Suisse Normande: Clécy, the Pain de Sucre and the Roche d'Oëtre
Normandy, France
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Pain de Sucre Climber
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300
XP
+100 France
= 400 total
2 days
Suisse Normande: Clécy, the Pain de Sucre and the Roche d'Oëtre
300 + 100 XP
South of Caen the Orne cuts a steep wooded valley through the eastern edge of the Armorican massif, known as the Suisse Normande, and Clécy has been its official capital since a tourism minister gave it the title in 1932 — climbing, canoeing, paragliding and walking all off one village. Ten kilometres south the Roche d'Oëtre drops 118 m into the wooded gorges of the Rouvre, a precipice with no equal in Normandy.
Required Activities
1
of 4
Paddle the Orne from Clécy under the 1866 viaduct and past the Manoir de Placy, the 14th and 16th-century fortified house a kilometre east of the village, on the reach Paul-Émile Pissarro and André Hardy painted again and again
2
of 4
Climb one of the routes on the crags round Clécy with a guide or club, or walk up to the Pain de Sucre for the view over the Orne
3
of 4
On the summit of the Grand Roche, walk fifteen or twenty metres to the right of the precipice and look back left until the rock resolves into a human face in profile, then take the steep path of rough uneven steps down to the Rouvre at the bottom of the 118 m drop
4
of 4
Walk the 6 km Sentier des méandres north-west from the Roche d'Oëtre round the loops of the Rouvre, past dry stone walls and schist houses, or send the children into Orne Aventure in the wood beside the belvedere, nine courses of rising difficulty from age three up
Paddle the Orne from Clécy under the 1866 viaduct and past the Manoir de Placy, the 14th and 16th-century fortified house a kilometre east of the village, on the reach Paul-Émile Pissarro and André Hardy painted again and again
Climb one of the routes on the crags round Clécy with a guide or club, or walk up to the Pain de Sucre for the view over the Orne
On the summit of the Grand Roche, walk fifteen or twenty metres to the right of the precipice and look back left until the rock resolves into a human face in profile, then take the steep path of rough uneven steps down to the Rouvre at the bottom of the 118 m drop
Walk the 6 km Sentier des méandres north-west from the Roche d'Oëtre round the loops of the Rouvre, past dry stone walls and schist houses, or send the children into Orne Aventure in the wood beside the belvedere, nine courses of rising difficulty from age three up
Before you go
The Sentier du granite along the Rouvre is closed from October to February inclusive for flooding and shooting; the other three trails off the Roche d'Oëtre are open all year. The belvedere is unfenced in places and the descent to the river is on rough uneven steps. Several of the waymarked routes cross private land, so keep to the path, light no fires and take everything out with you.
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About Normandy
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Challenge Location
XP Breakdown
Challenge XP
300 XP
France country bonus
+100 XP
Potential total
400 XP
Country bonus earned on completion of your first challenge in France.
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