The Sébastopol Polder Nature Reserve

de fr

A beautiful walk around a large part of the Polder de Sébastopol nature reserve. This route also takes you past the Étang Vide and the exit of the Gois passage on the Île de Noirmoutier side.

Details

n°481355
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.23 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 05 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 3 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 3 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 5 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1 m
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Photos

hundreds of birds
Passage du Gois.
Elegant avocets
Sandpiper

Description of the walk

Parking is available near the Île de Noirmoutier Tourist Office and the Leisure Park.

(S/E) Leave the car park of the Île de Noirmoutier Tourist Office and return to Rue des Polders to the north, turning right to follow it towards the Polder de Sébastopol.
Keep the Route du Grand Cloudy Nord on your right and immediately after, take a second road on the right. Further on, leave a farm track on your left. Pass under the high-voltage power line.
At the next crossroads, take the farm track opposite, leaving the Route du Cloody Vieil on your right

(1). Turn left onto the cycle path, which is also a hiking trail. Please be careful to share the path with cyclists.
The path heads north, running alongside the Polder de Sébastopol nature reserve on your right. Further on, leave a path that branches off to the left.
Further on, after a left-hand bend, the path comes to the end of a farm track and the start of two other paths.

(2) Take the path on the right and go through the gate towards the ocean.
The path arrives at a T-junction: turn right. From here, the path is no longer shared with the cycle path. The Polder de Sébastopol nature reserve is now on your right and the ocean on your left.
The very straight path curves to the right and then becomes straight again.
Further on, leave the farm track on your right, which crosses the polder to join Rue des Polders. A little further on, the path arrives at the Étang du Vide.

(3) Take the path on the left that goes around the Étang du Vide on the ocean side, leaving the path that branches off to the right.

(4) Shortly after the end of the Étang du Vide, there is a T-junction. Leave the path that branches off to the right and continue straight ahead towards the Passage du Gois.

(5) The path turns right near a calvary. Beautiful view of the Passage du Gois (see during the hike or nearby).
As soon as you take the bend, there are two paths. Take the one on the right, as the one on the left leads to a semaphore.
Continue along the Polder de Sébastopol nature reserve on your right, with the D948 road to the Passage du Gois on your left.

(6) The path joins the D948 road, which you follow for a short distance (at low tide, there may be some car, bicycle and pedestrian traffic).
Immediately after passing a cycle path on your left, leave the D948 road and turn right onto the path, which is also a cycle path.
The path joins the crossroads that marked the start of the walk along the Polder de Sébastopol.

(1) Turn left onto the farm track and return to the starting point, rejoining Rue des Polders a little further on.
Before reaching the main road of the Île de Noirmoutier (the D38), turn left immediately after the tourist office to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 2 m - Tourist Office car park
  2. 1 : km 0.65 - alt. 3 m - Crossing between farm track and cycle path
  3. 2 : km 2.17 - alt. 3 m - Crossroads and road junction
  4. 3 : km 4.21 - alt. 2 m - Crossroads
  5. 4 : km 4.65 - alt. 1 m - Crossroads after the Étang du Vide
  6. 5 : km 5.07 - alt. 4 m - Crossroads - View of the Gois
  7. 6 : km 5.55 - alt. 4 m - Crossroads - Route D948 (Passage du Gois)
  8. S/E : km 7.23 - alt. 2 m - Tourist Office car park

Notes

It is advisable to wear suitable footwear, even though this route does not present any particular difficulties.

Worth a visit

The Sébastopol Polder Nature Reserve
The Polder Sébastopol is a nature reserve near Le Gois. Located three-quarters of the island below sea level, it covers 132 hectares that man has reclaimed from the sea. This site is home to more than 900 animal and plant species, including some rare ones such as an orchid that only blooms in May and the prostrate asparagus (a protected species).
It is also a fabulous observatory for sedentary and migratory birds.
Finally, it is a grazing ground for our famous Maraîchine cow, a pretty red cow with a black muzzle, which has long provided milk for Charente Poitou butter and succulent meat.

History
The polder was created by draining the land in the 19th century for cultivation. The work was completed in 1856, the year after the Battle of Sevastopol, hence its name.
The dyke collapsed in 1978 and the polder is now connected to the ocean by a network of sluices and canals.

Flora
Flora inventories list more than 240 plant species, including sea lavender, glasswort, false mallow and bee orchid.

Fauna
There are more than 170 species of birds, around 40 of which are nesting birds. These include the elegant avocet, the common shelduck, the common tern, the black-winged stilt and the reed bunting
There are more than 235 species of butterflies

The Passage du Gois
The Passage du Gois or Gôa is a submersible road located in Bourgneuf Bay, connecting the island of Noirmoutier (municipality of Barbâtre) to the mainland (municipality of Beauvoir-sur-Mer) in the French department of Vendée. The passage is only accessible by car, bicycle or on foot at low tide, as it is covered at high tide (1½ hours before and after low tide). There are other sites of this type, but the unique feature of the Gois is its exceptional length: 4.125 km. Depending on the tidal coefficient, the height of the water covering it at high tide varies from 1.30 m to 4 m.
Since 1971, the Noirmoutier bridge, connecting the island to the mainland, has been an alternative to the Gois.

