Along France's river of romance: . gher slopes. From Monistrol to Bas is aboutfour miles, mostly across the wide plain. At Bas theLoire forms its first considerable island, the woodedlie de la Garenne, which is about a mile in length. Thetown itself is agreeable, but contains little noticeablyof interest, its great lion being the castle of Roche-baron, situated on a precipitous rock about a mile anda half to the north-west. This castle was built in thereign of Charles VII, and dismantled by that arch-dismantler Richelieu. It is a triangular-shaped donjon,whose ruined towers and walls present a
Along France's river of romance: . gher slopes. From Monistrol to Bas is aboutfour miles, mostly across the wide plain. At Bas theLoire forms its first considerable island, the woodedlie de la Garenne, which is about a mile in length. Thetown itself is agreeable, but contains little noticeablyof interest, its great lion being the castle of Roche-baron, situated on a precipitous rock about a mile anda half to the north-west. This castle was built in thereign of Charles VII, and dismantled by that arch-dismantler Richelieu. It is a triangular-shaped donjon,whose ruined towers and walls present a curious,even surprising, outline, especially at night. At Bas 74 THE LOIRE there are some punts on the river, and it is tolerablynavigable down to a barrage, just below the town,after which there is almost a waterfall, and the Loirenarrows once more into the gorge of Aurec. Canoeingfrom Bas in a very light craft would be an adven-turous feat, only possible with constant portagesof the boat, which of necessity would have to be the. Castle of Rochebaron, near Bas lightest made. I noticed a canoe tied up just abovethe rapids before Aurec, and at Aurec there were againa number of punts, though the rapids here are dan-gerous, with rocks sticking up in the middle of thestream. Aurec is a pleasant town, with nearly three thousandinhabitants, nestling among vine-clad hills, and con-taining the ruined tower of a thirteenth-century castle,and a fine modern house, the Tour-des-Sauvages. The VOREY 75 canoeing between Aurec and Le Pertuiset duringthe summer months is quite possible, and the scenery—steep rocks, and wooded hills bright with broom,and green pastures — is particularly fine. Betweenthese two points the river is joined by the Sumene,just before it crosses the border into the departmentof the Loire, and flows round the base of the mountainof St. Paul-en-Cornillon. On the slopes of this hillis a remarkably-situated village of the same name,containing an interesting twelfth-ce
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookidalongfrances, bookyear1913
