5 hours; climb: 750m
A fairly hard walk in the hills between Corneilla and the medieval fortified town of Villefranche. Along the route, there are excellent viewpoints and interesting ancient monuments.
Please note: at May 2025, the footbridge at point 22 has been displaced following storms. The stream is difficult to cross during and after rainfall. Also, there is now an alternative, waymarked route between points 20 and 21, slightly to the left, along the red line shown on the map here.
1 - Corneilla-de-Conflent, village centre. With the church behind us, we pass to the right of a pretty statue... In the old village, we go to the right again... We descend towards the main road.
2 - We cross the road; we go to the right and immediately to the left, on a lane... We cross two rivers.
3 - We leave the lane and we follow a path on the left... The path climbs a steep slope.
4 - Dolmen. We go to the right... We follow a track, which climbs in zig-zags.
5 - Bifurcation. We go to the left (sharp turn)... We continue to follow the track.
6 - Hilltop ('Citerne Vauban'). We go to the right.
7 - Path crossing. We go to the left... The path descends in zig-zags... We are careful on the exposed sections.
8 - Junction with a road, at the foot of the hill. We go to the right... We cross the road and we enter the fortified village of Villefranche... We pass through the village.
9 - 'La porte de France' and a bridge over the Cady river... We cross a car park and a main road... We follow a waymarked path which climbs to the right... The path crosses a canal and it climbs towards a forest.
10 - Bifurcation, in the forest. We go to the left... The path turns to the left... It leaves the forest and it climbs in zig-zags.
11 - Bifurcation. We go to the right.
12 - 'La Redoute' (fortification of the 19th century)... We turn round and we descend to point 11, where we go to the right.
13 - Junction. We go to the right, on a track.
14 - Clearing and junction. We go straight ahead.
15 - Bifurcation. We leave the track and we follow a path on the right... The path turns to the left.
16 - Junction. We go straight ahead... On the left, we visit the 'Cabane d'en Bullas', a remarkable dry stone cabin (17)... We follow the path, which climbs to the right.
18 - Viewpoint over Villefranche, vertiginous but safe... We turn round and go back... At the junction at point 16, we go to the right, on a stony path...The path, waymarked, turns to the right and it joins a track... We follow the track... Junction of tracks. We go to the right... Our track turns to the left, under a power line... We climb... The track turns to the right... At a junction we go straight ahead.
19 - Second viewpoint, on a terrace... We turn round... After a few metres, at a junction, we go to the right, on a path... We follow the waymarks carefully... We pass to the left of a stone farmhouse, in ruins.
20 - Junction. We go to the right and we continue to descend... We pass to the left of two dry stone cabins.
21 - Small gate. We go through the gate, we go to the left and then we follow a path on the right... The path, stony, descends towards a stream.
22 - Footbridge. We cross the bridge, we climb and we go to the right... We return to the village of Corneilla.
2015