In the footsteps of Jean Nesmy in Sallertaine

Circular on the steps of Jean Nesmy in Sallertaine and the surrounding area. This walk takes you to the Moulin de Rairé mill.

Details

638892
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.84 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 11 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 11 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 14 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the Place de la Liberté car park.

(S/E) Leave the car park and head towards the centre of Sallertaine (towards the old Saint-Martin Church on Place de la Liberté), which you will bypass to the north.
Take the street behind the church. When you reach Rue du Perrier, turn right and then immediately left onto Rue du Pélican. Walk past the new Saint-Martin Church and the Ecomuseum. Continue straight ahead, passing a street on your right.
At the next crossroads, turn left onto Rue du Vaulieu, leaving Rue du Fruche on your right, and you will come out onto Rue de Verdun (D71) opposite the post office. Turn right and continue straight ahead on this street.

(1) As you pass, admire the calvary (see section "During the hike"). At the next crossroads, turn left onto Rue de la Garde, which crosses the Grand Étier de Sallertaine further on.
Go straight across the roundabout and continue straight ahead until you reach the next roundabout. Take the third exit and you will immediately come to a new, much smaller roundabout. Then turn right into the cul-de-sac (Rue des Frênes).

(2) Leave the street and take a path on the left. At the crossroads, continue straight ahead on the path, which then becomes a farm track. At the first buildings in the hamlet of Le Creuset, leave the path coming from the right and continue to a crossroads a little further on.

(3) Take the farm track on the left and ignore the tracks coming from either side to reach the hamlet of Les Bouchauds. Leave the road on the right and left immediately after the buildings and arrive at the D103.

(4) Cross and take the path on the right that runs alongside the road and joins the one leading to the place called Le Pylois. Turn left and continue for a few dozen metres.

(5) Leave the road and take the path on the right that leads to Les Èves, where it turns into a road and immediately joins the Route de la Béchée.

(6) Turn right and continue straight ahead until you reach a fork. Then follow the farm track on the right, which leads to Moulin de Rairé in about 200 metres.

(7) Leave Moulin de Rairé by following the same path to Les Èves.

(6) Continue straight ahead on the Route de la Béchée.

(8) As soon as you pass the farm track leading to Bossis, take the path on the right that runs alongside a stream on the left. A little further on, the path crosses the stream and runs alongside it on the right, arriving at the edge of the Grand Étier de Sallertaine, where it turns left and runs alongside it until it joins the D103 road.
Turn right to return to the Place de la Liberté car park, which marks the end of this hike (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 3 m - Place de la Liberté car park
  2. 1 : km 0.97 - alt. 6 m - Calvaire, 6 Rue de Verdun
  3. 2 : km 2.01 - alt. 5 m - Lieu-dit la Croix, path on the left
  4. 3 : km 3.05 - alt. 13 m - Crossroads, farm track on the left.
  5. 4 : km 4.7 - alt. 3 m - Les Bouchauds, D103
  6. 5 : km 5.04 - alt. 3 m - Road-path junction, at a place called Le Bois Moreau.
  7. 6 : km 5.7 - alt. 2 m - Route de la Béchée, on the right
  8. 7 : km 6.18 - alt. 3 m - Rairé Mill
  9. 8 : km 7.16 - alt. 2 m - La Béchée locality, path on the right.
  10. S/E : km 7.84 - alt. 3 m - Place de la Liberté car park

Notes

Parking is available at Place de la Liberté, on the D103 road at the entrance to Sallertaine.

Walk on varied terrain requiring suitable footwear.

