Soignolles-en-Brie: Churches, Fords and Paths along the Yerres

If you choose Soignolles-en-Brie as your destination, you can plan your stay around two themes: architectural heritage and paths along the Yerres. Notre-Dame de l’Assomption represents a long ecclesiastical history; the Chemin des Roses and the Les Gués sur l’Yerres route offer different ways to explore the area. For planning your time, it is worth considering these places and routes separately: the church can only be viewed from the outside, while each route has its own information about its course and length.

The Church of Notre-Dame de l’Assomption

Notre-Dame de l’Assomption was built in the Middle Ages, between the 12th and 13th centuries. Since 1926, it has been listed in the supplementary register of Monuments historiques. An important point for your visit: the church is visible from the outside but remains closed to the public. It is therefore not possible to visit the interior.

The church has seventeen Renaissance choir stalls that came from the Abbey of Saint-Victor in Paris. A 16th-century oak door leaf is also protected as a historic monument. The construction period, choir stalls and door leaf offer different ways to explore the building’s history: its medieval origins, its Renaissance furnishings and the protection of a single historic architectural feature.

Historical traces along the Yerres

In the past, the Yerres was not only a body of water but also an obstacle along travellers’ routes. A historic crossing made Soignolles-en-Brie a place to pass through. The monks of Mont Saint-Sébastien, founded in the 13th century, guided travellers across the river. The Gué du Mont is documented from the 13th century on routes between Melun and Lagny. The history of the area is thus linked to a specific function: helping people cross the Yerres.

A chapel survives from the former priory of Mont Saint-Sébastien. It is on private property and cannot be visited. The Château de Barneau dates from the 19th century. Together with the church and historic crossings, these places offer an overview of different layers of local history; however, they are not all accessible in the same way.

The Chemin des Roses

The Chemin des Roses, 17 kilometres long in total, passes through Soignolles-en-Brie and is a walking and leisure trail for pedestrians, horse riders and cyclists. In Soignolles-en-Brie, it can be accessed from the car park on Rue de Solers. The trail follows a former railway line and crosses the Yerres on a viaduct. Its botanical, scenic and historical significance, as well as its role as an ecological corridor, give it several dimensions—the former railway route and river crossing also make it particularly easy to describe as a trail.

The 17-kilometre length refers to the entire trail, not to a set distance that must be covered during every stay. When planning, you can therefore distinguish between the character of the Chemin des Roses and the specific details of an individual circuit.

The Les Gués sur l’Yerres route

The Les Gués sur l’Yerres route passes through Soignolles-en-Brie and Solers. It is described as an easy 8.2-kilometre circular route marked in yellow, with an estimated duration of two hours and 30 minutes. This makes it possible to plan using three specific details: distance, trail markings and estimated time. Unlike the Chemin des Roses, it is explicitly designated as a circular route.

The route offers the option of crossing the Yerres through a ford instead of over a bridge. At the Gué du Mont and the Gué de Barneau, the river can still be crossed on foot outside periods of high water. Plan to make such a crossing only under this condition. The Lavoir de Barneau can also be reached via the GR circular route.

Discover more destinations: Châtenay-Sur-Seine, Torcy, Saint-Germain-Laval, Villevaudé, Brie-Comte-Robert, Vulaines-lès-Provins, Coulombs-En-Valois, Longperrier.

For the broader travel overview: Seine-Et-Marne.