing along a downhill path. Further down, the route follows a small road.
Signposts at junctions.

From (14) to (15): Blue difficulty
You follow a short section of road before turning left onto a track with no significant difficulties to be encountered.
Signposts are provided at junctions.

From (12) to (16): Blue difficulty
You follow a path with some steeper sections at the start; overall, the difficulties are fairly minor.
Signposts at junctions.

From (16) to (17): Green difficulty
A quiet road is followed without difficulty.
Unmarked section.

From (17) to (18): Blue difficulty
You follow a path with relatively few difficulties.
Unmarked section.

From (18) to (19): Green difficulty
You follow a small road with no difficulties to be encountered.
Unmarked section.

From (19) to (20): Green difficulty
A path is followed without any difficulties encountered
Unmarked section.

From (20) to (21): Blue difficulty
After the bridge, the route follows a path along a slightly steep section that is very well secured, after which the route is fairly straightforward.
Unmarked section.

From (21) to (S/E): Green difficulty
This section is fairly easy to navigate
Unmarked section.

• Rocher du Grand Sangle.
• Gouffre Caché: after some research, it appears that the IGN has mislocated this feature; it would, in all likelihood, correspond to the long, cross-shaped crevasse encountered a little earlier. Access is by no means straightforward without equipment (in fact, this also involves another caving-related activity). To find out more, click here.
• Vierge de Lacoux: for further reading, click here,
• Stèle des Prés Roux: to find out more, click here.
• The so-called “Ghost Train” line. To find out more, click here to access an old article from the *Journal du Bugey*. Also worth a look is the book *Les Tramways de l’Ain*, published by Éditions du Cabri.
• The Moulin de la Charabotte: in days gone by, there were three mills in this area. They were replaced around 1872–1873 by a textile mill which operated until 1902