Huisne Valley and the hills of Val-au-Perche

Lush green valleys, steep hillsides, majestic panoramas, sunken lanes and their gnarled pollarded trees are all part of this beautiful countryside walk, which crosses the wide Huisne valley and takes you through the villages of Mâle and La Rouge.

Details

4962674
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Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 18.54 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 6h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 240 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 237 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 193 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 90 m

Photos

Description of the walk

(S/E) From the church car park, follow Rue des Moulins then turn left into Rue de la Vallée, pass the former Abadie factory and continue towards the village exit.

(1) Leave the D407 and turn left onto a small tarmac road; at the end of the tarmac section, turn left towards La Thibaudière. Continue along the dirt track which leads onto the Route de Mâle (D288).

(2) Turn left onto it for 100 m and then turn right off it to follow a tarmac road that passes in front of Le Côtier and Le Haut Queux.

(3) At La Croix de Pierre, continue straight ahead along the dirt track which leads to La Bellangerie.

(4) Turn right onto the street that passes in front of the wash house and some beautiful Perche-style houses and leads to the church square. Head down Rue d’Huisne to the left until you reach a crossroads.

(5) Continue straight ahead towards La Rouge. Cross the Huisne, then the level crossing, and continue to the Route de Nogent.

(6) Cross the D286 with care and continue along the D635, which leads to the village of La Rouge and the Rémalard road. Turn left towards the church.

(7) Before reaching it, turn right onto a street leading to some new houses. At the fork, turn left; after La Cochinière, continue straight on along the dirt track which passes in front of the Manoir de la Gauberdière and heads towards the Bois des Baronnières.

(8) Continue straight on along the path through the woods, which climbs and leads to a crossroads with several paths.

(9) Take the small forest path opposite, which descends to a stony lane. Turn left and then left again at a house onto the stony path, pass La Crônerie and arrive at the Hôtel Réno.

(10) Continue along the dirt track which enters the woods to reach a wide lane; follow this to the right until you reach the exit.

(11) Just after the house at Champ au Theil, turn right onto a stony path for a few hundred metres, then onto a grassy track, and continue straight on to the hamlet of La Vigne.

(12) Continue along the tarmac road which descends steeply to La Joussinière and the D636.

(13) Cross the road and follow the tarmac road towards Le Petit Sablon. Continue straight on along the dirt track which climbs towards the Bois du Tertre. Keep going straight on and, on leaving the woods, you will reach a tarmac road at Les Vaux Mignons.

(14) Turn left and join the D107 road to Saint-Germain-de-la-Coudre, whichyou cross with care, then take the small tarmac road opposite that climbs and passes in front of a pylon.

(15) Once at Le Tertre, follow a dirt track straight downhill and, before the tarmac road, turn right onto a grassy track which you follow until you reach a tarmac road.

(16) Turn left and head downhill to a wide road (D107), whichyou cross with care, then take a small tarmac road. Continue straight on to the entrance of Le Theil and cross the bridge over the railway line.

(17) Follow the road to the left, which runs alongside the factory and leads to the centre of Val-au-Perche. Continue straight on to the Place de l’Église and the starting car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 102 m - Église Notre-Dame de l'Assomption (Le Theil)
  2. 1 : km 0.35 - alt. 93 m - Abadie factory - Huine (
  3. 2 : km 1.64 - alt. 116 m - Route de Mâle
  4. 3 : km 3.18 - alt. 130 m - The Stone Cross
  5. 4 : km 4.08 - alt. 119 m - La Bellangerie
  6. 5 : km 4.84 - alt. 97 m - Carrefour de l'Écu
  7. 6 : km 6.53 - alt. 121 m - La Picardière
  8. 7 : km 7.65 - alt. 108 m - Église Saint-Rémi (La Rouge)
  9. 8 : km 9.28 - alt. 138 m - Entrance to the Bois des Barronières
  10. 9 : km 10.33 - alt. 192 m - Crossroads
  11. 10 : km 11.28 - alt. 164 m - The Hôtel Réno
  12. 11 : km 12.4 - alt. 176 m - Fields at Le Theil
  13. 12 : km 12.92 - alt. 131 m - La Vigne
  14. 13 : km 13.28 - alt. 121 m - La Joussinière
  15. 14 : km 15.21 - alt. 156 m - Les Vaux Mignons
  16. 15 : km 16.11 - alt. 160 m - Le Tertre
  17. 16 : km 16.96 - alt. 120 m - Lorrière
  18. 17 : km 17.94 - alt. 106 m - Railway bridge
  19. S/E : km 18.53 - alt. 102 m - Église Notre-Dame de l'Assomption (Le Theil)

Notes

In Val-au-Perche, all amenities.

Worth a visit

Reviews and comments

4.7 / 5
Based on 5 reviews

Reliability of the description
5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
4.2 / 5
boulard pierre
boulard pierre

Thank you for your feedback.

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User 27879408

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 08, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant walk, with a route that is very well described and easy to follow.

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Lpt_73
Lpt_73

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 21, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful route with lots of shaded sections, which are very welcome during the summer months.
It should be noted that this route can also be done by mountain bike without any particular difficulty. In fact, I only came across three cyclists, including a father with his two young children.

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Pjsn
Pjsn

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 05, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk.

Machine-translated

boulard pierre
boulard pierre

Thank you for your feedback.
The description has been updated.
Happy hiking

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phjog
phjog

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 05, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A superb walk offering views of the Perche region’s diverse landscapes
Plenty of shaded sections, making this walk manageable even in the intense heat, as we’re experiencing today, 5 July.
A perfect description, to which I suggest a few minor changes to remove any uncertainty about the route:
§1: add “...tarmac road, then, at the end of the tarmac section, turn left again...”
§7: add "...new houses; at the fork, turn left; after La Cochinière ...."
§11: amend: “turn right onto a stony path for a few hundred metres, then onto a grassy path....”
§13: replace "... which passes in front of houses..." with "... heading towards Le petit sablon ..."

Thanks again for a great day
Philippe

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dplahaye
dplahaye

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 17, 2021
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely route to do again in the warmer months. It’s enjoyable thanks to the varied scenery and the fact that it passes through two villages.
The climbs have gentle gradients with a reasonable elevation gain.

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