CIRCUIT RANDO DU VAL DE BLIES

A cross-border hike Leave the car park of the Maison de Quartier de Folpersviller by following the yellow disc, go past the church, cross the road, enter the alley and go down the rue de l'Iris. At 80 m on your left, in the heart of an old cemetery, stands the gothic chapel Sainte Barbe, it is contemporary to the church of Zetting which dates from the 15th century. An old Vosges sandstone cross is leaning against the wall next to the entrance of the chapel. Then turn right and follow the rue Sainte Barbe until you reach the last houses, then take the Bruchwies road. 200 m further on, turn left along the fence of the shredding plant to the edge of the Bauerwald forest. Cross the Bauerwald following the signposts. From the pastures you can enjoy the beautiful view of the Bliesgau and the Folpersviller plateau Continue on to rue de la forêt, go up to the right past the old Parkways Inn, cross the railway bridge and turn left along the embankment of the S.N.C.F. track At the end of the road turn right into the Cobachweg. After 500 m turn left up a country lane which leads to a municipal road which you have to follow on the right until you reach the bridge over the old Sarreguemines-Bitche railway line Before the bridge follow the path along the road for 900m, then cross the Maywald on the left At the exit of the wood enjoy the panorama over the Blies valley before descending to Bliesbruck. Go around Bliesbruck by the rue de la Blies ending on the main street and then the rue de Robert Schuman to reach the Archaeological Park. There are picnic areas for lunch in the Archaeological Park or in Bliesbruck. The return journey to Folpersviller is made to the Bliesbruck bridge by the same route as the outward journey, with a small variant via the Gallo-Roman street In Bliesbruck, cross the Blies bridge, follow the Pasteur and Abbot Zoller streets before entering the Gräfinthalerweg to Habkirchen Follow the yellow disk via Kirchenstrasse, Prälat-Roth-Strasse, Zweibrückenstrasse, then turn left into Blieskastelstrasse. Just before the bridge on the left is the Customs Museum, which can be visited by appointment or every third Sunday of the month from 2 to 5 pm. Cross the Europe bridge, then take the left at the end of the street to the left of the church, then go up to the right of the street of the castle At the intersection of the two streets on the left is a small chapel. A short detour is necessary to the ruins of Frauenberg Castle a hundred metres further on. 500m from the circuit, along the D 82, there is also a Jewish cemetery Continue the hike through the rue des Rossignols, continue the climb by a rural path to reach the water tower and the Wilherheide plateau where a 360° panorama is offered to you Continue on Folpersviller on a road that can be driven on, then turn right into the Rue de Blies-Ebersing and return via the Rue de Folpersviller and the school group's street to the starting point Departure: parking lot of the Maison de Quartier in Folpersviller or the parking lot of the European Archaeological Park in Bliesbruck-Reinheim Beaconing: yellow disc