Monthureux-Sur-Saône: Hiking, Nature and History

The options described range from an approximately one-hour circular trail in Vallon du Préfonrupt to routes listed as taking nine hours. They also include a former priory church, the Maison du Patrimoine Local, and the history of a once-fortified town in a loop of the Saône. This allows you to choose the focus of your stay according to your timeframe and personal interests.

Hiking trails with different timeframes

The forests of Monthureux-sur-Saône have numerous hiking and mountain biking trails. In Vallon du Préfonrupt, a circular educational trail marked ENS 88 runs through the valley. It starts at the Monthureux-sur-Saône cemetery car park and takes about an hour. This approximate duration gives you a concrete reference point when planning a shorter outing.

Les Balcons de la Saône (Nos. 2 and 3) start at Allée des Moines. They are rated easy, and the route is listed as taking nine hours. This means very different timeframes are available: about an hour for the educational trail in the Vallon and nine hours for Les Balcons. Allée des Moines is also the starting point for Sentier du Père Maire (No. 15), which begins near Place de la République.

Stops along Sentier du Père Maire include a former monastery, Pont des Prussiens, Roche du Père Maire and Vallon du Préfonrupt. The trail also passes Fontaine du Buis, Roche du Serpent and a railway tunnel. This tunnel is designated a Natura 2000 site and is home to bat colonies. The listed points give you a concrete sense of the historical and natural themes brought together along this trail.

The natural setting of Vallon du Préfonrupt

The Préfonrupt stream and the adjacent wetlands in the valley are home to the European brook lamprey, the fish known as the bullhead, the fire salamander and the yellow-bellied toad. Together, the stream and wetlands provide the habitat for these species. For nature enthusiasts, the valley is therefore more than just a name on a hiking map: it is a place with a diverse aquatic and wetland environment.

A constructed path above Vallon du Préfonrupt offers views of sandstone outcrops, an old quarry and the dense vegetation of the wooded valley. These features give the landscape different points of interest: sandstone, traces of former quarrying and the surrounding vegetation. This path offers another view of the valley alongside the circular educational trail in the Vallon.

The church, local history and heritage

Eglise Saint-Michel is a former priory church founded from 1090 by Benedictine monks under the authority of Luxeuil. The church contains a remarkable wooden Entombment scene in polychrome—that is, multicoloured—decoration. The work is in the Rhenish style and dates from the late 15th century. Its material, colours, style and date make it a clearly described historical work of art within the church.

The Maison du Patrimoine Local is housed in the former presbytery of Monthureux-sur-Saône. It displays a collection of domestic and agricultural objects that evoke rural life in the past. Household life and agriculture thus offer two ways to explore this rural past. The Maison is open in July and August; check the current dates before your visit.

Monthureux-sur-Saône was a former fortified town built in a loop of the Saône. In Monthureux-sur-Saône, the Parcours entre Saône et Mouzon offers the opportunity to discover the town’s thousand-year history. Together, these historical themes offer a view of the town as a fortified settlement and of its long history.

Eglise Saint-Michel can be visited individually free of charge; guided tours are available on request. Check local visiting arrangements before travelling. This allows you to plan your visit in the way you prefer and to take the Maison du Patrimoine Local’s seasonal opening in July and August into account.

Discover more destinations: Xertigny, Allarmont, Vrécourt, Le Clerjus, Girmont Val D`ajol, Saint-Remy, Fays, Légéville-Et-Bonfays.

Go to the regional travel overview: Vosges.