Tour of Lake Finfarine

Enjoyable walk around the Finfarine dam lake in Poiroux (85) with numerous shaded paths.
Two circuits are available:
- a short 7 km circuit,
- a long 9 km circuit.

Details

2368047
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.23 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 45 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 39 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 33 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 63 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 15 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ District: Poiroux (85440)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 46.507441° / W 1.536089°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 1227E
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in car park P2 at La Folie de Finfarine near the House of Bees and Honey.

(S/E) Take Rue du Payre, following the pavement towards the centre of the village. Turn right onto Rue du Lac after the church and opposite the town hall. Continue to the junction with Rue de la Burelière.

(1) Keep right and follow the shaded path parallel to the riverbed until you reach a footbridge that cars can use.

(2) Take the footbridge and turn left, staying on this path until you reach the first dam (Finfarine).

(3) At the first dam, you can cross over to do a short loop. Otherwise, continue along the reservoir to the next dam.

(4) Turn right and follow a small road to the hamlet of Sorin. Descend towards the dam and the river. You will come to a three-way fork.

(5) Take the leftmost path to reach the Sorin dam. Follow the edge of the lake on the other side until you reach the footbridge you passed on the way there.

(2) Leave the lake shore and turn right onto the hollow path uphill. At the wide path, turn left to reach a Y-junction.

(6) Here you have two options:
- turn left to descend towards the path you took on the way there and rejoin it at the lake's edge, then turn right and follow the same route you took on the way there to reach the junction of the loop.
- turn right and follow a path, sometimes sunken, through a housing estate to reach the village of Poiroux at the same crossroads.

(1) Take the same route as on the way there to return to the car park, walking on the pavement (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 32 m - Parking at La Folie de Finfarine
  2. 1 : km 0.42 - alt. 35 m - Crossroads of the loop
  3. 2 : km 2.15 - alt. 28 m - Footbridge
  4. 3 : km 3.33 - alt. 31 m - Finfarine Dam
  5. 4 : km 4.14 - alt. 29 m - Sorin Dam
  6. 5 : km 4.87 - alt. 15 m - Crossroads at the Sorin exit
  7. 6 : km 8.07 - alt. 61 m - Crossroads route choice
  8. S/E : km 9.22 - alt. 33 m - Parking at La Folie de Finfarine

Notes

Several places to picnic (shaded tables)

Worth a visit

When you arrive at the footbridge, you can see a castle on the hillside opposite.
The two dams: the first was built in 1939 and the second, larger one was built in 1968-1969 to increase capacity (they supply drinking water to the Olonnes region), source: Poiroux Town Hall website.
The Folie de Finfarine, or bee and honey house, where you can discover the 1001 secrets of the life of bees and honey harvesting.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 16 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.8 / 5
Nicoloulou
Nicoloulou

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very pleasant route, very shaded

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Les rebelles
Les rebelles

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant route, to be revisited when the weather is fine.

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Yogawalk
Yogawalk

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 12, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike off the beaten track, with a wonderfully peaceful atmosphere, ending with a picnic by the lake.

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grizi
grizi

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 22, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Tour of the wooded lake, very peaceful. Takes 2 hours at a leisurely walking pace.

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Aragnouet
Aragnouet

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 13, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant site and trail, remained very passable despite heavy rain in the previous days.

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Jpmherb
Jpmherb

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 04, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very interesting route, moderately hilly. Shady, perfect for summer.

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chambrelent
chambrelent

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 16, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant and peaceful.
At the second dam (no signposts), you can actually go down to the bottom because a recently installed aluminium footbridge has been put in place to cross the river.
You can then climb up the other side to reach the other shore of the lake.
We had a picnic by the lake that day, covering 9 km at a leisurely pace in 3½ hours – what a treat!

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Cricri85
Cricri85

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 15, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hello, I completed the circuit without any problems. It was well described and a pleasant hike in September. Autumn is approaching, and the trail has seen a lot of use, judging by the trampled ground.
Thank you for this wonderful discovery.

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JANOU
JANOU
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 22, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful and pleasant walk in peaceful surroundings along the water.
The description is fine, given that it's not very complicated.
However, for the end of the route (which does not return along the same path), it could be a little more precise for the first crossroads when arriving in the village.

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Pilou85
Pilou85

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 08, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful walk around Lake Finfarine, shaded in places and open in others, always close to the shore. The path is clear, allowing you to walk side by side for almost the entire route. The grand tour (9 km) takes 1 hour and 45 minutes at a leisurely pace. I highly recommend it

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Anne-Marie11
Anne-Marie11

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 15, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, easy walk for our first time using the app. We enjoyed the peace and quiet, listening to the birds and walking alongside magnificent oak trees and other species. The sun was veiled, which is rather pleasant when walking.

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Jacky Dalançon
Jacky Dalançon

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 03, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

New information regarding the starting point of the circuit: in the village of Poiroux, work has been carried out on Rue du Lac (the street opposite the town hall); small shops and a car park have been built. The circuit can now start from the car park in the village centre. See two beautiful houses on Rue de la Burelière.03

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pierre.nassif
pierre.nassif

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 25, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful route.
The start of the lake was a bit dry at the end of August.
No difficulty.
One section was closed due to hornet nests, but even with a return trip on the same bank, it was still enjoyable.
Special mention to the fisherman complaining about the fish that teased the float without getting caught on the hook!
Thank you for this beautiful route.

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jlpotpot
jlpotpot

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk, often shaded, which was perfect given how sunny it was that day.

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Radupop33
Radupop33
• Edited:

Indeed, we have seen regulars using the new footbridge at Sorin. And of course, if there are several cars to park, the Maison de l'Abeille car park is preferable. Thank you for this beautiful route. A little anecdote: at the beginning of the year, after the December rains, the sunken path on the last section turned out to be a small torrent, which earned me, as the "guide" of our little group, a few mocking remarks!

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