Ivan and I are well and truly back into the swing of things as we continue our break from work cruising the canals of France. We’ve been exploring the Canal latéral à la Loire, which is 195km long and heads north from almost the centre of France in Digoin.
It’s a wonderful feeling to glide along in Laura (our boat) and then turn a bend and have an ancient village appear. Or a chateau, a winery, a cute farmhouse or any number of other wonders that unfold before our eyes. And it’s all here to explore on the 7,000 km of canals which wind their way right through the heart of France.
Sancerre
One of the famous wine regions in France (apart from Champagne, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Alsace etc) is Sancerre. So we were pretty excited that we’d be heading right through this region in our boat on the Canal latéral à la Loire. We parked Laura in a lovely little village called St Thibault and did some exploring on our bikes.
Sancerre wines are famous for their whites. But they also make some nice light reds and rose. We got to sample all three wines after a ride up the hill to the beautiful village of Sancerre. We also visited the famous Chateau de Sancerre.
An eventful bike ride to Pouilly-sur-Loire
Right near Sancerre is another famous wine growing region of Pouilly. The white wines are known as Pouilly-Fumé and they are lovely and crisp. So we hopped on our bikes to explore the town of Pouilly-sur-Loire. It was an absolutely gorgeous day after lots of rain. The bike path had a bit of water across it but not much, so it didn’t stop us. Not enough to wet our shoes. At least initially…
Ignoring Australia’s famous “If it’s flooded, forget it!” warning from Ivan, I set off on my bike through a bit of water. Or what I thought was just a bit of water.
My poor shoes were not happy! But I made it across. Just. At least there were no crocodiles. Ivan followed and we had a lovely visit to Pouilly-sur-Loire and sampled their amazing wines. On the way back we saw some dogs protecting their herd of goats. What a lovely day we had.
A night in a chateau
One of the things we’ve always wanted to do while we’re in France is to spend a night in an old chateau. So we did. Not far out of the city of Nevers is the Chateau du Marais which is a bed and breakfast. It was built in the 1300’s and is an historical monument. It even has a moat!
It was a cold and rainy day but we parked Laura and set off on our bikes. The chateau was only a couple of km from the canal and definitely worth it. It cost €135 for the night and worth every penny. We had a delightful stay, and the owner cooked us an amazing breakfast the next day.
Nuclear Power
For the last five years I’ve worked in an energy-producing part of Australia in economic development, so it’s no surprise that I’m interested in how France generates its energy. One afternoon we stopped for the night in the town of Belleville, right next to a nuclear power plant. Apparently it’s one of 56 across France with another 6 more to be built. I thought I’d include this bit as Australia is in the midst of discussing nuclear energy and it’s just interesting to be in a country that produces a lot of it.
Apremont-sur-Allier
As we continued along the Canal latéral à la Loire we knew we’d be close to one of France’s most beautiful villages. So we parked Laura and set off on our bikes. There are 176 villages across France that have the title of “Le Plus Beaux Village de France”, which means they have been officially designated as the most beautiful in the country. And the ones we’ve seen so far have been extraordinary. Apremont-sur-Allier is one such village.
I’ll let the photos tell the story. If you do come to France, make sure you visit at least one of the plus beaux villages.
Briare
The Canal latéral à la Loire ends at a lovely town called Briare. But to get into the town we first had to cross the famous aqueduct which is 662 metres long. It’s an incredible feat of engineering and quite beautiful. It was built by the Eiffel company who built the Eiffel Tower in Paris (a bit of trivia there for you).
We stayed a few days in Briare to stock up on supplies and have a good look around. The town is very cbeautiful and has two marinas and plenty of good restaurants and bars.
There’s an excellent museum in Briare called the Musee de deux Marines which is all about the history of the waterways in the region. There’s lots to see and shows what life would have been like in the days when river and canal transport were so important to France. I think they may need to update their mannequins though. They were a bit scary looking!
But don’t let the mannequins put you off as it’s an excellent museum.
The town of Briare marks the end of the Canal latéral à la Loire and the start of the Canal de Briare. So what’s next for Ivan and I? Why more cruising, of course. We’ve got another four months left on our break from work so we’re making the most of it.
We’re slowly winding our way northwards where we plan to connect to the Canal du Nivernais which is regarded as one of the most beautiful canals in the world. I can’t imagine anything more beautiful than the canals we’ve seen already, but no doubt we’ll soon see.
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