History
The Passage du Gois and the Noirmoutier bridge in the background
The name Gois (Goy in Old French) dates back to around 1577. It comes from the verb goiser, which means to walk with wet hooves (cf. vad(um)). The word gois could also be a deformation of the word gué (cf. gué). This passage has been referred to for much longer, when Noirmoutier was called the Île d'Her. The gois has been used mainly by pedestrians and animals since the 18th century and was much longer at that time because the old dykes were further from the coast. This passage connecting the mainland to the island was first mentioned on a map in 1701. According to oral tradition, it was first crossed in 1766 by a tailor from Barbâtre named Gauvrit.

This curiosity, which is almost unique in the world, has existed since the collapse of the plateau that gave rise to Bourgneuf Bay at the beginning of the Quaternary period. Over a thousand years ago, two sea currents from the north and south collided in the bay, creating a shoal that moved continuously before stabilising in its current location about a century ago.

The high mobility of the shoals makes navigation dangerous without a guide. During the War in the Vendée, during the French Revolution, royalists took refuge on the island. Around 1780, the first wooden beacons were erected to mark the route.

Later, stabilisation work was carried out to prevent the sandbanks from moving. This made it possible to build the current road network. Around 1840, a regular service was provided by a horse-drawn carriage.

Today, numerous markers allow surprised walkers to take refuge. Despite numerous signs indicating the tide times, there are incidents every year, but very rarely fatal. Faced with the increasing number of accidents, the Gois was stabilised, marked and then paved with stones in 1924. Markers were planted every hundred metres. Six beacons known as "parrot masts" and three beacons equipped with cages have provided relative safety since the end of the 19th century.

The Passage du Gois is part of the old national road 148 that linked Noirmoutier to Limoges, now the departmental road 948. On 11 July 1942, the Gois and its outbuildings (roadways, dykes and markers) were listed as historic monuments.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 36 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.5 / 5
Eterle
Eterle

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 15, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An easy hike, half by bike and half on foot, under the gentle November sun, 22°C. A route
at all busy at this time of year, with a section along the sea wall.

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jacpic17
jacpic17

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 04, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The first part of the route at the foot of the dyke between two hedges is a little dull, but the section between the sea and the polder is magnificent, even in November.

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User 7584015

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 13, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Nice, easy walk

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User 24264617

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 18, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Easy hike.
Take the path along the sea wall to enjoy views of the sea and the marshes.
View of the Gois passage.
We did it at low tide.

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jasy19481949
jasy19481949

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 11, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful walk to discover seabirds. It's a shame that part of the path is shared with bicycles.

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JMB46
JMB46

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 30, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

An interesting route, provided you leave the path when you reach the sea and continue along the dyke to enjoy the view (the sea on one side, the marshes on the other). Walking among the birds in the marshes is an enchanting experience. Best done at high tide to enjoy the birds in the marshes.

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Ouaggy
Ouaggy

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pretty and pleasant walk, with no difficulties. Best done in the morning to avoid the heat during the high season. We walked along the sea on the seawall to enjoy the breeze and the view. Lots of birds to watch.
Thanks to the author.

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Lyne7
Lyne7

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 25, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike done in mid-March on a grey day: very few people and not too hot. High tide at Le Gois, so few vehicles parked. Walking among the birds is enchanting, and walking on the dyke allows you to see and hear the sea

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Ph Colas
Ph Colas
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 18, 2024
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

It's a superb route. As for the Gois passage, avoid (but this isn't always possible, as your travel dates aren't based on the tides!) high tides, when hundreds (and I'm being modest) of fishermen and onlookers gather with their vehicles, making the place unbearable for pedestrians and cyclists.
Bird watching along this route is a wonder to behold.
Don't miss the boat graveyard on the outskirts of Noirmoutier either!

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jms85
jms85

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 19, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike with no difficulty.

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nayou
nayou

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Avoid the heat... Otherwise, it's a very nice walk!
Lots of bird colonies.
On the seafront, we walked along the seawall to point 5 to get some fresh air. It's easy to do.

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JBEAU
JBEAU

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Easy and interesting hike

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Nome80
Nome80

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 22, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant and accessible route. In April, with mixed weather, there weren't too many people but there were lots of birds

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16410
16410

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 25, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Very easy, well-maintained route, suitable for all ages.

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deforge
deforge

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

An interesting and easy route, with the option of alternating between the sea wall (avoiding the relatively large number of cyclists on this route) and the footpath, offering beautiful views of the Gois passage at low tide

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