The echappee jurassienne

These 270 km of trails will enable you to discover the richness of this region and its unexpected treasures: majestic forests, the Grande Saline and Saline Royale UNESCO World Heritage Sites, emblematic secluded areas, unsuspected vineyards with 6 AOC wines, charming villages full of character (Château Chalon; Baume les Messieurs; Saint Claude...), lakes, waterfalls, gorges, combes... Not to mention the gastronomy!
Don't wait any longer!

PROGRAMME :
Day 1: Arc et Senans
Free day to visit Dole, a Town of Art and History, where you can tour the town freely under the benevolent gaze of Notre-Dame, the majestic 16th-century Collegiate Church. In the historic centre, a maze of treiges and alleyways has brought the town to life since the 13th century. Take time to stroll through the tanners' quarter, where Louis Pasteur was born, the rue des vieilles boucheries or the Place aux fleurs. Dole is a vibrant, colourful city. This historic gem, nestled in a green setting, bordered by forests and crossed by the Doubs and its many canals, enchants visitors.
You will then make your way to the town of Arc et Senans, where a stop at the Saline Royale, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a must. A masterpiece of Claude Nicolas Ledoux, this salt works was built between 1775 and 1779 on the orders of Louis XV.
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay (except on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, when the restaurant is closed).

Day 2: Arc et Senans - Salins-Les-Bains
After breakfast, you will follow the meandering river Loue through the villages of Port Lesney, Rennes sur Loue and La Chapelle sur Furieuse, and follow the Voie Verte through the vineyards. You'll arrive in the town of Salins-Les-Bains, home to the 2nd largest extraction site for "White Gold", the Grande Saline, also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You can visit its impressive Romanesque underground galleries and visit the Salt Museum, which complements the guided tour of the saltworks. You can also relax at the thermal baths, whose waters are naturally salty (extra charge).
Distance: 22.2km / Duration: approx. 6 hours / Ascent: 498m - Descent: 395m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay (except Sunday evening and Monday evening, when the restaurant is closed).

Day 3: Salins-Les-Bains - Pupillin via Arbois
After breakfast, departure from Salins-Les-Bains to climb Fort St André. Then descend through the village of Pretin to the wine-growing village of Montigny les Arsures, where you can admire its 13th-century church and 15th-century château. You will then descend through the vineyards to the town of Arbois, arriving in the Revermont region. You'll wander through its streets, discovering its monuments and stone houses along the Cuisance. Take a break and taste some Jura wines in one of the town's many wine cellars! And if you have the time, you can visit the Maison Pasteur, the home and laboratory of the famous researcher, or the Musée de la Vigne et du Vin, which will tell you all about the history of wine in this small region.
Then on to the village of Pupillin, the capital of Poulsard, a wine-growing village full of character where you can enjoy a tasting of Jura wines!
Distance: 21.7km / Time: approx. 7h00 / Ascent: 1083m - Descent: 964m
Settle into your accommodation for 2 nights: dinner and overnight stay.

Day 4: Pupillin - Pupillin via the reculée des Planches near Arbois
After breakfast, leave Pupillin for the superb reculée. You'll hike through vineyards, passing through wine-growing villages and enjoying magnificent views from the Roche du Feu lookout. You'll find a bit of fresh air at the bottom of the reculée with its Tufs waterfall, then climb up to the Horseshoe lookout before returning to the Pupillin lookout.
Distance: 23.8km / Duration: approx. 7h00 / Vertical rise: 902m - fall: 900m
Return to your accommodation from the previous day (2nd night): dinner and overnight stay.

Day 5: Pupillin - Buvilly - Passenans
After breakfast, leave Pupillin for a 10-minute drive to Buvilly for a descent to Poligny, capital of the Comté region, nestling at the foot of the plateau. Poligny is home to the Ecole Nationale d'Industrie Laitière et de Biotechnologies (ENIL BIO), the Maison du Comté and the remains of the Château de Grimont. There is also the Passage de Vaux and the Croix du Dan overlooking Poligny. You will then continue to Passenans through pastures and vineyards.
Distance: 20.7km / Time: approx. 6hrs 20mins / Ascent: 853m - Descent: 969m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay

Day 6: Passenans - Crançot - Lons-le-Saunier
After breakfast, departure for a full day's hiking. This itinerary has a lot of difference in altitude, as you'll be passing through two remote but beautiful areas! Depart from Passenans for Frontenay and then Château Chalon, a hilltop winegrowing village designated as one of France's Most Beautiful Villages. You'll pass through Blois sur Seille then Granges sur Baume before reaching Baume les Messieurs, also a Plus Beaux Villages, nestling around its Cluniac abbey. You will follow the Dard river to the bottom of the reculée (Tuff waterfall and caves) before climbing the Crançot ladders and discovering the reculée from above from the Roches belvedere.
Distance: 24km / Duration: 7h45 / Vertical rise: 990m - fall: 817m
At the end of the day, transfer by taxi to Lons le Saunier (meet in front of the hotel restaurant, at the top of the belvedere).
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay (except Sunday evening when the restaurant is closed)

Day 7: Lons-le-Saunier - Verges then transfer to Marigny
After breakfast, set off on a stage that takes in part of the route along the PLM, the former railway line (which linked Lons-le-Saunier to Champagnole), now converted into a greenway. After the old railway station at Conliège, stop at the summit of the Ermitage Saint Etienne de Coldre, which overlooks the Vallière valley! You will then come to the village of Verges, dominated by its castle.
You will be picked up by car in front of the church in Verges and driven to your accommodation in Marigny (10' journey).
Distance from Lons le Saunier to Verges (before transfer) :
19.3km / Duration: approx. 5h30 / Ascent: 547m - Descent: 300m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner + overnight stay (1st night).

