Chanterelle
Sancerre Cruise in the Upper Loire
The Chanterelle is a very comfortable and attractive boat with a beautiful wood
trim finish and 14-well-appointed cabins - including 4 single cabins. She
travels in France's Upper Loire Valley, through picture-book landscapes of
castles, riverside villages and stately manor houses.
The Loire Lateral Canal on which the Chanterelle cruises, follows the main Loire
river with its tradition of hunting, fishing, and gracious living. A
highlight is the 662 meter canal aqueduct built by Gustave Eiffel which takes the boat high over the
Loire River. The region is also well known for its Sancerre vineyards and
Crottin de Chavignol, a delicious goat cheese.
Saturday, DAY 1 Plagney
Arrive Paris. Meeting point: 1:45pm at the Hotel Le meridien Etoile
in
Paris. Transfer to the Chanterelle moored in the ancient city of
Plagny, near the old city of Nevers, where the Chanterelle is moored.
Sunday, DAY 2 Plagney to
Marseilles-les-Aubigny
We cast off during
breakfast and cruise westwards out of Plagny along a winding section the Canal
Latéral à la Loire. This canal, completed in 1838, was built to provide a link
for transport by barge between the Canal de Briare and the towns of Roanne and
Digoin avoiding the shallow and often dangerous waters of the Loire. In the
middle of the morning we arrive at the hamlet of le Guétin, where canal crosses
the river Allier on a stone aqueduct before entering an unusual double-chambered
lock to make an impressive descent of some thirty feet. We moor during lunch in
the village of Marseilles les Aubigny. In the early afternoon we can take the
coach to make a drive of barely a quarter of an hour to Apremont
sur Allier, a medieval village famed
for its floral gardens and where the impressive château has its origins in the Anglo-Burgundian alliance
during the Hundred Years War. We return to Cours les Barres in good time for a
stroll in the village before dinner. Dinner on board.
Monday, DAY 3 Marseilles
les Aubigny to Ménétréol
We cast off early and cruise through breakfast
after which we can disembark at a lock to make the short journey by coach into Nevers,
third largest city in Burgundy and until the Revolution seat of the Counts and
Dukes of Nevers. There will be a walking
tour of the principal sights of the city centre starting with an exhibition
of faience, both antique and modern, for which the city is famous, at the oldest
workshop which was founded in the seventeenth century. We
then visit the cathedral, which is exceptional in having twin apses and was
built in varying architectural styles dating from the 11th to the 16th
centuries, the magnificent Renaissance ducal palace and the remains of the
medieval fortifications. Afterwards there
will be free time to explore the narrow streets of the ancient city. We
return to meet the Chanterelle in time for lunch near the village of la Chapelle
Montlinard and cruise through the afternoon to arrive in the early evening at
the medieval village of Menetreol at the foot of the hill on which stands the
famous wine-producing town of Sancerre. There are good opportunities for walking
or cycling as there is a good towpath and several locks at which to embark or
disembark. Dinner on board.
Tuesday, DAY 4
Ménétréol
to Beaulieu
After breakfast we
can make a visit to a nearby farm where the owners raise goats and produce
cheese from their milk, a sought-after specialilty of the region known as
“Crottin de Chavignol”. We can then drive up the hill into Sancerre
to have some time free in town to appreciate the views of the Loire,
contemplate the rare sixteenth century town belfry or visit the several art and
craft galleries. There will then be an
opportunity to taste some of the renowned wines of the area before catching
up with the Chanterelle a little way out of town in time for lunch. We cruise
through the afternoon past a number of villages including Léré where the
foundation of the collegiate church of St Martin is believed to date as early as
the fifth century, during the saint’s own lifetime. We moor in the early
evening at a quiet spot near the village of Beaulien. Dinner on board.
Wednesday, DAY 5
Beaulieu
to Briare
It is worth finishing breakfast early and
making the twenty-minute drive south to Cosne
sur Loire, a small riverside town which is the commercial centre for the
surrounding villages. Wednesday is market
day and the stalls set up by local producers laden with fresh provender and
the population bustling to make their week’s provisions make a colourful
scene. There may be time afterwards to continue a few miles further south to
Pouilly sur Loire, to taste the excellent Pouilly Fumé white wine for which the
town is famed. We return to the Chanterelle at Beaulieu and cruise over lunch,
arriving in the early afternoon at Chatillon sur Loire. From here we can take
the coach to Gien (a ride of
about quarter of an hour) to visit the
museum and shop of the famous pottery factory. There will then be some time free to visit the modern church of Joan
of Arc and look at the château which is the earliest and most upstream of the
Royal chateaux of the Loire valley (today it houses the International Museum of
Hunting).We return to Chatillon sur Loire and cruise through the evening to
Briare, crossing the Loire on a splendid steel aqueduct partially designed by
Gustave Eiffel. Prior to its construction in 1894, barges had to make a
treacherous journey along part of the river to join the Canal de Briare, which
we enter close to the town centre. Dinner on
board.
Thursday, DAY 6 Briare
to Rogny les Sept Ecluses
After breakfast we drive half
an hour or so to visit the château at St
Fargeau. We travel through the lake-covered, heavily forested area of the
Puisaye, immortalised by the local author Colette in her works. The first
construction at St Fargeau dates from the tenth century but the splendid brick
facades were designed by Le Vau of Versailles fame in the seventeenth century
when Louis XIV’s cousin, the Duchess of Montpensier, was exiled here in grand
style. We return to the Chanterelle at a lock in time for lunch, and cruise
through the afternoon over the summit pound of the Canal de Briare to arrive in
Rogny in the early evening. The towpath on the last section of the canal has
recently been restored, making it excellent for walking or cycling, and we pass
next to a remarkable “staircase” of locks with seven adjoining chambers,
disused since 1880 and recently classified as a historic monument, it dates from
the initial construction of this canal which began as early as 1604. We moor in
the centre of the village in good time for our farewell gala dinner.
Friday, DAY 7 After breakfast, transfer to Paris.
