In D’Artagnan’s Footsteps

Program

Day 1: Arrival and visit of Auvers-sur-Oise Arrival at the airport of CDG or Beauvais. Transfer to the hotel near Auvers-sur-Oise. Guided walking tour of Auvers-sur-Oise. Our guide will tell his most beautiful anecdotes about the history of the Impressionists in general and Van Gogh in particular. Dinner at the restaurant in Auvers-sur-Oise. Night at the hotel.

Day 2: Le Vexin / Marines – Château de Chambly in Ronquerolles. Breakfast at the hotel and transfer to Marines. Presentation of the horses and departure of the ride. We will evolve in the Regional Natural Park of French Vexin extending over the Val d’Oise and Yvelines regions. Recognized for the quality of its natural and architectural heritage, the French Vexin is classified “Regional Natural Park” since 1995. The hike will start from Marines, a small town dating from the Gallo-Roman era dominated by a castle built in 1520. At noon our support team will be waiting for us with a nice lunch in the form of a picnic. At the end of the afternoon we arrive in the domain of the castle of Chambly and install our horses in paddock in the equestrian center on the spot. Dinner on site in the restaurant of the equestrian center. Accommodation: Lodge in the field of the equestrian center of Château de Chambly.

Day 3: Château de Chambly in Ronquerolles – Goumet Breakfast on site and departure on horseback. Leaving by the beautiful forests of Ronquerolles, we cross several small villages before crossing the Oise and arrive at Gouvieux and the forest of Lys at the end of the day. At noon, our support team awaits us with a nice lunch in the form of a picnic. At the end of the day we install our horses in paddock. Our support team offers us a friendly BBQ in the equestrian field of the Black Lands before taking us to our hotel in Chantilly. Accommodation: Hotel or hotel room in Chantilly If you come on October 21st or October 28th we will go and see a show at the Museum of the Horse living in Chantilly at night. For these two dates we will have dinner in town in Chantilly. Since 1982, the Living Horse Museum has been housed in the Chantilly stables and attracts almost 200,000 visitors every year. In addition to collections of objects devoted to the world of horses, the museum presents all year round demonstrations of dressage but also very beautiful equestrian shows.
Day 4: Discovery of the forest of Chantilly and the domain of the castle on horseback / Gouvieux – Gourmet Breakfast at the hotel and transfer to the stable. On horseback we will pass the Abbey Royaumont. Royaumont Abbey is the largest Cistercian abbey in Ile de France. It is a royal abbey where St. Louis lived as a monk during many retreats. In 1791, the Marquis de Travenet bought the abbey and set up a cotton mill. The morning is devoted to the discovery of the forest of Chantilly, city known worldwide as “capital of the horse” and its magnificent bridle paths. The forest of Chantilly is since the Renaissance one of the favorite places of the huntsmen. It was during a hunt that was born the first horse race here; In 1814, the monarchical restoration was accompanied by the return of the Emigrés to France. In England, they have taken the taste of horse racing and dream of creating a racetrack similar to that of Ascot. By happy coincidence, in 1833, four friends returning from hunting improvised a race on the lawn that separates the forest from the big stables. The winner, M of Normandy, seduced by the quality of the site and the elasticity of the lawn, think then to have found the ideal place to organize races and seize to boast the place. Soon we created the Society for the Improvement of Horse Breeds (future France Galop). The following year, the first races were organized, then the Jockey Club prize (1836 and the Prix de Diane (1843) were created on the British models.) Chantilly’s horse devotion encouraged the establishment in Apremont of a Polo Club in 1995. With 500 matches a year, it is the first polo center in continental Europe. It provides 9 courses and hosts 250 permanent horses and 500 during the season. It is a school and a training center, a place open to visitors where you can watch free games that take place every weekend. We will hike in the Forest of Princes. From the Renaissance with the Montmorency, then in the seventeenth and eighteenth century with Condé, Chantilly is the absolute reference in hunting. Horses and huntsmen roam the forest daily during large hunts organized by the princes. Kings and princes come from all over Europe to hunt in Chantilly. The forest bears everywhere the mark of veneration by straight forest roads and crossroads in stars, designed by André Le Nôtre from 1669. In 1834, the Duke of Aumale launches the horse races in Chantilly. Last heir to the princes, he donated the estate to the Institut de France. Thanks to its soil, furniture surface, more compact at shallow depth and always well drained, this massif has since been recognized as an ideal ground for the training of galloping horses. Around Chantilly, 120 kilometers of sand tracks, the best known of which are the Lions (four kilometers in a straight line), are dedicated to them each morning. For lunch we will take a break at the pond of Comelles where we will lunch at the Crêperie de l’Etang. Our hike then continues to Domaine du sumptuous Château de Chantilly. The castle of Chantilly: A little history Since the Middle Ages, the Domaine de Chantilly belongs to the great princely families of France. This illustrious legacy now forges the reputation of this high place of French heritage and gives it a special place, alongside Versailles, Fontainebleau, Ecouen, Vaux-le-Vicomte, etc. The stronghold of Chantilly belongs to the high Middle Ages to the family of Le Bouteiller de Senlis. From 1386 to 1897, the estate passed by inheritance to different branches of the same family, without ever being sold; The Orgemont in the Middle Ages, The Montmorency in the Renaissance (1484-1632), The Condé (1643-1830) and The Orleans in the nineteenth century. During the Revolution the Chantilly collections are seized as emigrant goods and transported to the Louvre. The castle serves as a prison. In 1799, the buildings are sold to demolishers who shave the large castle to the terrace; the park is ravaged, cut in two and loti: it will never find its original area, part of the city of Chantilly develops on its western area. After 1815, Prince Louis-Joseph, returned from emigration, restored the apartments and obtained the return of some of the collections remained in the Louvre. He designed the English garden by architect Victor Dubois in 1817 and filled the gap separating the two castles. The Duke d’Aumale, a member of the Institut de France since 1871, bequeathed Chantilly in 1884 to the Institute, provided that at his death the Condé Museum was open to the public, that its presentation be preserved and that the collections can be lent. The Condé museum will be open to the public less than a year after his death, on April 17, 1898. According to the wishes of the Duke of Aumale, the resources of the domain allow to operate, maintain and restore this immense heritage: the castle, the Condé museum, but also the Great Stables, housing since 1982 the Living Museum of the Horse, and the park. At the end of the day we arrive near Courteuil where we will install our horses and enjoy a good dinner. Accommodation in guest rooms.

