Sentier marron

Sentier marron is a long-distance hiking route on Réunion that follows the island’s southern areas and pushes into steep, rugged terrain. The route is signed and intended for hikers comfortable with sustained ascent and exposed footing.

A common way to do it is a long out-and-back from Grand Coude toward the Plaine des Sables viewpoint area. The route description available for the Grand Coude → “Pas des Sables” direction lists a total distance around 16 km and a positive elevation gain around 1,466–1,400 m.

On the ground, the route leans heavily on stairs and step-like climbs through vegetation: you spend long stretches negotiating high steps, sometimes in batches of 50+ steps, with intermittent alternation between steeper downhill/ups when you cross small ravines.

Near the top half, the route becomes more mixed and technical in feel, with passages that include rocky bars and the need to use ladders to get up over rock sections before continuing to the viewpoint area above the Plaine des Sables.

The route passes through forest and varied plant zones while keeping you on the marron path character—narrower historic tread where it exists and more recently widened sections where trail work has been done. There are also stream/ravine crossings that can leave the path muddy.

Plan for a full day effort: listed durations for the Grand Coude → “Pas des Sables” option are about 8h 45min to 7 hours, with the overall outing time depending on pace and conditions.

More information: Sentier marron de grand coude jusqu'à vu sur pas des sables, Point de vue sur la Plaine des Sables par le sentier marron de ..., Best hikes in Reunion Island - French Bee