Day 8: Marigny - Tour of Lac de Chalain - Marigny
After breakfast, off you go for a relaxing day on the water. You'll set off on a tour of Lac de Chalain, the largest natural lake in the Jura, taking in the various viewpoints. It's also a great opportunity to relax and have a swim if you wish.
Distance: 12.6km / Duration: approx. 3h30 / Vertical rise: 348m - fall: 347m
Return to your accommodation: dinner + overnight stay (2nd night).

Day 9: Marigny - hameau de la Fromagerie - Marigny
After breakfast and a few kilometres, you will discover a succession of viewpoints over Lake Chalain, before entering the listed natural site of the Hérisson waterfalls, a succession of 38 waterfalls and jumps over a few kilometres. This major site is one of the most emblematic in the département. Its impressive waterfalls and the calm and serenity of the surrounding countryside are sure to enchant you. You can also visit the Maison des Cascades to find out more about this unexpected place. You can also discover the 65m-high Eventail waterfall and the Grand Saut (60m).
Distance: 16.5km / Duration: approx. 5h00 / Ascent: 678m - Descent: 431m
You will be picked up and taken to your accommodation (3rd night): dinner + overnight stay.

Day 10: Marigny - Hameau de la Fromagerie - Pont de la Chaux
After breakfast, transfer to Le Frasnois to reach the Cascades du Hérisson, then continue the day's hike through forests and lookouts. Climb up to the Saut de la Forge and then reach the Pic de l'Aigle, which offers a breathtaking view of Lac d'Ilay and the Hérisson valley that you crossed the day before. A little further on, the 4 lakes lookout offers an equally impressive view of "Little Scotland" and its 4 emerald lakes (Narlay, Ilay, Petit and Grand Maclu). After this spectacle, continue on to Pont de la Chaux.
Distance: 12.6km / Duration: approx. 4h00 / Ascent: 466m - Descent: 550m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay.

Day 11: Pont de la Chaux - Foncine le Haut
After breakfast, after a few kilometres of hiking, you will enjoy the coolness of the Langouette gorges and waterfalls. From the Langouette bridge, enjoy a beautiful view of this long snake of a river and immerse yourself in the special atmosphere of this place. You'll spend an hour walking along an inviting and fun trail in one of the most picturesque spots in the Jura. You'll continue on to the Bief de la Ruine waterfall at the bottom of the Malvaux gorges, on the old "Tram" railway line. From Foncine le Bas, you will walk up the Saine to reach the source on Mont Bayard through the pastures of the Haut Jura.
Distance: 21.1km / Duration: approx. 6h00 / Difference in altitude: 809m - negative: 658m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner + overnight stay

Day 12: Foncine-le-Haut - Bellefontaine
After breakfast, set off from Foncine-le-Haut through the Mont Noir forest to Chapelle-des-Bois in the Doubs, a Nordic ski resort in winter that becomes a hiker's paradise in summer. Through the pastures where our Montbéliardes cows graze peacefully, you'll reach the Bellefontaine and Mortes lakes, with their peat bogs rich in protected species. You will then reach the small resort of Bellefontaine.
Distance: 20.2km / Duration: approx. 5h30 / Ascent: 656m - Descent: 503m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay.

Day 13: Bellefontaine - Prémanon
After breakfast, set off in the direction of Morez, which you will overlook from the Belvédère de la Roche Brulée without actually reaching. Arriving at the resort of Les Rousses, you will pass through the Risoux forest, a Natura 2000 area protected for the presence of capercaillie. Arriving in the village of Les Rousses, you can enjoy a semi-circular view of the Jura peaks of Le Noirmont to the east, La Dôle to the south-east, Mont Fier, Rocher du Tiavy and Rocher des Arcets. You can visit the family resort at the foot of Lac des Rousses before returning via the Bief de la Chaille, beneath the Fort des Rousses (which can also be visited at an additional cost).
Distance: 18.6km / Duration: approx. 5h30 / Ascent: 737m - Descent: 713m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay.

Day 14: Prémanon - Les Molunes
After breakfast, you will resume your walk on the GR9, passing close to the Swiss border, above the CNSNMM complex (Centre National de Ski Nordique et de Moyenne Montagne) and in particular its ski jump. Once you've reached the Dappes lookout, a remarkable viewpoint and sound site, you'll cross the Massacre forest, with possible access to Crêt Pela (return trip), the highest peak in the Jura department (1495m), from where you might even be lucky enough to admire Mont Blanc! You'll then descend into the Combe de la Chèvre, a cross-country ski trail in winter, to reach the commune of Lajoux, in typical Haut-Jura countryside. Before returning to your accommodation, take the time to visit the Maison du Parc Naturel régional du Haut-Jura on site (extra charge). Head towards Le Manon (D292) to reach your accommodation.
Distance: 20.7km / Duration: 5h45 / Difference in altitude: 632m - negative: 493m
Settle into your accommodation: dinner and overnight stay.

Day 15: Les Molunes - Saint-Claude
For this final stage of your hike, after breakfast you will join the GRP Tour du haut Jura Sud and Tour de la Haute Bienne (yellow/orange signposting). You will descend via the Main Morte and the Crêt Pourri. In Saint-Claude, the capital of pipes and diamonds, you can visit the Cathedral, the Abbey Museum and the Maison du Peuple.
Distance: 19km / Duration: approx. 5h45 / Ascent: 428m - Descent: 1184m
Installation in your accommodation: dinner + overnight stay (except Sunday evening when the restaurant is closed)

Day 16: Saint-Claude
After breakfast, end of the tour.