Route details
Description
Only small animals are allowed in vehicles provided they are transported in a basket or cage, as well as guide dogs held by a harness and assistance dogs for people with reduced mobility.
Your itinerary
Step 1: Niort, a city by nature
A central city of sixty thousand inhabitants, Niort tells nine centuries of history. From its historic heart bathed by the Sèvre Niortaise to the Place de la Brèche, this town reveals a rich heritage including the imposing keep erected by Henry II Plantagenêt, King of England. This heart of the city today beats to the rhythm of street arts during numerous festive events enlivening its city center and its neighborhoods. From the top of its hills, Niort dominates the unique landscape of the Marais Poitevin and opens its doors. Capital of the mutual economy, it asserts its urban and natural character by reclaiming the banks of its river and preserving the biological and cultural diversity of the city.
Step 2: Magné
Magné, from the Latin "Magnus" meaning great, is the ancient name of a rich Roman family established on an island in the Gulf of Pictons. Bordered by the Sèvre Niortaise and the Sevreau, the village has thrown four bridges over the waterways, the most characteristic of which is the metal drawbridge, witness to the golden age of river trade in the 300th century. This traffic made it possible to export pottery, an old local industry fueled by marine debris, clay from the marshes. The heart of Magné is organized around its church and the town has long valued its river heritage. The banks of the Sèvre host, every year, the third weekend of July, the International Painting Festival in the presence of XNUMX artists.
Step 3: Coulon, capital of the “Green Venice”
Ideally located between Niort and the Ocean, Coulon experienced intense port activity from the Middle Ages to the 19th century. River traffic and the exchange of goods ensure constant development. In the 19th century, the original Sèvre arm was canalized and shaped the current configuration of the town. La Maison du Marais Poitevin, on the banks of the river, allows you to understand and discover market garden life and traditions. Coulon is an ideal starting point for discovering the wet marsh on foot, by boat, by bike or by small tourist train.
Step 4: Sansais-La Garette and its village street
This town, located on the edge of the Gulf of Pictons, is made up of two large villages: Sansais perched on the hillside and La Garette on the edge of the marshes. The future King Henry IV visited the latter in 1576 and later said of the Marais that "...Among these deserts are a thousand gardens where one can only go by boat...". La Garette is typical of traditional market garden habitat ensuring direct access to water for each house. An important transit port for goods between Bas-Poitou (north) and Saintonge (south) until the middle of the 1995th century, this village street was completely restored in XNUMX as part of Operation Grand Site. It has become a major step in discovering Green Venice. A wooden footbridge on stilts connects it to that of Coulon.
Step 5: The Lapwing-Irleau
This market garden and bocage commune is located in the “wild marsh”. Lapwing derives from “vana aqua” meaning vain water preventing any cultivation before the digging of canals in the 15.000th century. Irleau is a contraction of "Reau Island" where the stakes of a prehistoric lakeside city or fortifications from a more recent era were unearthed. On the last Saturday in July, the “Water Market” is organized at the Grand Port du Vanneau where the products of individuals and traders are sold to more than XNUMX visitors! This festive event reflects one of the most unique Maraîchine traditions: the transport of men, animals and goods on the wet roads forming the “Green Venice” whose authenticity it strives to preserve.
Step 6: St-Hilaire-la-Palud, capital of the “Wild Marsh”
Located in the heart of the “Marais sauvage”, an emblematic landscape of the “Green Venice”, Saint-Hilaire-La-Palud gives you access to more than 100 km of waterways and white paths. From the Latin "palus" meaning marsh, the Paludéens maintain the know-how and traditions through the numerous summer activities provided by volunteers. The street villages of Rivière and Montfaucon bear witness to the flourishing river trade at the beginning of the XNUMXth century. The hamlets of Névoire keep the memory of the brick and tile making activity, once very present. The Ornithological Park “Les Oiseaux du Marais Poitevin” is now the spearhead of tourism that respects nature and people.