Your holiday cottage village
Your holiday cottage village
Let’s start by discovering your local village: Saint Michel le Cloucq home of the gîte de la Gravée.
The gîte is located in the centre of the village. The village is just a few kilometres from Fontenay le Comte so you have the charm of the countryside and the facilities of the town less than ten minutes drive away.
Where is Saint Michel le Cloucq?
Where is Saint Michel le Cloucq?
Saint Michel le Cloucq has the Vendée countryside to the north and the Vendée plains to the south. The borough is on the edge of the Mervent-Vouvant forest, the largest forest in the county.
The river Vendée crosses the borough.
At the extreme south east of Saint Michel le Cloucq between Xanton-Chassenon and Saint Michel le Cloucq is the lake le Lac de Chassenon.
The lake is part of the water retained by the Albert Barrage on the river Vendée. The lake is now equipped as a recreation area. It is popular for water sports and bathing and you can picnic, hire boats and children can enjoy the park and water slides – everything you need for a lovely day out!
A little bit of history for you
A little bit of history for you
Saint Michel le Cloucq used to be called Saint Michel le Clos, then Saint Michel le Clou before becoming Saint Michel le Cloucq. In the middle ages it was a priory independent of the Abbey of Maillezais. Surrounded by a large ditch the term ‘le clos’ originated here.
The first traces of Saint Michel le Cloucq go back to ancient times, before the Romans conquered the Gaules. 3 camps would have existed in this Neolithic period. These camps were subsequently occupied by the Romans. The Gallo-Roman road coming from Poitiers, the Saunier road crossed Saint Michel.
Things to look out for: The church door: above the door a frieze represents hunting dogs who hunted wild boar. This is reminiscent of the forest nearby. The church was built in the Roman era and was destroyed during the French wars of religion, then rebuilt in several stages in the 18th and 19th century. Don’t forget to look at the Arc Angel Saint Michel on top of the church roof.
During your stay, why not take the bikes out along the cycle route, or walk to the bakery for your fresh bread and brioche?
The route links the town centre to the clearing in la Balingue where you will find La Lutine bakery and tea rooms. This route takes you through fields and along one of the pools belonging to the castles in the borough.
Saint Michel le Cloucq has, unusually, 4 castles all of which are privately owned.
Our recommendations for local specialities
Our recommendations for local specialities
Although there are no restaurants in Saint Michel, the tea room La Lutine on the edge of the Mervent forest at La Balingue is a good place to go and it is also a bakery where you can find local Vendée specialities such as brioche, le préfou (a version of garlic bread) which goes well with an apéritif.
Only 6km (4miles) from the Gîte de la Gravée are the Pissotte Wines at Domaine Coirier – a Vendée must for wine buffs.