The GR 59 Grande Randonnée

long-distance footpath A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway (landscape), greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking (wilderness), backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-co ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

connects two mountain ranges across relatively low-lying terrain. In the north, it begins at Ballon d'Alsace in the

Vosges The Vosges ( , ; ; Franconian and ) is a range of medium mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single geomorphological unit and ...

at a height of over 1000m. It loses height rapidly, and runs south-south-west through the

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

of the

Haute-Saône Haute-Saône (; Frainc-Comtou: ''Hâte-Saône''; English: Upper Saône) is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of northeastern France. Named after the river Saône, it had a population of 235,313 in 2019.

Besançon Besançon (, ; , ; archaic ; ) is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerland. Capi ...

on the river

Doubs Doubs (, ; ; ) is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Eastern France. Named after the river Doubs, it had a population of 543,974 in 2019.Loue The Loue () is a river of eastern France, a left tributary of the Doubs, which it joins downstream of Dole. It is long. Its source is a karst spring in the Jura mountains near Ouhans, which at least partly receives its water from the Doubs. Th ...

(a tributary of the Doubs) to

Lons-le-Saunier Lons-le-Saunier () is a commune and capital of the Jura Department, eastern France. Geography The town is in the heart of the Revermont region, at the foot of the first plateau of the Jura massif. The Jura escarpment extends to the east a ...

in the département of Jura. At St-Amour just south of Lons, the GR 9 splits from the GR 59 and takes a more easterly route, near the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

border, while the GR59 continues into the regions of

Bugey The Bugey (, ; Arpitan: ''Bugê'') is a historical region in the department of Ain, eastern France, located between Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saôn ...

and Revermont in the département of

Ain Ain (, ; ) is a French department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where it ...

, finally rejoining the GR 9 near Yenne on the banks of the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

; the GR 9 then continues to the Mediterranean at St-Tropez. Towns and villages that the path passes through, with approximate heights and distances from the northern end of the path, include: :

Ronchamp Ronchamp () is a commune in the Haute-Saône department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. It is located between the Vosges and the Jura mountains. Mining Museum Mining began in Ronchamp in the mid-18th century and h ...

, 340m, 34Km :

Saulnot Saulnot is a Communes of France, commune in the Haute-Saône Departments of France, department in the Regions of France, region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. In 1973 it absorbed two former communes: Corcelles and Gonvillars.

, 370m, 52Km : Abbenans, 325m, 80Km : Hyèvre-Paroisse, 285m, 104Km :

Baume-les-Dames Baume-les-Dames () is a commune in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. The French mineralogist and chemist Jacques-Joseph Ébelmen (1814–1852), the writer and poet Charles-Émilien Thuriet (1832� ...

, 291m, 112Km (plus 1Km off the path) : Roulans, 327m, 130Km :

, 247m, 155Km (plus 3.5Km off the path) : Quingey, 265m, 181Km :

Salins-les-Bains Salins-les-Bains (), commonly referred to simply as Salins, is a commune in the Jura department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Eastern France. It is located on the departmental border with Doubs, 34.8 km (21.6 mi) to the s ...

, 331m, 226Km :

Arbois Arbois () is a Commune in France, commune in the Jura (département), Jura Departments of France, department, in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region, eastern France. The river Cuisance passes through the town, which centres o ...

, 306m, 242Km : Poligny, 332m, 270Km : Passenans, 320m, 286.5Km : Château-Chalon, 450m, 296.5Km :

Baume-les-Messieurs Baume-les-Messieurs () is a commune in the Jura department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. It is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France) Association. The village lie ...

, 305m, 319Km : Perrigny, 350m, 333Km :

, 250m, 356Km : St-Amour : Saint-Laurent-la-Roche : Treffort :

Ambérieu-en-Bugey Ambérieu-en-Bugey (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Ain Departments of France, department, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region, France. With 14,288 inhabitants (2020), it is one of the largest towns of the historical regi ...

: Yenne Detailed guides to the path (in French) are available from the Fédération Française de la Randonnée Pédestre in two sections: No. 510, "Des Vosges au Jura", and No. 901, "Tours et traversées dans l'Ain".

External links

Fédération Française de la Randonnée Pédestre
{{coord, 46.6213, 5.5192, display=title Hiking trails in France