Day 5: The Forest Halatte / Courteuil – Verberie. After a good breakfast we hit the road to discover the beautiful forest Halatte. With a surface area of ​​4,295 hectares, partly domanial, it is located in a forest area of ​​approximately 6,000 hectares. Former Capetian domain, it has long served as a royal hunting reserve. It is as rich in production of wood (oak and beech) as in game. It forms with the forest of Chantilly and the forest of Ermenonville, the massif of the Three Forests. Of the primary forest, there is probably nothing left, in fact, traces of human occupation are present from the Neolithic periods. Two main megalithic complexes are indeed reported on the territory of the forest: the menhirs of Indrolles and the dolmen of Chancy. Subsequently, several signs of occupation of the Gallo-Roman era were found in archaeological excavations, the best known being the Gallo-Roman temple found on the territory of the commune of Ognon east of the forest. According to the palynological analyzes carried out in the region, it seems that these buildings were originally located in open areas, in the middle of cultivated fields and simple hedges and woody groves. The clearings were probably already over the primary forest. The current forest massif probably dates back to late antiquity and the early Middle Ages. In the Halatte forest, more than 75 animal species and more than 40 herbaceous species have been recorded. Among them are rare and protected species, such as Limodorus Abortivum, Belladonna (Atropa belladonna) and False Buttercup anemone (Anemone ranunculoides) for plant species; the Woodpecker (Dendrocopos medius), the Black Woodpecker (Dryocopus martius), the Great Murin (Myotis myotis), the Red Deer (Cervus elaphus) and the Nimble Frog. In the evening, after a good dinner, we will sleep in bed and breakfast in Verberie; Our horses will be housed in an equestrian center next door.

Day 6: Compiègne / Verberie Forest – Pierrefonds Our last day on horseback takes place in Compiègne forest, a place steeped in equestrian history: royal hunting (deer, deer, wild boars), King’s stables, national stud, museum of the horse-drawn car, racecourse … The city of Compiègne was also the seat of many historical events. Charles the Bald, grandson of Charlemagne, made Compiegne his favorite residence and wanted to establish the capital of the empire, Carlopolis. Joan of Arc rescuing Compiègne was captured by the Anglo-Burgundians. The armistice of November 11, 1918 ending the First World War was signed there. Coco Chanel created the first riding jodhpur for women. Compiègne National Forest is the third largest forest in France and the largest forest in Picardy, with an area of ​​14,885 hectares and a perimeter of 92 km. It is delimited by the natural borders of the valleys of Aisne, Oise and Autumn. During our hike in the forest of Compiegne we discover sites full of history such as the Gallo-Roman ruins of Champlieu and the Ponds of Saint-Pierre and the pavilion of Empress Eugenie. The Château de Pierrefonds has characteristics of the defensive work of the Middle Ages. He was saved by Viollet-le-Duc in the nineteenth century. Empress Eugenie Maria de Montijo de Guzman, Countess of Teba, wife of Napoleon III, loved Pierrefonds a lot. In order not to be identified during her numerous travels, she presented herself under the pseudonym of “Countess of Pierrefonds” after the fall of the Empire. We will spend our last night in a guest house around a festive dinner. Accommodation: Bed and breakfast.

Day 7: Transfer to the airport Breakfast and transfer to CDG or Beauvais airport.