Day 1
Riding: No riding.
Arrival at Tracy-Sancerre Train Station for the transfer at 6:00pm. Your hosts will drive you to your hotel, Le Panoramic in Sancerre to meet your fellow riders for dinner. If you are hiring a car and driving to the hotel, please arrive at 6:00pm.
Day 2
Riding: 2 - 3 hours
After breakfast you will meet your horses and set off for a gentle ride along the paths of the Sancerre vineyards to Chavignol, where you will enjoy a picnic lunch. The village of Chavignol is a beautiful winegrower's hamlet, set in a basin in the middle of the vineyards and situated along a road that climbs towards the church and then up to the Graveron lookout, from where the view over Sancerre is magnificent. This hamlet is the origin of the Crottin de Chavignol, a delicious goat's cheese.
The afternoon is free for you to discover Sancerre which is a charming old medieval town. Perhaps enjoy strolling through the picturesque, ancient, cobbled streets or climb the 195 steps of The Tour des Fiefs, the town's only defensive tower and the last vestige of the Château of the Counts of Sancerre and enjoy the panoramic view. In the evening enjoy dinner at Le Panoramic Hotel and rest before your first full days riding.
Day 3
Riding: 4 - 5 hours
Today you continue your discovery of the Sancerrois landscape with the Pays Fort. On the way to the village of Assigny, you leave behind the rows of vines to discover a different landscape of arable land. Enjoy a picnic in Assigny, where the highest point in the Cher is located, at Fait des Marnes, offering a panoramic view over the Loire Valley, Puisaye, Nièvre and the Piton de Sancerre.
After a refreshing siesta, set off for Vailly sur Sauldre and the Pays Fort. With views over the vine-covered hills of the Sancerrois region, the Pays Fort stretches out over bocages 'ancient woodland and pastures' covered with oilseed fields, hedged meadows where cows and goats graze, winding streams, sunken lanes and country roads.. The Pays Fort boasts a rich rural heritage: old timber - framed dwellings (Manoeuvrerie du Noyer, 16th century), old mills (Moulin au Riche de Concressault, 16th century), wash-houses and the famous pyramid - shaped barns (17th and 18th centuries). Overnight stay and dinner at Hotel le Cerf in Briare, Vailly sur Sauldre.
Day 4
Riding: 4 - 5 hours
Your third days riding will once again be in the Pays Fort toward Blancafort and its wonderful castle where you will stop for your picnic lunch on the banks of the old Sauldre canal.
In the afternoon, you will visit Blancafort Chateau which was built in the 15th century by the Boucard family on the site of an ancient seigneury dating back to the 11th century. This fortified house was transformed in the 17th century and with its fine brickwork stands on the banks of the Sauldre canal, a pleasant setting enhanced by a formal garden.
You then head for Aubigny sur Nère, in the Berry region which was notable during the Hundred Years' War, when Charles VII, King of France, gave the seigneury of Aubigny to John Stuart de Darnley, Constable of the Scottish army. For almost 4 centuries, the village lived on Scottish time, with kilts, bagpipes and whiskies lining the streets and 'Shakespeare's language' was widely used. The area was returned to French territory in the early 19th century, but the Scottish heritage is still very much alive today. Overnight stay and dinner at Hotel la Chaumiere in Aubigny sur Nére.
Day 5
Riding: 2 - 3 hours
Today is a shorter day of riding. After breakfast you ride towards Château de la Verrerie, a Renaissance gem built by Béraud Stuart, where you will enjoy a picnic lunch. The grounds are full of paths where Alain-Fournier, the author of Le Grand Meaulnes, loved to wander. It was owned by the Stuarts for two centuries, before being given by Louis XIV to Louise de Kéroualle, Duchess of Portsmouth.
The afternoon is free to visit Aubigny sur Nère where Scottish history is still very noticeable. From the Stuarts' castle, now the town hall, to the unique collection of half-timbered houses, to the Aubigny Auld Alliance whisky brand proudly displaying the local colours, the only thing missing is the rain to make you think you're really in Scotland! The splendour of this town, located on the Jacques Coeur Historic Route, is complemented by some lovely heritage features such as the Philippe Auguste enclosure, the Gothic church of Saint-Martin and the Augustins cloister. From the superb large gardens, inspired by Le Nôtre, were bequeathed by the Duchess of Portsmouth.
Overnight stay and dinner at Hotel la Chaumiere in Aubigny sur Nére.
Day 6
Riding: 3 - 5 hours
This morning you ride towards La Chapelotte for which will be your picnic spot for today. In the heart of the Pays Fort between the vineyards of Menetou - Salon and Sancerre, close to the pottery village of La Borne. The rolling landscape, with the Vernon river running through it, is a favourite with hunters, anglers and walkers.
After lunch break, continue your way through this undulating landscape to Sens - Beaujeu, where we leave the horses. Sens - Beaujeu lies between the Pays Fort and the Sancerrois, just a stone's throw from the Champagne plain. The Grande Sauldre River and its tributary, the Etang de Couët stream, cut through much of the area's plateau, forming wet valleys in a landscape of hedged farmland. Overnight stay and dinner in Chambres D'Hotes le Cep en Scancerrois in Sancerre.
Day 7
Riding: 4 - 5 hours
Todays highlight is your visit to the Tour de Vesvre in the commune of Neuvy deux Clochers, a fortified house with massive, thick walls that stands on the Vesvre site. Designated a "Domus fortis", it is a rare, fortified structure that appeared late in the 13th century and this is where you will enjoy today's picnic lunch. Building was started at the end of the 12th century, on the remains of an ancient seigniorial residence dating back to the 9th century. Its history is linked with that of the Site de Vesvre, which included the neighbouring motte castrale in the 9th and 10th centuries. The Tower was listed as a historic monument in 1993. The adjoining 13th Century farmhouse was a fortified farm with a stable, dovecote and barn. The barn and dovecote have recently been restored.
You will ride back to the Bête Noire farm, where we began your riding at the start of the week then have dinner and spend the night at Chambre d'Hôtes le Cep en Sancerrois in Sancerre.
Day 8
Riding: No riding.
After breakfast, departure or transfer to Tracy Sancerre railway station.
Note: All programmes and itineraries are weather dependent; in the face of adverse, or unexpected, weather conditions reasonable attempts will be made to provide equivalent riding. All programmes are accurate at the time of writing. However, the team may adapt or modify details, whilst aiming to provide a similar experience.