Worth a visit

Sallertaine
The commune of Sallertaine is divided almost equally between the Bocage to the north and the Marais to the south.
The former island of Sallertaine is separated from the shore by the Grand Étier de Sallertaine.
The hydrography naturally plays an important role in the life of the commune, which is almost entirely bordered by waterways. To the north, the Marais Blanc stream separates it from Châteauneuf, then the Grant Taizan stream from Saint Urbain. To the south, a major dyke, the Chaussée de Marconnais, lined with a canal, separates the Sallertaine marsh from that of Le Perrier.
For a long time, with no other means of communication than carts and ditches, the marsh has been crossed since Napoleonic times by the straight Grand'route road connecting Le Perrier to Saint-Urbain.
The forest has almost completely disappeared; all that remains are a few scattered clumps of trees, mainly around Les Groisardières, Le Petit Bois and La Sause, across a landscape that has been entirely cultivated.
Sallertaine takes its name from two words, one of which is the Latin "sal", meaning salt, and the other the Greek "artana", meaning a body attached to bring it to oneself. This can be explained as follows: as the salt marshes were located below the village, when salt was needed, it had to be hoisted up with a rope.
In the early Middle Ages, Sallertaine enjoyed its heyday with the establishment of three religious institutions that drove a major economic activity: salt extraction and trade. Until the Wars of Religion, the history of the parish was intertwined with that of these religious houses.
The Wars of Religion (1562-1598) brought bloodshed to the marshes, and Sallertaine was not spared from the violence.

The monuments of Sallertaine are essentially two churches:
• The 12th-century Church of Saint Martin, the jewel in the architectural heritage of north-western Vendée, is a marvel of Angevin Romanesque art and testifies to the importance of the site.
• A second church was built and inaugurated in 1911.

The Cavaire de Sallertaine (Rue de Verdun)
It was built on the site of an earlier calvary erected in 1712 by the father of Louis Grignon de Montfort. It took 160 men, working in groups of 40, to carry Christ and his cross on their shoulders from the church.

Sallertaine has been awarded the Ville et Métiers d'Art label, and around forty artisans are present during the months of July and August.
Every year, the Ile aux Artisans association organises four summer evenings with a programme that includes night-time openings of artisans' workshops, street art, shows, concerts and more.

The monastery of La Lande en Beauchêne
This important religious establishment was located within the commune, about 3km north of the village on the banks of the Taisan stream. All of these buildings form the convent estate, covering 80 hectares with no houses. The hamlets are on the outskirts of this estate: the village of La Lande, L'Enclose, Le Paradis and La Ravarderie.

The valet Jean Nesmy
René Bazin (1853-1932) was a French writer, lawyer, professor of law, novelist, journalist, historian, essayist and travel writer.
In his novel La Terre qui meurt (The Dying Land), published in 1898, he recounts the tragedy of an agricultural estate that has been abandoned twice: first by the large landowner who moves to Paris and, ruined, has to sell even his furniture, and then by the two sons of the tenant farmer responsible for running the farm. One emigrates to America, the other becomes a railway worker. However, the land does not ultimately die, as the farmhand Jean Nesmy, accepted as a son-in-law by the tenant farmer after some reluctance, finally takes over the farm.
The setting for the Lumineau family's drama is Sallertaine, in the hamlet of Mauny, on the La Fromentière farm.
This book was a great success and was adapted for the cinema in 1936.

The Rairé Mill
The Moulin de Rairé has been operating continuously since 1560, powered by the wind. The mill has a traditional mechanism and produces corn, barley, oat and wheat flour. It is the last of the 14 mills in the commune.
Of the 15,000 windmills in France, the Moulin de Rairé remained the only one powered by wind for several decades. The farming community has always remained loyal to these stubborn millers who never wanted to abandon wind as their sole source of energy.
Even today, Rairé remains a symbol of attachment to the techniques of yesteryear and respect for the know-how of our ancestors. Here, there are no electric motors to turn the sails
It is therefore both a real working tool (custom milling is carried out all year round for animals) and a unique guardian of memory, far removed from dubious and approximate restorations. The family that maintains it continues to believe that it is still possible to combine respect for tradition with tourist interest.

Reviews and comments

4 / 5
Based on 13 reviews

Reliability of the description
3.9 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.1 / 5
Route interest
4.1 / 5
VCANET
VCANET

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 06, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A visit to the Moulin de Rairé is fascinating.

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scalp92
scalp92

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 30, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Reverse description; if done in reverse order = yellow markings (this allowed me to check the description from time to time)
The upper part is of little interest, but don't hesitate to continue past the mill on the cycle path to see the marsh
Interesting village, but already well known

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M.palcy
M.palcy

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 27, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant route
One negative point: the directions are unclear, especially as we only found signposts at the mill
That said, even though we didn't follow the actual route, we had a pleasant and interesting circular walk.

