The countryside

Crédits photos : O. Boisseau

By foot, bike, canoe or boat, your trip will take you through an area rich in nature and culture.

Exploring Gironde....

The département has 4200 km of footpaths including 2300 km of waymarked paths –most of which allow mountain bikes- through vineyards, pine forests, along the coast and the Estuary. Take the many footpaths to discover out-of-the-ordinary landscapes and local landmarks: lakeside shores, marshes, medieval châteaus, Gallo Roman sites, wash houses, pigeon lofts, mills…

With a network of over 1000 km of cycling paths, Gironde is one of the top cycling destinations in France.

There are many different kinds of trails : The cycle paths as far as Sauveterre-de-Guyenne in the Entre-deux-Mers département follow the Roger Lapébie trail where the hills and vineyards mingle with walled towns (Créon, Sauveterre), village churches and chapels.
If you continue on to Bazas, you’ll discover the Landes de Gascogne Natural Park.

The cycle paths along the coast (lien sur la page « bord de mer ») wind their way through sand dunes and pine forests and pass through beach resorts, lakes and little fishing villages.

You can also recharge your batteries in one of Gironde’s 46 Fragile Natural Areas which are home to a natural heritage of great biodiversity : glacial lagoons, dunes, salt meadows, marshes…

These areas include : the Domaine de Certes-Graveyron at Audenge, the Leyre delta, Teich Bird Sanctuary, the Pilat Dune, the Logis and Conseiller marshes in Verdon sur Mer, the Maréchale marshes in Ordonnac…

More information : http://www.visitbordeauxgironde.co.uk/

Landes de Gascogne Natural Park, in the heart of the Leyre valleys.

Stretching from the Landes forest to Arcachon Bay, the Landes de Gascogne Regional Natural Park covers 315 000 hectares. Discover the area by foot, mountain bike, on horseback or even by canoe on the river Leyre, (link to canoe page) a little Amazon flowing through the « pignada » (pine forests).

More information : www.parc-landes-de-gascogne.fr

The Gironde Estuary, a world of its own

Estuary of Gironde

With a surface area of 600km2, the Gironde estuary is the biggest estuary in Europe. Arising from the Garonne and Dordogne rivers, it is also the best preserved of the large European estuaries. A Mississipi-like estuary, dotted with many inhabited and uninhabited islands and flowing alongside the Médoc, Blaye and Bourg vineyards.

Fishing is very much present here. Shad, eels, elvers, lamprey, white shrimps… are all served in the restaurants and open-air cafés on both sides of the river. The Pauillac tourist office rents out fishing nets by the day – a great day out for the whole family.

Discovery cruises of the Estuary and its islands depart from Bordeaux, Pauillac, Blaye and Bourg.

Places to visit : the Verrou Vauban fortifications , the Cordouan lighthouse, the Corniche in Bloom route, Plassac Gallo Roman villa, the Pair-non-pair grotto at Prignac-et-Marcamps, the Conseiller marshes at Verdon-sur-Mer, the Maréchale marshes at Ordonnac…

More information : http://www.estuaire-gironde.fr/