This 23 km loop starting in Durtal will take you through orchards, woods, marshes and a brick-making village, along the Voie Verte linking Durtal to La Flèche.
Signposted route (route marker no. 9), on shared roads and greenways. The route is partly based on the Vallée du Loir à Vélo cycle route (V47).
Helmets are compulsory for children under 12, and strongly recommended for adults.
Take your time and be curious.
TO DISCOVER ALONG THE WAY...
- Durtal Castle, a strategic lock in the Loir valley, this formidable fortress protected Anjou.
- The Saint-Léonard district. Cross the bridge in front of the castle and head for the Saint-Léonard district, stopping off at the Petit Port, where goods were transported by water. Further on, take the old Paris-Nantes royal road, now known as Saint-Léonard, where a small, elegant 15th-century chapel and some beautifully restored houses still stand.
- The Terre sur Argance workshop, where ceramists have been working for 40 years, is the place that connects Catherine Méra to the world and to herself.
- The Moulin de Chalou once played a key role in the village's industry and economy, and is now home to fishermen and tourists.
- Les Rairies.
This was once one of the major centres of the terracotta industry in France, with over 60 brickworks at its peak!
- The Cré marshes, classified as a regional nature reserve, cover almost 65 hectares and are the largest area of alluvial marshland in the Sarthe department. It is home to almost 150 species of birds and 300 species of plants.
- Château de Bazouges is a 15th-18th-century medieval fortress on the banks of the Loir, which became a stately home with formal gardens surrounded by a moat.
