The best gravel rides around Récourt-Le-Creux

The route along the Meuse is beautiful and peaceful to drive and offers one or two highlights.

Founded around 708 by Count Wulfoalde, this Benedictine abbey became an important religious and cultural centre in Lorraine. The abbey was under the protection of Charlemagne and flourished under Abbot Smaragdus in the 9th century. Today, you can still visit the abbey church of Saint-Michel, home to the masterpiece La Pâmoison de la Vierge by Ligier Richier. The 18th-century monastery library houses thousands of ancient works and is one of the most beautiful in the region.

This former abbey church forms the historic heart of Saint-Mihiel. Originally built in the 9th century, it took on its current form during major renovations in the 17th and 18th centuries. Inside, you can admire a magnificent baroque organ (1679–1681), colourful stained glass windows and the masterpiece La Pâmoison de la Vierge by sculptor Ligier Richier. A place where art, history and spirituality come together.

2 rue Notre-Dame 55300 Saint-Mihiel One of the oldest civil buildings in the Meuse, built around 1350 and bought in 1428 by René I, Duke of Bar, later known as “Le bon Roi René”. This stately home with four wings around a courtyard served as a residence and courthouse. The facade is a beautiful example of late medieval architecture. Today it is privately owned, but the exterior can be freely admired.

Saint-Mihiel is picturesquely situated on the Meuse, on the edge of the Lorraine Regional Nature Park. The town grew around a Benedictine abbey, founded in the 8th century, and flourished during the Renaissance. Visit the abbey with its impressive library, the Museum of Sacred Art, and the Saint-Michel church. Wander the charming streets, admire the sculptures of Ligier Richier, and taste local specialities such as the “croquets” and “rochers de Saint-Mihiel”. A town full of history, culture and character.

The cycle path here is more suitable for mountain bikes for about 1 km but the view is great and worth pushing over the stony path

Located near the Porte Chaussée and the Verdun War Memorial, this contemporary metal sculpture was designed by the artist Jean-No and created by students from the Lycée Professionnel Eugène Freyssinet. Created to mark the centenary of the Battle of Verdun, it symbolises the living memory of the conflict. The installation connects the past and the future through education and art.

Inaugurated in 1928, this war memorial in Verdun honours the city’s inhabitants who died for France in both world wars. It was built on the remains of a military butcher’s shop, on the crescent of the Chaussée, a 17th-century fortification. The sculpture depicts five soldiers – a cavalier, an engineer, an infantryman (poilu), an artilleryman and a territorial – forming a symbolic wall under the motto of Verdun: “On ne passe pas”.