Bussy Rabutin

Front parterre

About 7 km from the port at Venarey-les-Laumes, past the town of Alesia St Reine where the battle was held, is the Chateau of Bussy Rabutin.

View from parterre garden terrace

We had left the croaking of frogs at the canal and the call of the Sandpipers and cycled into the countryside again.  The village setting is delightful.  Although owned by the state, is has a friendly well cared for feeling.

On the way we saw a sign by the side of the road advertising Ice Creams at the place outside the Chateau. Further on we saw a sign for Auberge at Bussy Rabutin.  At the base of the hill leading up to the Chateau there was another sign Produits Regionaux, and Laine Mohair du Rabutin. what a lot of interesting a delicious things are up there we thought.

Ceiling Bussy Rabutin

Those familiar with backwater France will have guessed.  All were closed!

Alesia and the battle between the Gauls and the Romans

Beautiful landscape and walks around Alesia.  This is about 3 km from the port of Venarey-les-Laumes

The only bits of the Gallo-Roman town that are standing, but have they put them together correctly?

Vercingetorix v Caesar

2000 years ago Alesia was a battleground between Vercingetorix the elected leader of the united Gaulish tribes and  the Roman general Julius Caesar.

Vercinetorix had been successful in previous skirmishes, but this was the big one with 10's of thousands of troops involved.

Unfortunately Vercingetoric was outwitted by Caesar even though he had the greater army.  Caesar laid seige to the hilltop town of Alesia building massive fortifications around it to starve them out.  He also built another set of fortifications facing outwards to fend of re-enforcements.

The Gauls had had their chips, and Vercingetorix was captured, held prisoner in Rome for the next 5 years and then strangled.  What an ignominius end, I wonder if he would have considered it worth it as he (the loser) is the one immortalised in a massive statue on the hill.

The Gallo-Roman town at the tope of Alesia.  We left our bikes at the bottom of the hill.

I took a walk through the woods to try and find some of Caesar's camps - or course, what else would I do!

There were some large structures in the woods, and also a huge rock, but the hillside was too steep to climb up to it.

Woods and Caesar's Camp in distance

Flavigny - too much!

Roses in Flavigny sur Oiserain

Flavigny sur Oserain is billed as one of the prettiest towns in France. It is a heavily restored place with endless photo opportunities - so many in fact that I didn't know where to begin.

The Grange.  A Farmers co-operative cafe.

This place was absolutely full of parents with their young children.  They were crawling all over the place - yes I was in grumpy old woman mode that afternoon.

Clematis in Flavigny

Cheered up when I saw these beauties climbing up a lovely old building though.

View on the way back down to Pouillinay.  No need to pedal at all on way back!

Although is was 6 miles to the hilltop town of Flavigny, and uphill all the way, the uphill was on the whole quite gentle - we walked most of it! - and the downhill back pure joy! Heard a cuckoo on the way up and saw a lesser spotted woodpecker.

Quercy arriving in Pouillenay

Very hight water in the pound above Pouillenay

Our lovely lock keeper Davide.  No posh moped, no uniform or life jacket or any English, but we got by.  He was a character and kept the other eclusier laughing the whole way.

Spring in France - roses at their peak - sorry no photos of roses

Marigny can be termed a pretty well unspoiled Burgundian village.  Yes, there are the inevitable concrete boxes on the outskirts and the crumbling ruins that, by rights, should be turned into houses in the village centre, but there is a little shop with cafe attached, a school, and very few holiday properties.  It seems to be quite well populated by French people who live there.  The cafe has made absolutely no concessions to the fact that there may be tourists or boaters who are expecting something a bit more stylish, and quite right too. Everything inside is circa 1950 because it has been there since 1950.

The other thing Marigny has is a castle.  Yes, a Castle as opposed to a Chateau.  The distinction is made on the map with a small reclangular box as opposed to the usual curvy chateau label.

It is not open to the public, does not appear to be lived in, and you can walk right up to the front door to see the moat and drawbridge.  It has also featured in a number of films.   So remains a rather beautiful enigma.

Another fascinating place that we cycled to is the Chateau of Sainte Columbe de Auxois.  It is an ongoing renovation project, arts centre and gite complex.  The website states English German and Dutch spoken. Certainly not while we were there, but we got by, enjoyed a tea and coffee sans lait (they didn't have any milk) for one euro each.  The exhibition 'Voyages bleus, du jean a' l'indigo'

Sign outside the chateau

Bike ride to St Thibualt from Port Royal

Sad to leave Pouilly as although the port is nothing to write home about, the town has good facilities and the surrounding countryside has so many marked cycle routes following little used roads.

St Thibualt

The church at St Thibualt less than a km from the canal is peaceful and unusual. We very much enjoyed the visit.

Chancel in St Thibulat

Everything about St Thibualt was long and thin.  It is impossible to take a portrait sized photo there.

Port Royal a picturesque old port

Bagettes and Croissants delivered to the door at 8am! The previous day we had seen a lot of small birds that flew like a duck but did not look like a duck.  Simon told us they were Common Sandpipers.  I was rather disappointed that they were 'commom' as I thought they looked like they should be un-common.

Near by Church as Clamery

Our walk this morning took us to the nearest village.  A beautiful Romanesque Church with unusual side chapel and a number of very ancient, but damaged stone sarcophogi in the church yard.

Julian taking an unusually keen interest in the sarcophogi 

Side chapel

Many tall buildings around port and a few old farms.

Electric, water and good views from the boat.  A group of bikers were staying in the chambres d'hotes.

Through the Pouilly Tunnel

Yesterday we left Vandenesse and headed for the Pouilly Tunnel.  It took an hour to go the 3km.  We removed the canopy.  I have got a neck ache as a result of supporting the canopy with my head! while Juilan unscrewed the fixings.

Cycle rides from Pouilly Basin

Chateaux Chailly

A 5km cycle ride from Pouilly Basin.  Beautiful evening.

Pouilly en Auxois is surrounded by beautiful rolling countryside with many marked cycle paths.

Vandenesse and Chateauneuf. Hotel Barges

Vandenesse Port

This morning watched two hotel barges with American guests on board descend the lock into the beautifully situated pound and mooring place at Vandenesse.  With Castleauneuf on the hill and the church to the south of the mooring and flowers, trees horses and sheep surrounding us we could not be in a more perfect spot.

Vandenesse

Lots of walking and cycling.  Gardens and flowers, at their absolute peak.

This evening I took a little walk along the canal, as I usually do.  Had my long thin stick which I like very much and after doing the circuit to the lock and back the other side I decided to go past the church and to the south.  A beautiful old farmhouse and barns which s also a chambre d'otes.  The heat of the day had soaked into the walls of the barns and they radiated on to me as I walked making that part of the walk much warmer.








A beautiful afternoon in Chateauneuf with lunch and a walk to a chapel.