jeffnlia: Chevreuse

Chevreuse is a small town set in the Yvette River valley, about 50 minutes by train to the southwest of Paris. It is most well known for Château de la Madelaine, a castle perched on a hill top overlooking the town. Madelaine is one of the few reasonably well preserved really old castles in the Île-de-France area. From what I can tell, it's a pretty common destination for lazy weekend exploration. The end of the RER-B line is in St-Rémy, so we got off the train and began the 45 minute walk to Chevreuse.

There is a bike/foot path that follows the road from St-Rémy to Chevreuse. If you pretend really well, you can make out the Château about one-fourth of the way from the right side of this photo. Don't worry, we have better shots later.

The path was nice, but we spotted people walking by the river about 20 minutes in and decided to check it out. Chevreuse is also known for its "Promenade des Petits Ponts," a stretch of the river that is traversed by many small bridges. We entered the trail a little early, purposefully not noticing the "Voie Privée" signs, and were essentially walking through people's very pretty backyards.

As we got closer to town, the petits ponts started to appear.

The doorway here is less than welcoming.

ducks!

Chevreuse was once a center for animal hide tanning. Most of the small buildings lining the river were dedicated to this purpose. There was a similar segment of the Bièvre River in southern Paris which was subsequently paved over due to the fetid waste produced by the tanning process. In Chevreuse the river smells fine, harbors animals and retains its old world charm.

The Séchoir à Peaux is the largest of the "skin drying" buildings.

giant stone table visible through the doorway

Lia, perfectly hydrated, across from the séchoir.

so many petits ponts!

riverside lantern

I would rent that.

the view from one of the small tanneries

The two things I'll miss the most when we leave France?

doors and moss, obviously

In the center of town and, most importantly, upriver from the tanning houses, is the old public laundry house.

The path past the laundry leads into town and up to the château.

The castle looms over the town.

the beginning of the way up

it's a long, steep path

voila!

Here is a panoramic shot of the interior of the château. The very tall structure on the left is the keep. Construction of the keep began in the mid-11th century. Originally surrounded by high wooden palisades, stone walls were built in the 12th century. Additional improvements were made until the 15th century at which point construction changed focus from fortification to upkeep and restoration.

another view of the keep

Using our perfect archery form in defense of the castle.

The well, tended to like a cauldron by Sorcière Lia.

looking out over Chevreuse

Château de la Madelaine is the starting point for the Chemin de Jean Racine. The path is the same one taken by the playwright on his way from Chevreuse to the Port-Royal Abbey, where he studied under the Jansenists, a heretical religious movement which "emphasized original sin, human depravity, the necessity of divine grace and predestination." Sounds like fun. We didn't have time to make the 10km trek, but are planning a return visit.