Distance: 24,6 km
walk
Duration: 6h
Difficulty : Average
by mountain bike
Duration: 3h
Difficulty : Average
THE REOLE
Around water (canal, stream, lake, marsh, ...)
Campaigns
Urban
THE REOLE
After discovering the architectural gems of the town of La Réole, which recently received the Town of Art and History label, head for the hillsides. They offer beautiful perspectives on the city and the Reol countryside. Alternate meadows where cattle graze, plots of vines and fruit trees, deciduous forests and wheat fields...
All along the route, wine castles, fortified mills on the course of the Drot and Romanesque churches are on the program!
All along the route, wine castles, fortified mills on the course of the Drot and Romanesque churches are on the program!
Your itinerary
1
Step 1
Departure from Place Albert Rigoulet in the center of La Réole, in front of the priory church of Saint-Pierre, listed as a Historic Monument. The latter is surrounded by monastic buildings, in which you can discover beautiful achievements of the monastery such as the horseshoe staircase and the magnificent ironwork made by the master locksmith Blaise Charlut. Strolling through the streets, you will see the old Town Hall, a masterpiece of civil Romanesque architecture, as well as works classified as Historic Monuments, such as the Château des Quat'sos and the ramparts.
2
Step 2
On the way to reach the banks of the Garonne, you will come across the Porte du Sault, the last surviving gate of the city's fifteen, rue des Menuts, the Parliament building, adorned with sculpted Italian coats of arms, the half-timbered house and the former Hôtel de Briet.
3
Step 3
After 3,5 kilometers you come to a fork. You can turn right on the D668, to reach Saint-Hilaire-de-la-Noaille, 1,2 kilometers away, its Romanesque church and its prayer cross installed in its location in 1953, quite rare in France.
4
Step 4
You arrive at Saint-Sève, its Romanesque parish church has been modified and restored. It has a pretty bell-gable which has replaced the original square bell tower. Continuing for 800 meters, you cross the Marquelot stream and the D129.
5
Step 5
After 1,7 kilometers, you arrive at the Château de Lavison in the commune of Loubens, a small fortress at the beginning of the 2000th century and its magnificent circular XNUMXth century dovecote containing around XNUMX nesting boxes. The Château produces wine from organic farming and sustainable cultivation.
6
Step 6
Arriving in Loubens, you will come across a XNUMXth century ox shoeing machine, under a canopy, near the town hall. On the edge of the Drot, the mill of Loubens, classified as a Historic Monument, remarkably maintained by the owners of the place.
7
Step 7
400 meters away is the rustic Saint-Vincent church, with a single nave, surmounted by a bell tower with three bell-shaped bays.
8
Step 8
After 1,6 kilometers, you arrive at Bagas, known for its remarkable fortified mill, one of the most beautiful in the Aquitaine region, built on an islet at the beginning of the XNUMXth century. Higher up, dominating the Drot valley, the Notre-Dame church is built on the remains of an important Gallo-Roman villa.
9
Step 9
When you arrive at Les Esseintes, you will see two private residences, built in the XNUMXth century, recently listed in the Supplementary Inventory of Historic Monuments. Further on, the XNUMXth century Saint-Eutrope church, whose nave, built of rubble, ends in a flat apse, which has replaced a Romanesque apse.
10
Step 10
After 4 kilometers, you join the D113 which brings you back to your starting point in the center of La Réole.
Points of interest
Saint-Pierre priory church
The Château des Quat'sos
Les Remparts
The Gate of the Sault
The parish church
The Loubens mill
Lavison Castle
The Notre-Dame church
The fortified mill of Bagas
Saint-Eutrope church