Montereau to Briare: July 3^rd  

Briare to Montereau: July 24^th

Briare to Nevers: July 10^th

Nevers to Briare: July 17^th

MONTEREAU to BRIARE

 From Montereau at the confluence of the Upper Seine and the River Yonne this route quickly swings South onto the River Loing, joining the Canal du Loing at Moret sur Loing. There is time to visit this charming little town with its 12^th Century dungeon and old winding streets, before setting off up the canal towards Nemours, beautifully situated in the rocky and wooded river valley. After visiting Nemours we continue up the canal to reach Montargis, capital of the Gatinais, a region of pine forests and small streams famous for hunting and fishing. This marks the start of the Briare Canal. Cruising the Briare Canal past Chatillon-Coligny we reach Rogny les sept Ecluses where we can see the original staircase of seven locks built to the order of King Henry IV and completed in 1642. Replaced by a flight of six locks in 1887, they remain witness to a considerable engineering achievement of their time. Equally impressive is the Briare aqueduct over the River Loire, which greets us as we end our cruise in the small town of Briare itself with its delightful faience and mariners' museums.

Briare, The Old Canal

This itinerary is reversed for the cruise Briare to Montereau

Sancerre

 BRIARE to NEVERS

 Leaving Briare we cross the Briare aqueduct over the River Loire to begin our cruise up the Canal Latéral à la Loire with the river itself close by on our left hand. The canal passes through lightly wooded country offering wide views of this beautiful river valley, each small village we pass showing us old churches and sleepy red tiled houses. Our cruise now takes us to Menétréol sous Sancerre, and the heart of the Sancerre wine growing district, famous also for its goat cheese, then past La Charité sur Loire. Terraced on a hillside overlooking the river we view the town across a pretty 16^th Century humpbacked bridge, the scene dominated by the Basilique Notre Dame, one of the most remarkable examples of Romanesque architecture in Burgundy. Leaving La Charité sur Loire we swing close to the wide river at Marseilles les Aubigny before crossing the River Allier on a splendid aqueduct, finally arriving at Nevers,  our destination and the Capital of the Nièvre region.

 This itinerary is reversed for the cruise Nevers to Briare

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