Damvix / Bazoin / Marans
The Sèvre Niortaise remains your guide on this stage, except on two stretches, one where you follow the Canal du Nouveau Béjou, the other the Canal du Pomère. Enjoy the ballet of little boats exploring the wetlands around these parts. You arrive at Marans via its quaysides, allowing you to appreciate how this little town lives via its waterways. Marans traditionally stood guard over the canal, marshes and river estuary; today it stands out because of its futuristic bell tower.
Gradients and elevation
Slope breakdown
Road types
- Cycle path
- Routes reserved for cyclists and pedestrians (greenways, cycle tracks, towpaths), separated from cars for maximum safety.
- Shared road
- Quiet minor roads with little traffic (unless otherwise stated in the stage details). Shared with cars (stay alert).
- Not specified
- Data unavailable or being assessed. Please refer to the detailed stage description.
- Provisional
- Section on a road or cycle path awaiting better-quality facilities (see stage details).
Surface
- Smooth
- Asphalt, tarmac or smooth concrete. Optimal comfort.
- Rough
- Fine gravel, compacted stabilised surface or worn tarmac. Less comfortable, vibrations possible.
- Natural
- Dirt, grass, roots or stones. Under 5%: short sections with little impact. Higher percentage: route suited to mountain or gravel bikes only.
- Not specified
- Data unavailable or being assessed. Please refer to the detailed stage description.
The route
Follow the signposts indicating La Vélo Francette. You have to share the way with motorised traffic all along this stage. There are many little bridges crossing the waterways.
Tourist Offices
SNCF Train Services
Marans train station: there are plans afoot to re-open the station to create a rail link La Rochelle <> Marans from 2017.
Don’t miss
Damvix: landing stages from which you can embark on punts or in canoes; Le Collibert, a boat offering cruises, including dining cruises; the church of Saint-Guy
Marans: the port and its quays; the banks of the Sèvre Niortaise River; the 19th-century covered market; Notre-Dame Church, with its striking belltower made from metal and glass – built in 1988, it has become a belvedere for the wider area; the ruins of the former church of Saint-Etienne; the Moulin de Beauregard, an 18th-century mill in the centre of the town that’s still in use; the Parc du Bois Dinot grounds.
