The Europeen Mississipi

On the Côtes land, water is everywhere. You can hardly tell these waters apart : rivers, estuary, ocean, fresh and salty waters. The bores (mascarets in French) allow the ocean going inland 160 km from the Atlantic coast essentially during the autumn equinox tides. Gironde and Garonne meet at the Bec d'Ambes, a spit of land extending with the passing centuries.

After the confluence, the two rivers entwin into a stream sometimes 15 km wide.

It's such a large estuary that Jean Marc Soyes described it as the " European Mississipi" Visitors are taken from the Pointe de Graves to the Verdon and from Blaye to Lamarque by ferry.There you will discover typical villages : Bourg shrouded in mist, Blaye and its citadel built by Vauban.

Whether you travel from Bordeaux to Langon or from Bordeaux to Castillon la Bataille, do not hesitate to stray from principal roads to discover an exceptional patrimony as castles, manors, fortresses, roman churches, gorgious houses where were born famous writers or artists.

It is a landscape in which terroir entwins history. Many testimonies of farming and trading activities are scattered all over the area as fortified mills and towns or villages with narrow streets.

Charm is everywhere. Cycling, riding horse or walking, various tours are waiting for you.

Enter the wine cellars :

inhabitants are as pleasant as their wines. They are passionate and proud of their work, proud of an old hospitality tradition too. They will be talking with you for hours, tasting a few glasses of their racy wines.

Blaye : The Citadel with its echauguette, the Minimes convent, the Estuary Museum, Saint Savin Church and its XIX th c.frescos.

Tourist information centre: 05 57 42 12 09.

Castillon : The "Iron Door" trace of the Castle of Castillon. Every summer (from 15.07 to 15.08) a huge "son et lumière" is organized in the site celebrating the last Battle of the 100 Year War, the Battle of Castillons gathering more than 500 local actors, 100 horses and 50 horsemen.

Tourist information centre : 05 57 40 27 58.

Drink the "Premières Côtes de Bordeaux" wines slowly, wandering about the marvellous landscapes, the patrimony of Roman churches, the beautiful homes in the vineyard, the fantastic historic places as the Langoiran fortress, the Château of Cadillac or the small walled Mediaeval town of Rions.

Charming roads reveal small fishing ports on the Garonne banks and then climb the vine covered slopes.

Three Roman churches : "Notre Dame de Tayac", "Notre Dame de Saint Cibard", "Saint Martin de Francs" destroyed during the religious wars. Jean de Gaufreteau built an identical one.

The age-old castle, with its traces of XIIIth and XIVth centuries dominates the country.