From the Denecourt tower to the Calvaire cross trail

Along this trail you will discover works undertaken mostly by Claude-François
Denecourt in the 19th century, and enjoy several viewpoints on the forest.

The Denecourt tower: initially called “Emperor’s Fort”, this tower was built in 1853 by Claude-François Denecourt (1788-1875), a veteran of Napoleon’s great army, who became passionate about the forest of Fontainebleau. He was the creator of the “blue trails”, first marked hiking trails in the world, as well as numerous works along them (fountains, grottos…)

The Butte à Guay: this name was for an ancient “canton” of the forest. Until the 19th century, the “canton” was the territorial unit of the forest. In 1750, there were 176 cantons.

The Calvaire cross: originally, three crosses were erected under King Louis XV between 1731 and 1735. Knocked down in 1793 during the French Revolution, as were all other crosses in the forest, they were set up again in 1805. From the ridge you can see the city of Fontainebleau, its palace, the hill called Butte Monceau, and the Avon viaduct built in 1849 to allow the passage of the Paris-Lyon railway.