Discover Poisson: Walking Trails, Architecture and the Arconce

In Poisson, two walking trails sit alongside architectural and local history, as well as landscapes along the Arconce. The routes can be distinguished by length and trail markings; the church and Château de Martigny offer specific historical and architectural points of reference. This lets you plan your stay around your main interest: walking, architectural history, or landscape and local heritage.

Two walking trails of different lengths

The P’tit tour de P’chon walking trail starts in the centre of Poisson, at Place de la Mairie, and is 1.5 kilometres long. It follows the PLM1 markers. The « huit » du Val d’Arconce walking trail is 13 kilometres long and follows the PLM9 markers. This gives you two clearly different route lengths to choose from: the first loop is considerably shorter than the tour at Val d’Arconce. When planning your walk, you can start by comparing the distances; the starting point at Place de la Mairie and the PLM1 and PLM9 markers help you match the details to each route.

The Church of Saint John the Baptist and architectural history

The Church of Saint John the Baptist in Poisson was built in 1896 in the Neo-Gothic style; it was designed by the Mâcon architect Adrien Pinchard. Neo-Gothic refers to the revival of Gothic forms in a later period of construction. The style, construction year and architect’s name therefore provide three specific clues to the building’s history: you can learn both when the church was built, who designed it and which style defines it. The church is open daily; check visitor information before your trip.

Château de Martigny: Estate and park

The Château de Martigny estate was established in the 1730s. It comprises a manor house and agricultural buildings; it also includes a park with terraces offering views over the valley. The 1730s mark the estate’s origins, while the manor house and agricultural buildings give a tangible sense of its composition. This distinction helps separate the estate’s date from the description of its buildings. The park adds a landscape perspective to the architectural ensemble: its terraces offer views over the valley.

The Arconce and local history

The Arconce flows freely through Poisson in numerous meanders. Meanders are bends in a river; their succession makes the river’s course a landscape feature in its own right. For patient anglers, the Arconce has some lovely surprises in store. As landscape features, the river’s bends differ from the park terraces at Château de Martigny: the Arconce shapes the landscape through its course, while the terraces offer views over the valley. These are two distinct perspectives: the meandering river and the view from the park.

At the former German checkpoints along the demarcation line, information panels explain the local history. These panels link the story to specific historical sites and complement the architectural history of the church and Château de Martigny with another aspect of local history. Alongside architecture and landscape, the memory of the demarcation line and its former checkpoints thus stands as a subject in its own right for exploring Poisson.

Discover more destinations: Clessé, Ligny-En-Brionnais, Tramayes, Oyé, Sarry, Saint-Bonnet-De-Cray, Saint-Maurice-De-Satonnay, Chaudenay.

For the main travel overview: Saône-Et-Loire.