Domanial Forest of Villefermoy

Former ecclesiastical forest and royal hunting ground of King Louis XVI, the Domanial Forest of Villefermoy, in Seine-et-Marne, became state property in the 19th and 20th centuries. It is today a Natura 2000 zone.
60km from Paris and 20km from Melun, located on the municipalities of Échouboulains, Les Écrennes, Valence-en-Brie, Pamfou, La Chapelle-Gauthier, Fontenailles, La Chapelle-Rablais, Coutençon and Laval-en-Brie, this vast and beautiful oak forest is composed of two entities separated by an agricultural zone : the "Forêt de Villefermoy" to the West and the "Bois de Saint-Germain-Laval" to the East.

The Villefermoy massif has a long history that can still be found today in the layout of forest roads and above all in the presence of ancient remains. Although its existence has only been attested since the Carolingian era, human activity there is far older. Humans did indeed roam this woodland domain as far back as the Neolithic. It has been inhabited and used, temporarily or permanently, since the Gallo-Roman era.
As a former ecclesiastical forest, it was the property of the abbeys of Barbeau, Preuilly, Saint-Germain des Prés and the Commanderie de l'Ordre de Malte de la Croix en Brie before the Revolution. An extension of the Haie de Brie, it served, in the Middle Ages, as a natural boundary between the possessions of the Count of Champagne and the domain of the King of France. The monks exploited it to produce timber and firewood which they used in their abbeys. A forest warden, "Hugues garde des bois" (Hugo custos nemorum), was moreover appointed as early as 1140 in order to oversee the woodland and its exploitation ! The forest gradually became, through exchanges and acquisitions, state property during the 19th and 20th centuries. Its management was then entrusted to the Eaux et Forêts administration and subsequently to the Office National des Forêts (ONF) in 1964.

Located at the heart of the humid clay plateau of the Brie, its surface extends over 2641 hetares and presents a fairly flat relief (between 105 and 135m in altitude). It includes a network of ponds and wetlands that shelter a great diversity of amphibians, including several protected species : European tree frog, Grass frog, Spotted salamander, Palmate newt...

Rich in more than 120 bird species, it is part of the Natura 2000 zone "Massif de Villefermoy". There are 7 rare and protected nesting species : European honey buzzard, Hen harrier, Black kite, Common kingfisher, Grey-headed woodpecker, Middle spotted woodpecker and Black woodpecker.

Populated by roe deer, wild boar and hares, Villefermoy is structured by large straight alleys interspersed with star-shaped crossroads, which bear witness to a long hunting tradition.

The fertile soils of the Domanial Forest of Villefermoy are very favourable to the growth of sessile oak.
Some of them reach exceptional dimensions. A few remarkable trees are listed and preserved during felling.

Since 2006, the living heritage has led the State to classify the entire massif as a Natura 2000 zone (European ecological protection network) for the preservation of birdlife. In total, 4,790 hectares, of which 55% is state forest, are part of the "Natura 2000 Special Protection Zone Massif de Villefermoy" (ZPS).

Several kilometers of paved road, gravelled or natural terrain roads are open to the public at Villefermoy. Some paths are marked, such as the long-distance hiking trail of Thibaud de Champagne, the short hiking trails of Grand Grippon and Bois des Moines or walking circuits (paths of the Brie Nangissienne, loop of the 2 massifs). Equipped areas (Huit Routes, Ru Guérin, Pavé de Boulains, Grandvilliers) with car parks, picnic tables, and information points allow walkers to fully enjoy the forest. Other parking areas are also distributed along the roads crossing the massif. (see map)