Local loop in shared space: loop of the Grosbois Lake

With its 40 kilometres of route and its significant differences in altitude, the Grosbois lake loop in the heart of the Auxois region is reserved for the more athletic.
From Bellenot, you will reach the commune of Grosbois-en-Montagne and its counter-reservoir, where you can take a rest before tackling the road to Commarin.

There you can visit the castle (one of the most beautiful in Burgundy) and its large wooded park. Afterwards, you will go to Vandenesse-en-Auxois, with a short detour to the Panthier reservoir, where you can take a dip. There's nothing like a little swim to make you feel better...

HERITAGE

During your walk, you will pass through the village of Commarin, a site that is a high point of the Côte d'Or heritage.

The village, where Henri Vincenot, a 20th century writer emblematic of Burgundian rural life, lived, is home to the Château de Commarin, which has been run by the same family for 26 generations, in a large wooded park.

This building, with its elegant and harmonious facades, is reflected in the water of the wide moat that surrounds it. The castle, first a fortified farm and then a fortified house, underwent several transformations during the 16th century, such as the decoration of the Gothic chapel, with its Terracotta Entombment. The alchemical and heraldic tapestries with the Vienne coat of arms date from this period.

The château de Commarin was then refurbished during the Enlightenment by Marie-Judith de Vienne, Talleyrand's grandmother. The furniture and objects that adorned the flats have remained intact since that time. Later on, stables were built within the castle grounds. The site's English-style park is also worth a visit, just to be able to walk and stroll at the foot of its trees.

On your way, you will come across another element of the cultural and river heritage of the Côte-d'Or: the reservoirs of the Burgundy canal. There are six of them in the department, and two (Panthier and Grosbois) are on the Grosbois Lake loop.

These reservoirs were built to supply water to the Burgundy Canal, as the latter needs several million cubic metres of water to operate. The canal crosses two valleys, the Yonne and the Saône. It also goes up to the watershed (the famous "seuil de Bourgogne", located in the commune of Pouilly-en-Auxois), and then goes down again.

It was necessary to organise the water supply at the top of the canal, and to create several reservoirs located higher up (as for a water tower and its principle of communicating vessels), because large quantities of water leave on the other side of the canal at each lock opening. The Grosbois, Cercey and Chazilly reservoirs were set up to supply the canal at Pouilly-en-Auxois. Moreover, the Grosbois reservoir that you will meet on your walk has been equipped with a counter-reservoir, where you can now swim.

Three other reservoirs were built in the Côte-d'Or to serve the canal, those of Panthier, Pont and Tillot. Today, the Burgundy Canal's supply system remains a model of its kind.