Tro Sant Riwal circuit

Nestled beautifully in a lush green valley, this village has all the charm of a mountainous countryside, with its sunken lanes, hedgerows, streams and rugged terrain.
The village’s name derives from the parish’s patron saint, Saint Rivoal (formerly Riwall), the name of a prominent family among the Bretons who emigrated to Great Britain in the 5th and 6th centuries.

Saint-Rivoal has been awarded the ‘Communes du Patrimoine Rural de Bretagne’ designation.

Details

142694
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.75 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 781 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 794 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,076 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 449 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

Car park: central square opposite the town hall.

(S/E) Starting from the village square, in front of the parish church, head down the road towards Brasparts (D30) for about 500 m, following the GR® 37 – GR® de Pays des Monts d’Arrée.

(1) At the gable end of a house, turn left up a shaded path lined with embankments. At the top, turn right and continue along a dirt track.

(2) Head uphill to the left and walk alongside a conifer plantation.

(3) At the road, turn right and follow it to Bodenna.

(4) At the pumping station, turn right, then left. Carry on straight ahead until you reach a junction of five paths at the foot of Montagne Saint-Michel and its chapel.

(5) Take the first path on the left to go round the mountain (381 m) (you can reach the summit via the path on the right to look out over the Saint-Michel reservoir and the Yeun Elez peat bogs). Continue along a path through the moorland towards the radio masts.

(6) At the D42, take a few steps to the right, then turn left onto the ‘Chemin du Comte’, which once marked the boundary between the counties of Cornouaille and Léon.

(7) Cross a local road,

(8) Cross the D30 carefully and continue straight ahead into the Saint-Cadou State Forest.

(9) As you leave the woods, turn left onto a path through the moorland.

(10) Pass under the power line. Continue straight ahead along a sunken path.

(11) You’ll come out onto a road; turn left onto it to reach Penn Ar Guer.

(12) Cross the D42 carefully and head towards the Moulin de Pont Glaz.

(13) At a hairpin bend, turn left onto the GR® 37 – GR® de Pays des Monts d’Arrée, which runs alongside a stream. Pass the Moulin d’en Bas. Climb up to Pont ar Varn.

(14) Finish the walk by turning right onto the D42 to return to Saint-Rivoal, passing in front of the Maison Cornec, part of the Monts d’Arrée Ecomuseum (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 574 ft - The central square opposite the town hall.
  2. 1 : mi 0.18 - alt. 535 ft - Shaded footpath
  3. 2 : mi 0.52 - alt. 646 ft - Junction
  4. 3 : mi 0.63 - alt. 699 ft - Small road
  5. 4 : mi 1.53 - alt. 751 ft - On the right, at the pumping station,
  6. 5 : mi 2.82 - alt. 958 ft - Junction points: take the first path on the left
  7. 6 : mi 4.16 - alt. 988 ft - D42
  8. 7 : mi 5.02 - alt. 801 ft - Local road
  9. 8 : mi 6.01 - alt. 712 ft - D30
  10. 9 : mi 6.63 - alt. 810 ft - Junction
  11. 10 : mi 7.3 - alt. 791 ft - Sunken path: EDF power line
  12. 11 : mi 7.99 - alt. 738 ft - Local road to Penn ar Guer
  13. 12 : mi 8.34 - alt. 636 ft - D42
  14. 13 : mi 8.57 - alt. 525 ft - GR® 37 – GR® de Pays des Monts d’Arrée
  15. 14 : mi 9.35 - alt. 525 ft - D42
  16. S/E : mi 9.75 - alt. 574 ft - The central square opposite the town hall.

Notes

County roads: take care when crossing and walking along them.

Worth a visit

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 25 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.9 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
User 27400178

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 17, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A magnificent route that takes hikers up to the chapel at the summit of Menez Mickel (well worth a detour at point 5, even though it’s the only part of the route that’s fairly busy). The route takes you along charming sunken paths and offers a beautiful view of the lovely village of Saint-Rivoal.

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BSA
BSA
• Edited:

A superb walk through paths, forests and moorland, undertaken the day before the sharp rise in temperatures. The paths were a bit muddy in places but should dry out during this heatwave. The signposting is adequate. No major difficulties. I’d recommend it and will certainly do it again.

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User 10129357

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 27, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A really good route. I must have taken the wrong turn towards the end.

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La nature est belle
La nature est belle

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 25, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A magnificent walk – don't forget to take a detour to see the view of Lake Bennilis and the chapel of St Michel de Brasparts. The scenery is splendid, even in winter. Be careful not to be afraid to get your feet wet, as some sections are flooded in heavy rain.

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User 27448922

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

Magnificent hike.
Varied route

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Les pommiers
Les pommiers

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 04, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Beautiful and varied route

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Bruno 29
Bruno 29

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful route without too much tarmac. The paths are sometimes turned into streams, but the season is perfect for that
Thank you for this very pleasant route

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Brendanlrx
Brendanlrx
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 30, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A superb hike in winter, so very few people around apart from a few trails used by streams that take up all the space, haha. The view is magnificent around Mont Saint-Michel, especially the panorama overlooking Lake Brennilis.

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MieJo
MieJo

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful hike in the heart of nature: fields, woods, peat bogs, etc.

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mariedaniel
mariedaniel

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 06, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

-A beautiful hike in the Monts d'Arrée with varied landscapes, particularly the immense moorland covering the area around Mont Saint Michel de Brasparts, which also offers superb panoramic views. The route follows beautiful sunken paths, sometimes lined with beautiful flowering broom at this time of year. However, given the dampness encountered on these paths, they are likely to be impassable in winter and early spring.
-In any case, we thoroughly enjoyed this hike.

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Kerenoc
Kerenoc

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 03, 2020
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Hike starting from Ménez in the opposite direction to the description.
We really liked:
. The moor in the early morning mist
. The St Rivoal museum
The Chemin du Comte is more monotonous.

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FLOCH
FLOCH ★

Thanks for your message.
Good point about the antenna; I've corrected the description.

I've done this route several times, mostly in the summer, and even then some parts were still quite wet.

Best regards and keep up the good work on Visorando.

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Selinde
Selinde

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 23, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

There is a minor issue with the antenna; it should not be left on the left side but on the right.
The path is very muddy, and you often have to go through thickets to avoid the mud.
The estimated time is accurate (depending on walking speed).
But otherwise it's a very nice walk with beautiful views.

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2PiihR
2PiihR

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 28, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Very beautiful hikes, however, some sections are impassable in winter due to water and mud over several kilometres.

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Randormeuse E-mer-veillée
Randormeuse E-mer-veillée

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 29, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike, with good signposting and very clear explanations!

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