The best MTB trails around Villiers-Le-Bois

On the road to Vézelay or Santiago de Compostela, the Domaine Saint-Georges offers a welcome break. Here, you can put down your bag, enjoy a shaded picnic area and dip your tired feet in the water.

Decorated with beautiful houses and surrounded by vineyards, life is good in Les Riceys. The village has many wineries that offer champagne tastings and cellar tours. It prides itself on being the only wine-growing commune in the region to have the three Champagne controlled appellations. If you want to taste champagne, the place is very suitable.

The Burgundy Canal is 242 km long, it connects the Seine basin to the Rhône basin. Previously used for moving goods, but since the 1960s the canal has been used almost exclusively for recreational boating.

The Dionne pit is a karst source called the Vauclusian source, located in the city center of Tonnerre. It is fed by the infiltration of precipitation into the surrounding limestone plateau as well as by the losses of at least one river. The Dionne pit is remarkable for its flow and the size of its hydrogeological network which extends to more than 40 km. His presence is at the origin of the creation of the city of Tonnerre. An elaborate washhouse was built around the spring in the 18th century. Wikipedia

A real must-see - this round wash house around a turquoise green source is unique in its kind and well worth the detour.

Father CHAMPION (1599 - 1665) is an illustrious historical figure from the commune of Les Riceys. He arrived in the commune of Les Riceys in 1632, assigned by Mgr ZAMET, Bishop and Duke of Langres. His mission, to direct the Hermitage of Notre Dame de Thouan at Riceys Bas, a hermitage newly instituted as a Congregation in 1630. In this period, the landscape of Riceys Bas and the region is sad: war of the Thirty, plague, famine, looting by German soldiers. The picture is gloomy, as in all periods of major difficulty, taxes are heavy. The Hermit CHAMPION rolls up his sleeves and engages in a fight against both social difficulties and in particular against the plague. He solicits the Vicar and obtains a total rebate of taxes for the inhabitants of Les Riceys, which relieves morally and financially. He makes prayers to stop the scourge of the plague, he lays on hands, uses holy oil and the cross on plague-stricken people. He would thus have healed many sick people. He invested himself assiduously for six good years. After his death, a mausoleum was built for him, in recognition of his remarkable actions in the commune of Les Riceys.

The mystery of this pit is complete. The city was built around it.

The deep basin of the karst spring with the historic washhouse around it is, in my opinion, the main attraction in Tonnerre. Depending on your perspective, when the sun is shining you will see deep turquoise water in front of you. Plus the rushing of the water. You can also just sit here for a while and enjoy. When we visited the spring on a Friday morning, there was surprisingly little going on.