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It is best to park your car in the large central car park in Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse.
The walk starts to the west of the square. The path, which is not easy to find, starts to the left of the Bois des Lièvres building (the one with shops, a butcher's and a pizzeria) and goes down behind it. A sign will confirm you are going in the right direction and you will descend into the valley.
(1) Cross the Couzon stream on a small wooden footbridge and climb up the other side. Join a wider path on the right and very quickly you will come to a small tarmac road, which you take on the left (south-west). Cross the small hamlet of Carlinière.
(2) A little further on, the road seems to end, but there is actually a hairpin bend to the left. Here you will find a signpost. Take the small path on the right which crosses a field and leads to the edge of the woods. It runs along the woods to the left (south).
Next, ignore the wider track on the right, which leads to the Grand Som via the Pas de la Suiffière. Turn left. Further on, you will come to a ford. Thanks to the stones, it can usually be crossed without getting your feet wet.
Continue downhill to the left and you will reach the Saint-Pierre water treatment plant, which is completely underground, and the D520b road that climbs up from Saint-Laurent-du-Pont.
(3) Take this road to the right, as the Grand Logis bridge is now closed to pedestrians. Very soon, take the old bridge on the left. Once you have crossed it, turn left again (Grand Logis cave). Then take a path that climbs up to the right (south-east). Pass in front of the Saint-Hugues Chapel and the former monastery outbuildings, which have been converted into guest rooms.
You will come to a small, well-paved road. You can cut across the bend by taking the steep road opposite. Then take the road on the left (south) and follow it for over a kilometre. Ignore the paths that branch off to the right, then take the first left.
(4) Follow this path, which turns right (south), ignoring the path on the left that leads to the hamlet of La Diat.
You will come out onto the D512, which comes from the Col de Porte. Cross it and take the path opposite, which descends steeply. At the bottom of the descent, ignore the bridge opposite. On the right, you will see a small bridge (a large plank...)
(5) Cross the ford and climb gently back up into the forest.
Continue climbing up a small valley towards the south-west. You can see the stream on your left. The path climbs up through copses and meadows. You will come out onto a small road, which you take to the left. It crosses the hamlet of Les Michallets, then passes an old sawmill and winds its way to the hamlet of Cherlieu.
(6) In the hamlet, turn left onto the D57b, which is not very busy. Take the first path on the right to reach the hamlet of Les Egaux and pass at the foot of the ski slopes.
(7) Very quickly (about 200 m), turn left onto a narrow road (signposted Les Epallets Altitude 960 m, follow signs for Brévardière). You will come to a small tarmac road, which you follow to the left (north-east).
(8) At the crossroads at the end of the road, turn right and you will come to a small crossroads. Ignore the road on the right towards the Col du Coq (closed in winter) and take the road slightly to the left which goes up the valley heading north. You will pass several groups of typical houses until you reach the hamlet of Mollard-Bellet.
(For those who want to avoid the paved road, there is a mountain path above it that also leads to Mollard-Bellet (this adds about 1 hour and some elevation gain). It is marked on the 1:25,000 IGN map.
(9) The road turns right. Cross the hamlet of Les Antonins and, about 500 metres after that, just before you reach the junction with the Saint-Pierre and Perquelin road, take a path on the left.
(10) Follow it until you reach a bridge on the right, which you cross. Take the small tarmac road to the left. It leads back to Saint-Pierre, passing in front of the Trail buildings. At the junction with the D512, turn right for 50m then turn left to return to the car park at the starting point.
superb walk. 13 km of easy access. Little elevation gain. Pleasant because it is well shaded on the first part. The second part, on the other hand, follows the road, but fortunately it is not too busy.
Visorando member
Association / Club / Walk leader
Very difficult 
Difficult 
Tourist office
