The 6 most beautiful hikes to do in the Haute Vallée de Chevreuse

Did you know that one of the most beautiful natural parks in France is close to Paris? Farewell city life, we speak to you in this article of the most beautiful hikes to be achieved in the Haute Vallée de Chevreuse.

If you're an amateur walk in nature, you can't miss the Chevreuse Valley. Nestled in the departments of Yvelines and Essonne, you will find endless hiking opportunities at the same time family, sports, cultural or historical.

Featuring a wide variety of natural heritage and stunning views, you will explore the paths between abbeys, picturesque villages, sumptuous castles, ponds, waterfalls, plains, natural reserves and undergrowth.

It is also here that the royal cradle has taken root, offering you in addition to breathtaking beauty, places filled with stories and puzzles. Let's start discovering the 6 most beautiful hikes to be made in the Chevreuse valley without further delay.

1. Dampierre-en-Yvelines and Maincourt-sur-Yvette

If you are in the Haute Vallée de Chevreuse, this circuit is a must. Close by Versailles , the trail starts in the village of Dampierre-en-Yvelines. This peaceful town has kept its authenticity away from Paris’ urbanization.

You will be seduced by its old stone buildings and its splendid castle. The rural atmosphere is ensured with fields of cereal and trout ponds spreading all around the village.

Once the town is over, you will continue the path in a beautiful forest. Countryscapes will then be available to you before crossing the small hamlet of Maincourt-sur-Yvette. In the heart of the forest of Saint Benoit, you will find in this place charming stone houses.

The route will then give you access to the two beautiful ponds of rock on which it is possible to fish. With a little luck, you can also see migratory birds throughout the course.

This trail will allow you to appreciate the diversity of landscapes in the region. Between forest, countryside and picturesque villages, it represents a magnificent entrance gate on the Haute Vallée de Chevreuse.

The hike will appeal to the little one as to the big ones with accessibility to all. Few denials against many landscapes, this is the winning choice of a beautiful sunny day.

2. Les Châteaux en Vallée de Chevreuse

For history lovers, this hike will guide you from castle to castle through the Chevreuse Valley. Between Courbetin, Breteuil, La Madeleine, Méridon or Dampierre, one thing is certain, you will no longer know or give head. The castles of the Loire only have to stand in front of its large competitors in the Chevreuse valley.

In addition to the visit of the castles, the trail offers a truly picturesque atmosphere with its small bridges, the Saint-Martin Church, a profusion campaign and passages in the forest as well as in the river. It is also a breathtaking view of the valley that awaits you by taking the Castles Trail.

On the practical side, the hike does not present any difficulties and points of restoration are possible in Chevreuse and Dampierre. This is the ideal if you want to enjoy a lunch break while remaining impregnated with the village atmosphere. Water supplies are also present on several occasions on the route (Herbouvilliers, Dampierre and Chevreuse).

It is a superb route to discover a part of the Chevreuse valley with completely heteroclite and undeniated landscapes. Beautiful and yet unfamiliar, the walk is to discover and enjoy as a well-kept secret.

3. The tower of the pond of the Tour

We will now take you to Napoleonic land on the edge of the Tour. Built in the 17th century to provide Versailles with water and formerly high hunting place for Napoleon III, the place is now ready for the most beautiful family hikes.

With a remarkable fauna and flora, his visit married to that of the old village of Old Church is the ideal path to enjoy a few hours of tranquility in a soothing and historical place surrounded by swans.

Good to know: the sides of the pond of the Tour, although accessible, remain forbidden to swim.

4. L’Abbaye des Vaux de Cernay

Near Rambouillet, the valleys of Cernay are made up of different hiking routes. The route we offer will offer you a superb view of the Abbey of Cernay, but also of the ponds and especially of the Valleys. On the trail, many panoramas will be at the rendezvous making the course suitable for a lunch break with a view in a peaceful and pleasant place.

You will also find old careers on the site with sandstone slabs, or Fontainebleau sand. The hike is not only beautiful, it is a true educational path and a return in time with a flashback on the life of careers in recent decades.

The easy and uncompromising trail will provide you with superb landscapes in all seasons, so you can enjoy them for a limited time!

5. L’Étang Hollande et l’Étang de Corbet

At the end of the Rambouillet forest, the ponds of Holland and Corbet represent two exceptional sites for wildlife diversity. Between forest, fields and water points, this network, built by Louis XIV, then built in the 17th century to supply the basins of Versailles, is absolutely worth a visit. The hike we offer along the ponds of Holland, Bourgneuf and Corbet.

In addition to enjoying a pleasant view, the ride is also ready for ornithological observation. For this, don’t hesitate to stop at the beginning of the morning or end of the day on the dam between the pond of Corbet and Pourras. The site nests many species, but it is also the preferred terrain for migratory birds during the spring and autumn seasons.

Observation, however, is not the only activity proposed on this pleasant journey. In fact, the large pond is fitted out on a supervised beach and some nautical activities are to be carried out on site.

This hike in the high Chevreuse Valley is therefore conducive to delecting, but it is also an ideal place to observe birds in the wild and enjoy them to cool down after a hot summer day.

6. The Valley of Vaux from Dampierre

Another alternative to discover the Chevreuse Valley for a day is to take the superb course in the valley of Vaux. On the path you can see the pond of the Abbaye and the small Moulin des Vaux de Cernay.

Located in one of the most preserved areas of the park, this walk will make you discover a majestic and enchanting valley on which you will find the remains of the old abbey as well as the different ponds, waterfalls, undergrowth, and forests, but also typical and authentic villages.

This path a little longer than the others (20 kilometers), represents a real condensed of everything that the high Chevreuse Valley has more beautiful to offer.