Andrésy Naturellement - Paths and trails

In Andresy, on the right bank, park near the Church of Saint-Germain-de-Paris on the banks of the Seine (parking spaces along the Seine).

(S/E) With your back to the Seine and facing the Church of Saint-Germain-de-Paris, take Rue de l'Église on the left of the houses, which are themselves on the left of the church, and turn right, still on Rue de l'Église. Walk past the church, then turn right again into Rue Jean Jaurès, at the post office, to reach the banks of the Seine. Cross the boulevard.

(1) Turn right to follow the promenade (Promenade du Docteur Giffard), with the Seine on your left, and walk behind the Church of Saint-Germain-de-Paris. Continue straight ahead, crossing the market halls. At the roundabout, leave the banks of the Seine: ignore the street straight ahead, which is a no-entry road, and take the street that slopes diagonally to the right (Rue du Général Leclerc) on the left of a restaurant with a large sundial on the façade. Continue straight ahead on this street. Further on, ignore the street on the right that leads to the Saint-Éxupéry secondary school. Then ignore Rue Jean Monnet and the small Rue de Trélan on the left.

(2) At the fork, next to a beautiful property with a large green gate on the right, take the street on the left (Rue de la Roulette) to return to the banks of the Seine. Follow the Quai de Seine to the right. Take the first small passage on the right, between two stone walls (the one on the right with an ornate stone and brick balustrade). You will come to a street (Rue du Général Leclerc) and follow it to the left. Pass in front of the house where La Belle Otero lived, at No. 70 (a large house surrounded by a garden, with a small veranda on the left and a large dark green porch). Shortly afterwards, take the first alley on the right, Sente de la Côte aux Renards, just after a no left turn sign. This alley makes a first turn left then right.

You will come out onto an avenue (Avenue Maurice Berteaux) and follow it to the left. At the next crossroads, with Rue du Ponceau on your right, take Sente de la Cour aux Choux on your left. At the end, after a right turn, go down a street (Rue du Général Leclerc), turn right and go to the end of the street, a T-junction with a house with a red gate on your right and a "Fin de zone 30" (End of 30 km/h zone) sign. The house opposite has a plaque saying "Rue du Général Leclerc". Turn left onto Rue de Chanteloup, then continue right onto Quai de l'Écluse for about 200 metres.

(3) Turn right onto Sente des Boves. Cross Avenue du Général Leclerc and continue straight ahead, slightly to the right, onto Sente des Cornets. At the end, turn right onto the road (Sente des Garennes). After 50 metres, take the street on the left, at the corner of the school complex, which is again Sente des Cornets. At the next crossroads, turn right onto the street (Sente des Pointes) and you will come out onto a street at a crossroads.

(4) Turn left (Rue de Chanteloup) and ignore Rue des Cardinettes on your left just after. Further on, you will come to the embankment of a road, at the street signs "Rue de Chanteloup" and "Rue des Basses Gaudrines". Continue right on the latter and, further on, follow the railway line on your left. At another street sign for "Rue des Basses Gaudrines" and the Maurier roundabout, which is actually a long intersection, continue by turning left for about 50 metres.

(5) Just before an intersection with a road on the right (Rue du Ponceau), turn left under the railway line (Rue Pablo Neruda). On the other side, cross Rue Salvador Allende (sign on a lamppost on the left) and continue straight ahead. At the roundabout, at the "Rue Pablo Neruda" street sign, turn right (Rue des Ormeteaux). Go to the end of this street to reach an intersection with "Rue des Ormeteaux" street signs, turn right and then immediately left onto a path that runs alongside a supermarket on your right.

(6) Do not go to the road but turn onto the path on the right behind the supermarket (Chemin des Grands Heurts). You will soon reach a tarmac road and continue straight ahead. At the next crossroads, with the street sign "Chemin des Grands Heurts", continue straight ahead, slightly to the right onto Avenue Maxime Traverse. At the fork immediately after, turn right onto Rue des Vignes, which will change its name further on to Chemin des Vignes. At the end of this street, at the "Chemin des Vignes" street sign, take the street on the right, which will quickly lead you to an intersection. Turn left (Avenue des Coutayes) and continue overlooking the Seine valley. Take the first street on the left, Sente du Clocher, which is a narrow street with a "no entry for vehicles over 3.5 tonnes" sign.

(7) At the top of the street, at the crossroads with Rue Maxime Traverse on the left and a path straight ahead, turn right onto the street, which immediately turns into a path. At the intersection of paths, turn right (Chemin des Coquelicots) and, after a few bends, you will come to a street with a double street sign "Avenue des Courtayes", "Chemin des Coquelicots". Turn left for a few metres then immediately turn right onto Rue de l'Hautil to cross the bridge over the railway line. Immediately afterwards, turn right onto a small street (Sente Rurale du Cimetière) which runs alongside the cemetery wall on your left and the railway line on your right. Take the next street on the left (Impasse des Barils) and, at the next crossroads, at the street sign "Impasse des Barils", continue straight ahead down a few steps. You will arrive at a street (Rue des Courcieux) and turn left. After a right turn and then a left turn, you will arrive at a paved crossroads near a house with a rounded wall and the street sign "Rue des Courcieux". Turn right to return to the banks of the Seine and the car park (S/E).

The street names in brackets are not necessarily indicated on site at the time of finding them.

(S) The Church of Saint-Germain-de-Paris: Construction of this church, dedicated to Saint Germain, Bishop of Paris in the 6th century, began in the 13th century. This church was classified as a historic monument by decree on 25 April 1949.

The Espace Saint-Exupéry currently comprises the Tourist Information Point, the Saint-Exupéry municipal library, the Ivry-Gitlis School of Music and Dance, the cultural department of the town of Andrésy, and the eponymous leisure centre.

The Maison de la Belle Otero A historic residence dating from the 17th century, this house was inhabited by important bourgeois figures, including Claude Lepage, Lord of La Chapelle and valet de garde-robe to the Duke of Orléans, who died in 1704. In 1903, La Belle Otero, a famous cabaret singer and dancer and a great courtesan of the Belle Époque, acquired the house. She lived there until 1911.

The underground quarry: there are two types of quarries in Andrésy, located at different altitudes depending on the materials extracted. At the lower level, near the Seine, there are limestone quarries from which building stone was extracted. Higher up are the gypsum layers. This gypsum was mined industrially from the 18th century onwards.

Ancient cemeteries and the Merovingian cross: A Merovingian necropolis was discovered in Andrésy in 1890. Around five hundred tombs dating from the 5th, 6th and 7th centuries were discovered. A few hundred metres from this Merovingian site is the oldest cemetery in the commune. Originally located near the parish church, towards the rue de l'église, it was moved to its current location before the Revolution.

(E) The Royal Gate: This gate was part of the "King's Wall" separating the cultivated lands of Andrésy from the hunting grounds of the forest of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, which at the time began just opposite, on the other side of the Seine. In 1794, the authorities deemed it "urgent to destroy anything that could be related to despotism". The royal gate was sold to the highest bidder for 100 livres and then partially demolished.