Our best hikes (without car)

To be honest with you, writing this article about the best hikes of our region, was really difficult ! As we are madly in love with the area, we believe every hike are worth the detour.  In order to help you, here are the best hikes that are accessible without a car from Edd Hostel.

Just so you know, the beginning of the walks are not necessarely from the Hostel. Though you can easily reach them with public transportation.

The Sea Shore

• • St-Malo-Dinard 3h – A hike we particularly fancy is St-Malo to Dinard with the GR34. For the return, you can use the boat (or you can do the reverse). We specially made a video about this expedition day so we aren’t going to give much details here. You can check it out on our vlog!

• • Pointe de la varde 1h – From Saint-Malo’s train station, accessible from Edd Hostel by a 16min. train ride, you can take the Bus 4 (MAT network) till Rothéneuf (the second last stop of the line). Reach the sea, and follow the GR34 for an hour till the ‘Pointe de la Varde’. The landscape is breathtaking and you will discover another face of Saint-Malo, far from Intra-Muros. At the ‘Pointe de la Varde’, you will be able to see the old german bunkers, vestige of the second world war. Then when you are finished with your walk, you can take a bus towards intra-muros. The other option is towards the railway station to come back to Edd Hostel.

• • Plage Fort Du Guesclin – pointe du Grouin 2h – During summer and weekends only, there is bus 9  that links Saint-Malo/Cancale by the coast. You can stop at the “Fort du Guesclin”, and take the GR34 till “La Pointe du Grouin”. A nice 2hours hike, in a wild landscape between rocks and beautiful beaches. At “La Pointe du Grouin“, you can take the bus to reach the city center of Cancale where you can enjoy the local oysters that you deserve after your efforts ! Finally, to come back to Saint-Malo, then Dol, you can take the bus 5. It will directly take you back to the railway station. You will only have a 16min train ride left to reach the hostel !

The Rance

On the border of the Rance, the landscapes are often unknown, but in our opinon, they are easily part of the most beautiful in the area. Lots of hikes are practicable on each parts of the river that separates the Ille-et-Vilaine, and the Côtes d’Armor.  To reach it, the most easy from Dol is to do the 25min train ride. It will take you to Dinan’s medieval city. Then you have to walk down to the port to access the Rance.

• •  Dinan-Léhon 3,5km – From Dinan’s harbor, cross the old bridge then turn right on a little passway called “chemin des hallages”. It will take you less than an hour to reach Léhon, a little village of character that is worth the detour for its bucolic atmosphere. This hike is really easy as you only have to follow the river on a flat path all way long.

• • Dinan – Lyvet’s harbor 14km – For the good hikers, it is possible to do a loop till the Lyvet’s harbor. This loop is ideal to discover the landscapes of the Rance. From Dinan’s port, cross the old bridge and turn left. Continue straight forwards and follow the yellow signs that will take you up to the forest. Be aware it climbs ! It will take you over 2h30 to reach the port of Lyvet. Once you are there, you can cross the bridge, and look on your right. You will see the old cabins of fishermen on the other side. Reach the other side, and take the “chemin des halages” (a path) to come back to Dinan. 14km of hike. (route)

• • Cale de Mordreuc loop 11km – We are particularly fan of a possible detour from the “Cale de Mordreuc” to “Pleudhihen-sur-Rance”. It’s 3hours long while following the yellow signs to discover the river “la Rance”, it’s strand, holds, and countryside. To reach Pleudihen-sur-Rance from Edd Hostel, you first need to take the train for Dinan, then the bus 10 towards Saint-Malo. You will have to stop at Pleudihen-sur-Rance’s Chapel or at the church and walk till the sign.

In lands and marshes

Some of the hikes are even closer ! Indeed, you will only have to go out of the hostel and shortly reach some of the hikes of Dol, its countryside or swamps.

Short walks

• • • • • Circuit Nominoë (Dol) 8km – Firstly, there is the circuit Nominoë that will help you discover Dol-de-Bretagne and its cultural legacy within 2h. The start of this walk is from the Cathedral, but since you are already staying at Edd Hostel, you can directly reach it from the parc of the Guyoult Valley (in front of the train station). Afterwards, you will discover the medieval wealth of the town before heading towards the forest. We are advising you to do a quick turn at some point of the hike to see the “Menhir du Champ Dolent”. When you reach the street “Petit Gué”, instead of going back to the city center, turn right and follow the signs till the Menhir. To come back to the Hostel, it’s really easy ! Cross the D795 and continue straight forward till the village of Carfantin. Cross the little bridge, and take the road that is going up on your right… it’s our street, Pierre Sémard ! To have an idea of this exploration, you can check out our video taken by drone on Dol-de-Bretagne.
        • Dol – Mont Dol 6km – A hike, or more or less a short walk, is the one we advise to every of our clients: the walk till the Mont Dol. You need about 45min. while following the “Voie Verte” (green signs) or/and the GR34 that will take you in the countryside separating Dol and this small village. Once you reach the top of it, you will have a nice view on the Mont Saint-Michel Bay.
        • Marais Noir Loop 11km : For those that enjoy the countryside and the hikes in the countryside, you can do from the Hostel the circuit of the Black Swamps (circuit des marais noirs).

For hike lovers 

• • To finish, a big hike that you can schedule is a 6h walk. It will show you the landscapes of the swamps of Dol-de-Bretagne and Mont Saint-Michel Bay. This loop of 20km is called “Circuit du Bec à l’âne”. It will take you to Mont-Dol and Vivier-sur-Mer. You can also stop at the House of the Bay (Maison de la Baie) to discover the infamous universe of the bouchots and continue on your hike. Shortly after, the signs will make you cross a departmental road. You will reach small roads and paths to return to Dol-de-Bretagne. This hike is long but surprising, ideal for those that have time and want to discover the region in a different way !

To sum up, there are numerous routes to explore around the Emerald coast, you’ll obviously find one that will suit you. Of course, we have plenty of other ideas for you, don’t hesitate to come and ask us !

For the public transportation :

Informations between cities of Brittany : https://www.breizhgo.bzh/

Transportation of Saint-Malo city

Transportation of Dinan city

In: Full day trip, Very favorite

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