Salives, medieval town

Salives, a must-see medieval village in Côte d'Or: its ramparts, its keep, the heraldic route recounting the medieval life of the village, and its wash house with the main source of the Tille river under the church. This route also takes in Barjon Castle and Saint-Frodulphe Chapel. A little further on, there is a mill with a water wheel that is still in working order. Also worth seeing in Le Meix are the wash house beneath the town hall and the château.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 11.89 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 256 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 260 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 464 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 343 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the Abreuvoir car park. In the village, follow these directions.

(S/E) From there, take the path lined with lampposts and walk along the ramparts. At the medieval entrance to the village, continue along the ramparts to Rue du Moulin and follow it to the left for a few metres.

(1) Turn left again towards Montarmet and continue to the hamlet. At the crossroads, continue straight ahead, leaving the dovecote on your left, then take the farm track.

(2) At the fork next to the farm building, turn left and follow the path to the woods. Go down into the woods via the small path.

(3) Stay above the Volgrain fountain and follow this path. A little further on, do not take the footbridge but follow the river for about 30 metres and continue. Keep left on the path which, after the climb, leads to a farm track.

(4) Turn right. Continue along this farm track until you reach a small road, then turn right towards Barjon.

(5) At the entrance to the village and just after the farm building, turn right and go down the street to the church.

(6) Next to the picnic tables, take the entrance to the Saint-Frodulphe Chapel with its 8th-century tomb. Leaving the chapel, turn right onto Rue de Matrot and a little further on, turn right again onto the small road that leaves the village and joins the D19.

(7) Turn left to follow the D19 towards Avot, then cross the river.

(8) Cross the Moulin de Barjon leat and, just before the bend, take the farm track on the right. After about ten metres, turn right again. Continue along this track until you reach the D120

(9) Follow this road to the left towards the village of Le Meix.

(10) Pass in front of the town hall, taking the time to see its wash house below, then in front of the church and descend towards the castle. Go around the castle on the right.

(11) At the end of the castle wall, take the farm track on the right through the pastures (ignore the track further to the right). Follow this track straight ahead and keep to the right at the fork (elevation 416). This track leads to the D19 at the entrance to Salives. Walk about 50 metres to the left, then turn left again onto Chemin des Remparts. When you reach Rue de la Borde, turn right and follow this street to the wash house, where the main source of the Tille is located.

(12) Go around the wash house and church, which form a block, and follow Rue d'Amont to the left until you reach the keep. Once at the keep, continue straight ahead to reach the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 415 m - Car park known as "de l'Abreuvoir"
  2. 1 : km 0.72 - alt. 403 m - Crossroads of the circular
  3. 2 : km 1.94 - alt. 461 m - Pitchfork next to a farm building
  4. 3 : km 2.89 - alt. 385 m - Fontaine de Volgrain
  5. 4 : km 3.4 - alt. 412 m - Farm track on the right
  6. 5 : km 4.85 - alt. 400 m - Crossroads just after entering the village.
  7. 6 : km 4.95 - alt. 397 m - Picnic tables. - Chapelle
  8. 7 : km 5.53 - alt. 362 m - Crossroads with the D19.
  9. 8 : km 5.9 - alt. 343 m - Barjon Mill
  10. 9 : km 7.7 - alt. 372 m - Junction with the D120
  11. 10 : km 8.23 - alt. 400 m - Le Meix Town Hall with the wash house below.
  12. 11 : km 8.85 - alt. 375 m - On the right, farm track
  13. 12 : km 11.57 - alt. 392 m - Salives wash house. Source of the - Tille (rivière)
  14. S/E : km 11.89 - alt. 415 m - Car park known as "de l'Abreuvoir"

Notes

Two picnic tables in Barjon next to the chapel.

Please note that the woodland crossing at the Volgrain fountain is not passable during periods of flooding or after heavy rainfall.

Worth a visit

The ramparts of Salives, its keep and the heraldic route; its wash house with the main source of the Tille.
Volgrain fountain.
Barjon Castle and Saint-Frodulphe Chapel.
The Barjon Mill, its leat and water wheel.
Le Meix Town Hall with the wash house below and the castle.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 16 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
NanaDidi
NanaDidi

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 01, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The region is beautiful and so is the route. Special mention should be made of the various villages we passed through, all of which were picturesque.
The description is not always sufficient, so a GPS is recommended.

