Herry France
Frequently Asked Questions
At the river landing on the Loire lateral canal, beside the village, in the Cher on the edge of the Sancerre country. A few minutes' walk separates the quay from the village centre.
The village and its church, then the paths to the wild banks of the Loire. If the ship arranges it, Sancerre is under twenty kilometres away. No famous monument waits here, and that is precisely the value of the place.
The church of Saint-Loup, a Gothic building whose choir and transept date to the 13th century, listed as a historic monument since 1926. Around it, low tile-roofed houses, vegetable gardens and a quiet square.
A canal opened in 1838, running 196 kilometres between Digoin and Briare, dug to give barges a safe route beside a river too unruly for navigation. Today you travel it at walking pace, lock by lock.
Yes, the towpath has become a cycle route and walking trail, running under the trees in both directions. It is one of the best ways to fill this call.
Yes, it flows behind the canal. Its banks form part of the Val de Loire nature reserve: sandbanks, floodplain forest and backwaters. Paths lead from the last houses to the observation points.
Terns resting on the shingle, herons hunting, and beavers, betrayed by trunks gnawed to a pencil point. In spring and autumn the river becomes a migration corridor with birds passing by the thousand. Quiet walkers are always rewarded.
Yes, the hilltop village is under twenty kilometres away and some cruises arrange the excursion: the climb up to the village, the circular view over the vine rows, and a Sauvignon Blanc tasting with a grower.
Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc, with Crottin de Chavignol goat cheese from the surrounding farms. The contrast is the pleasure: after the wild shingle, the geometry of the vines; after the slow canal water, the mineral edge of the wine.
The euro; bring cash, as the baker and the village café do not always take cards. French is spoken and English is rare: here you exchange a bonjour with everyone you pass.
