ReportageThis green treasure receives more than ten million visits per year. But on 25,000 hectares! And it is enough to move away a little from the paths or… the car parks to find happiness and a quiet corner. Here are five good reasons to flee the city.
After a year of containment-reconfinement, the French increasingly feel the need to see life in green again. The forest of Fontainebleau, in Seine-et-Marne, opens its branches to them with 25,000 hectares of oaks, Scots pines, beeches …
And this green treasure is within easy reach of roads, since the forest is crossed by the A6 motorway, the nationals and the Transilien.
But isn’t the massif too accessible, crowded, seen and reviewed, to still be of interest? According to the tourist office of the country of Fontainebleau, it receives some eleven million visits per year.
“There are only a few sectors of the forest that are invaded, specifies Clément Lhommeau, co-founder of the Helloways platform, which offers nature hikes accessible without a car. As soon as you move away from Barbizon, a village famous for its painters, the Franchard gorges or the twenty-five bosses circuit in the Trois Pignons massif, you come across less frequented or even unknown areas. “
The public interested in the forest is also changing. According to Christelle Berthevas, from the tourist office, it would be “Younger, more feminine and more tempted by long stays”. The agency has set up many activities to allow as many people as possible to (re) discover this space, most often by trying to raise awareness of the exceptional biodiversity of the site labeled Exceptional Forest. Our selection.
“Bleau”, as climbers say, is the French climbing spot par excellence. “This is even where the activity became more professional, with the creation at the beginning of the XXe century of rating systems and signage that allow the difficulty of the routes to be assessed ”, recalls Jérôme Chaput, head of the Globe Climber agency and climbing instructor in the forest.
For the thirty-something, who was initiated in Fontainebleau at the age of 12, the site is “Perhaps the most interesting climbing spot in the world”. Because if its thousands of sandstone blocks can frighten neophytes by their sometimes disproportionate size, many are ideal for discovering the discipline. “Bleau is 40,000 passages, all listed in guides, he notes. There is really everything, including very easy blocks, on which the stone hangs without hurting your hands. “
Within his agency, he advises beginners to start with half-day sessions, because the activity remains very physical. He leaves with small groups, less than eight people, in somewhat remote areas. “According to statistics from the National Forestry Office [ONF], nearly 90% of people who come to the forest stay 500 meters from car parks, he emphasizes. Even near Barbizon, you just have to leave the main paths and walk fifty meters in the forest to be quiet. ”
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