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nelapebone
nelapebone

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 22, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Part of the trail is not maintained and the signage leaves much to be desired.

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Gilbert RENAUD
Gilbert RENAUD

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful "nature and culture" route linking three medieval villages, each with its own unique heritage. No problem finding your way if you follow the GPS track. At the end of our walk, we attended a vocal concert in the beautiful Salle de l'Abreuvoir in Salives. If you're in the Salives area, check out the programme for this venue. You might be pleasantly surprised.

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Soliine
Soliine

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

I couldn't complete the entire route because it was flooded, as indicated in the description

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bouboumi
bouboumi

Overall rating : 2.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 19, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An interesting route, but unfortunately with virtually no signposting.
We searched for a long time and finally found the path in the forest that leads back up to the farm track, but there were no markings, which was a shame.

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jacdesv
jacdesv
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

a beautiful region with many points of interest. The route we took was extended to the Champignolles fountain and its drying racks (18.5 km)

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cartoum
cartoum

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 19, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful and interesting hike.
Three villages, three castles, a mill, magnificent.
No difficulty on the route, one of the most beautiful hikes we have done in the Dijon area.

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bernardcollignon
bernardcollignon

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 03, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Salive, a very pretty fortified village. Beautiful castles in the three villages we passed through. A very pleasant route with beautiful views of the surrounding countryside.

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ChristianNant70
ChristianNant70

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

Exciting route: diverse landscapes: hills, springs, meadows with unobstructed views.
Monuments and historic villages in good condition. Ramparts around Salives, its keep and wash house.
Dovecote in Montarmet. Castle and chapel in Barjon. Castle in Le Meix. Six hikers charmed!

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Land39
Land39

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 16, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Departure from the beautiful village of Salives, which is worth visiting. A lovely, enjoyable hike with varied landscapes. No worries about finding your way, as the description is precise and very well done.
Thank you for this hike.

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Michou021
Michou021

Overall rating : 5 / 5

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

A pleasant hike starting from the village of Salives, with its ramparts dotted with pretty towers, its church (unfortunately closed), its fortified well and the ruins of its keep...
As the route is not signposted, there is a risk of taking the wrong path at point 3 (at the Fontaine de Volgrain). At this point, a group of hikers has marked (in white) an "alternative route" along a path, first on the right bank of the Volgrain stream, then on the left bank of the Tille. This alternative route, which is still in the forest and marked "Rando 10 km", avoids the villages of Barjon and Le Meix and could be considered a variant – a shortcut – of the route proposed by Visorando.
Suggestion: This route – with its alternative route – would probably be worth including in the PDIPR (Public Network of Hiking Trails) and officially marked (in yellow?).

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bri21
bri21

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

A beautiful hike. We followed the description very carefully, knowing that others had had trouble finding the paths, and without using the map we had no problems. It's true that sometimes the path is not very well marked, but the description is very precise. So well done!

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cuzcodom
cuzcodom

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 03, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Superb hike, very well-planned route.
Of course, the Visorando app has now become indispensable, and it's a real pleasure to use.
One small comment: the mill with the water wheel is not the one in Le Meix, but the one in Barjon (the route passes by it, so no worries). We did both, but that's our loss.
Oh, and after the Volgrain spring, don't cross the footbridge, OK, but don't take the path that climbs steeply to the left shortly afterwards: just continue along the river and the path will gently climb up towards the fields, as indicated.
Congratulations again on this amazing hike.
(The mill owner is friendly and not at all gloomy.)

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jddej
jddej

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 24, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A route with varied and very pleasant scenery, passing through small, peaceful villages with interesting architecture (particularly Barjon). It is essential to have a map of the route as the signposting is not great (or even non-existent).

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henri57
henri57 ★

Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to give your opinion

we lost our way at the end of the path before the first village. Also, after the Château du Meix, where is the path mentioned on the right?

Finding your way while hiking is not easy. If you are not confident in your orientation skills, I recommend using the Visorando GPS app in addition to the description and map.

The aim is not to be glued to your smartphone, but to have a tool that allows you to validate waypoints and thus remove any doubts about your orientation.

See you soon!

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