The best road cycling routes around Clisson

Clisson Castle has quite a story to tell: first an impregnable fortress overlooking the Sèvre, then a ducal residence, and finally a romantic ruin. In the 12th century, the powerful lordship of Clisson built this stone castle with highly elaborate defensive architectural systems: arrow slits, gun ports, and slits. A strategic point protecting the border of the Duchy of Brittany in the 15th century, it was abandoned by its owners from the second half of the 17th century onward before being burned down by Republican troops in 1793. But, beyond its grand history, this castle also has a more historic significance! In 1807, François-Frédéric Lemot, creator of the Garenne Lemot estate (a picturesque landscape located on the other side of the river), was captivated by these ruins and purchased it to turn it into an ornamental factory. The château was declared a historic monument in 1924, before being acquired by the Loire-Atlantique department in 1962. Today, visitors can visit it, take a guided tour, or simply experience its history. A stop on the Journey through the Vineyard, it's a stopover during the wine tourism tour of Nantes' wine country, featuring natural sites, heritage features, characterful villages, and unique cellars.

The last remaining witness to the region's papermaking industry, the association "Pour les arts graphiques en Vallée de Clisson" (For Graphic Arts in the Clisson Valley) has been working with local authorities since 1998 to revive the 19th-century papermaking industry at Le Liveau in Gorges. The Moulin du Liveau is a superb example of the region's Italianate architecture. With the active support of local authorities, the mill, owned by the municipality of Gorges, was restored to its original purpose as a paper mill. This magnificent site on the Sèvre Nantaise River in the Clisson Valley opened to the public in spring 2015. MORE THAN A MUSEUM, IT'S A LIVING WORKSHOP The association "Pour les arts graphiques en Vallée de Clisson" offers activities centered around the history and manufacture of paper. Children and adults alike can discover the mechanisms of the paper mill, handcraft their own sheets of paper, and learn about printing. An informative journey through history, accompanied by the ever-present pleasure of playfully recreating the gestures of the past. Inside, a hammer mill powered by a paddle wheel driven by the Sèvre River evokes the preparation of paper pulp from rags. Visitors can also practice calligraphy, participate in writing workshops, take bookbinding courses, and enjoy many other activities.

The Liveau Paper Mill in Gorges in the Clisson Valley (Loire Atlantique, 44) offers guided tours, educational outings, group visits to the paper mill, papermaking workshops, events, and exhibitions. The mill welcomes you south of Nantes and also offers a shop with a wide selection of paper, stationery, and books. The Liveau Paper Mill is located in Loire-Atlantique, in Gorges on the banks of the Sèvre Nantaise. Two flour mills, one on the right bank, the other on the left bank, made up the Liveau hydraulic site, first mentioned in 1407. Until 1561, it was owned by the lords of Clisson. • 1826, transformation of the right bank mill into a paper mill, a more prosperous activity at that time, and construction of the drying rack (drying rack), marked in its architecture by the strong Italian influence prevalent at that time in the canton of Clisson. • 1827: Papermaking begins at the mill. It produces "large gray paper" or "envelope paper" (wrapping paper) sold to the sugar refineries of Nantes. • 1850: Papermaking ends. • 1851 to 1952: Milling resumes. • 2001: The municipality of Gorges acquires the abandoned mill. • 2004: The "Pour les arts graphiques en vallée de Clisson" association wins first prize from the Fondation du Patrimoine for its project to rehabilitate and promote the Moulin du Liveau, with the support of Gorges elected officials and the Clisson Valley community of municipalities. • 2006: The Fondation du Patrimoine approves the project and brings in financial partners. • 2008-2009: Airtight and watertight construction of the buildings (mill and dryer), half of which was financed by the Total Foundation. Additional funding was provided by the Fondation du Patrimoine, the Crédit Agricole Foundation, parliamentary funds, the Pays de Loire Regional Council, the Loire-Atlantique General Council, the Clisson Valley Community of Communes, the municipality of Gorges, and various private funds. . 2014: Rehabilitation work in preparation for an artisanal papermaking activity, for cultural and tourist purposes. • April 2015: The Liveau paper mill in Gorges welcomes its first visitors.

The unmissable annual event for extreme music in France. Founded in 2006 and based in the small town of Clisson for 13 years, Hellfest has established itself as one of the leading European festivals offering extreme music. A veritable marathon of hardcore, punk, grind, death metal, and trash, accessible just a few minutes from Nantes by train. More than 160 artists from all over the world perform on six stages for four days of fury! Every June, Clisson becomes the international center of metal culture, attracting more than 100,000 festival-goers to a dedicated venue. In 2014, the Hellfest Festival presented "its" town with a symbolic guitar over 10 meters high (the work of artist J.-F. Buisson), comfortably installed on the Looksor roundabout near the grounds, which welcome more than 100,000 festival-goers each year. Visible from the road, we can see the permanent installations emblematic of the metal aesthetic

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Using the power of moving water to drive a mill wheel is an ancient invention that dates back to pre-Christian times. Thanks to such a construction, human or animal muscle power could be easily replaced by a watercourse - natural or artificially created - in order to grind grain into corn, for example. There are essentially two different ways of driving watermills: either the water simply hits the blades of the water wheel from below to set it in motion; or the water is guided above the wheel and falls onto the blades; this type of construction is more efficient due to natural gravity.

South Gate or CABAREAU Gate or CAHAREAU Gate or Vendée Gate 16th century Listed as a Historic Monument on December 21, 1984. Built between 1592 and 1596 as part of the last major fortification works of the walled city of Clisson, undertaken by Odet d’Avaugour (1549-1598), Count of Vertus and Goëlo, Lord of Clisson. It commanded access to the city from the South and Vendée. It was burned down in September 1793, during the destruction of Clisson. In the middle of the 19th century, noting the danger of crossing it, the municipality decided to move access to the city to the current location of Rue des Halles. Sheet produced in partnership with the association "Clisson Histoire et Patrimoine"

Possibility of visiting the site every Saturday