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Cricri85
Cricri85

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 26, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Hello, This is a very interesting route for discovering some of the Vendée's heritage in this Breton marshland. The main attractions are the village of Sallertaine with its two churches, a peaceful garden in a former quarry which is ideal for a picnic, and craft exhibitions. Outside the tourist season, the village returns to its usual tranquillity. The Rairé mill is private property, so enquire before visiting. It's difficult to find paths or trails in this marshland, which was once navigated by flat-bottomed boats. We are now in the age of tarmac... Thank you for this lovely corner of marshland between Rairé and Sallertaine.

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pgetrochon
pgetrochon

Hello,
Your message has caught my attention and warrants a few corrections.
The reliability of the description is not in question; it seems that your disappointment alone justifies this assessment. However, the description makes no secret of the fact that one of the attractions of this route is to discover, among other things, the beauties of Sallertaine, such as its church, certain houses, etc. This requires travelling on tarmac roads, which was not hidden in the description or on the map. So if you did not want to travel on tarmac, you should have chosen a route outside the village. The roundabouts are modern additions that do not really alter the route.

The Moulin de Rairé is probably not open to visitors AT THE MOMENT due to Covid, like any other place that receives the public. However, it is a remarkable place with the potential to welcome groups such as schoolchildren. The miller's house, in particular, is private. You could have guessed that visits are not allowed during this pandemic, as is the case for all public places. Please refrain from making unfounded statements.

As for the end of the route, the nutria are probably better at reading the map and the description (humour - too).
This is a well-known route in the area and is largely signposted. However, a good reading of the map and the landscape is sufficient to enjoy this hike, which offers many points of interest: in the foreground, the remarkable Moulin de Rairé mill, Sallertaine and the various landscapes you pass through. But points of interest may vary from person to person...
This route was followed by the author of this guide, myself, twice in the spring and summer of 2017, each time with a group of people. They enjoyed it.
Happy hiking!

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rando85
rando85

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 17, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Hello

At the start, expect a "roundabout" hike on tarmac.
The route is sometimes poorly described, and we got lost right from the start
Then it was fine until we reached the mill, which is not open to visitors and has a large sign saying "private property" – great!
To see it from the front, we had to leave the recommended route, but it's superb!
On the way back, the route description was confusing again and we got more or less lost in the middle of the marshes
It was the nutria that showed us the way, humour :'
Cdt

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René B.
René B.

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 08, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Wait for the tide to go out, as 25% of the route is impassable. And visit the Rairé mill in early April.

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cloclo55
cloclo55

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 01, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Lovely walk past the mill.
Poorly signposted from the church.

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IsabellA2
IsabellA2

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 11, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

I rated the reliability of the description as "average" because the guidance was very accurate and reliable for most of the route; however, we couldn't find the last section, which would have allowed us to reach the old church quickly via the stream... Does it no longer exist? What a shame...

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pgetrochon
pgetrochon

Thank you for your well-researched message.
Happy hiking!

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mirabel54
mirabel54

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 16, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The village of Sallertaine is very interesting, with two churches (one Romanesque, one more recent), a superb calvary, and above all a windmill (the Moulin de Rairé) still in operation, where you will receive a warm welcome from the miller's wife. Sallertaine is also a village with many artisans (leather and glass workers, glass blowers and spinners), and you can stroll through a beautiful, flower-filled, shaded garden.

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pgetrochon
pgetrochon

Thank you for your message: it encourages us to write descriptions of other routes.
Happy hiking!

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carinedevendee
carinedevendee

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 02, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike, you can discover beautiful places right on your doorstep!

Thank you, Visorando!

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pgetrochon
pgetrochon

Hello

Thank you for your comment.
Personally, I don't mind the lack of signposting. If I find a hike interesting, I enjoy trying to describe it well so that other hikers can discover beautiful spots off the beaten track, which are sometimes very busy.

Happy hiking!

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pierre puget
pierre puget

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 11, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

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