Grande rue de Thuison
River Novion The Près Collart Bouvaque Ponds Park
e River Scar
ouvaqu Rue BasseB don D de la The Blue Sources n ro Boule vard de la Rép
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Rue du Water 0 100 200m Starting at: Car park, N The Bouvaque Marshes Rue de la République, Wooded areas between house numbers 68 and 74 Pasturelands Be careful: Stretching over sixty hectares, the D Starting Point ! The park is accessible to the public from Abbeville st Bouvaque Park envelops a wonderful flora Time: 30 mins Gardens 7:30am to 8pm from 1 April to Car Park 30th September and from 9am to 6pm and fauna including many sedentary and Urbanised areas P Situated between house from 1st October to 31st March. migratory birds. numbers 68 and 74 along Distance: 1,8km the Rue de la République Bathing, bathing of animals, use of Grassed public area motorised vehicles, access to planted areas and the picking of flowers is forbidden. Trail having received the: This trail is maintained by “Tourism and Handicap the town of Abbeville Please keep dogs on leads. Route: easy National Label”
Sign posts Route continues Wrong direction Change of direction For more information: • AbbevilleSoyez prudent and surrounding area ! TouristL Office: 03 22 24 27 92 Abbeville Rue du Scar Spring 0 250 500 m www.baiedesommetourisme.fr Péronne • Somme Tourist Board: Amiens Summer This leaflet was created by www.somme-tourisme.com don the Somme County Council www.somme-nature.com 43, rue de la République - 80026 Amiens cedex 1 • This walk has received the: Autumn 03 22 71 80 80 “Tourism and Handicap National Label”: www.somme.fr Winter
Walk
Exploring the natural sites
Summer 2012 Summer Updates and printing: imp. Cg80 - Translation: C. Carnel - - Carnel C. Translation: - Cg80 imp. printing: and Updates Written by: Ombeline CHIVE - Design: L’Agence par A Propos Propos A par L’Agence Design: - CHIVE Ombeline by: Written 18 © C. Bazin © C.
The marshes and their history Park is largely underestimated En route to the Blue Sources The name Bouvaque, comes from the The Bouvaque Marshes by many of its visitors. Willow Follow along a few more words ‘Bos’, for bull and ‘vacca’, for cow, telling us that cattle were grazed Let yourself be guided along the riverbanks of the Bouvaque Park, out to discover the thickets, reed beds, beautiful metres of the path and take the here in the Middle Ages. The traces of a legends and other wonders of this natural setting at the heart of the town. The trail will trees, aquatic plants, rushes, bridge to the right, bringing seigneury, named Bouvaque, can be found take you in the footsteps of Alfred Manessier. sedges, irises, and wild orchids you opposite the Près Collard in the second half of the 15th century. can be seen here… Pond, close to the composting The Maupin family, who carried the name, toilets. Continue to the band- provided many of the town’s mayors and Take the trail to the right at the You will now come to the River had built the little chapel dedicated to Emilie Cornu, stand and turn right to explore entrance of the park, following Novion; the Thuyson Quartier, St. Milfort; it is situated close the park. Assistant to the Blue Sources - one of the Sustainable the little stream until you where Alfred Manessier grew treasures of this walk. Once Development in reach the wooden footbridge up, is situated just behind it. Abbeville you have been amazed by this on your left. Take the bridge This artist was born at Saint- natural wonder, return to the “A lot of to cross the Près Collard Pond Ouen, in the Somme and development path leading to the car park, and continue straight on along grew up with his Grandfather © Ville © Ville d’Abbeville work has been following the Près Collard carried out in relation to the Tourism the path; you will see several Bellet © S. at Abbeville. His childhood Ponds. and Handicap National Label. The dead trees with cavities left In the vicinity: The St. Sépulcre Church – The St. memories and souvenirs
th th © Ville d’Abbeville park is a real breath of fresh air at Sépulcre Church (15 – 19 century): during the two voluntarily for birds to shelter world wars, the stained glass windows of this building of the Somme Bay greatly the heart of the town, but it was in: these islands, ponds and were almost completely destroyed. During the 1980’s St. Milford Chapel, (c) BM Abbeville, coll. influenced the creation of his Macqueron by D. de St-Amand (18th century). lacking recognition from the public. wet grasslands are perfect for the ‘Historic Monuments’ decided to contact Alfred This trail now provides an attraction Manessier and entrust the creation of several stained artwork, which made him one glassed windows to him. In the end, he created more In the 17th century, the seigneury and its for tourists and brings the values many migratory birds. The on the most renowned artists than 300 square metres of stained glass, which now land was bought by the brothers of the of social diversity to all seasoned abundance of fauna and flora of Picardy. Manessier used decorate all of the windows of the church. In 2012 the Chartreuse de Saint Honoré (known as walkers.“ at the heart of the Bouvaque steeple was rebuilt, returning the shape of the church his artistic skills for creating to what it had been before the bombardments of 1940. the Chartreuse de Thuyson). They kept it paintings, watercolours, until1790 - the date when the Chartreuse About the site lithographs, tapestries and was abolished. The Ecclesiastical assets stained glass-windows: were then seized and sold by the > Proprietor: The town of Abbeville revolutionaries. The land of the Bouvaque
Abbeville holds one of his most © Ville d’Abbeville > Size: became the property of several individual 60ha famous creations in the St. The Blue Sources: A remarkable feature of the site. people and of the municipality. > Managed by: The town of Abbeville Sépulcre Church. The blue colour of the water can be explained by the > Maintenance partners: “decomposition of the light spectrum to the light on The town later enlarged the park with Association des Pécheurs à la ligne du the surface of the water”. several acquisitions, which transformed Ponthieu, CFPPA de la Baie de Somme the site into an agreeable area for leisure activities and walking. In the middle of the 1970’s, a guardian’s house was built © C. Bazin © C. in the style of a traditional Picardy house. La Bouvaque: a place of migration In 2000, much work to enhance the area The islands, ponds and wet grasslands are perfect for the many migratory birds that stay here for a period of time was carried out with the creation of a varying from a few days to a few weeks. Birds to be found during the winter include: Moorhens, Coots and surface- feeding ducks such as the Teal, Shoveler or Mallard, etc. Birds passing through include: diving ducks, Greylag Geese, band-stand, and walkways around the Great Crested Grebes, Common Snipe and Green Sandpipers, amongst many others. Occasionally, even: Great Egrets, Blue Sources. Kestrels or Marsh Harriers, etc. can be found here.