Coligny: Cultural History and Hiking Landscape

Coligny offers a travel experience that brings together local history and a hiking landscape. If you are looking for a hotel in Coligny, you can plan your stay around whether you would rather focus on buildings and historical finds or on marked trails and nature. There are specific points of interest in the municipality for both interests.

Cultural History in the Town

The Église Saint-Martin in Coligny is listed in the supplementary inventory of historic monuments. A copy of the Gallo-Roman calendar of Coligny is on display in the entrance area of the town hall. The God of Coligny is a 1.74 m-high bronze statue, excavated in several fragments at the site of En Verpois in the north of the municipality. The church, calendar copy and statue represent different aspects of cultural history: a listed church building, a calendar displayed in the town hall, and a find with a named location and material.

The Aiguayoir on the edge of the Grand-Rue also has a clear historical connection. Its construction was approved on 18 July 1803 and completed in 1811; it was associated with Coligny’s large fairs. In spring 2003, the Aiguayoir was rediscovered intact during the relocation of the monument. The municipality subsequently restored and secured it. The chronology therefore covers the decision to build, its completion and a much later rediscovery. The connection to the fairs is also important to understanding its history, alongside these dates.

Hiking and Landscape

The circular hike “Coligny and the Étang de Fougemagne” is 11.9 km long and starts in Coligny. The Étang de Fougemagne itself is a 3 ha pond owned by the municipality of Coligny. The route therefore provides a specific starting point for planning a hike; the pond is also a named landscape feature in Coligny.

The GR®59 long-distance hiking trail crosses the Plateau de Vergongeat into Ain and runs along the heights of Coligny. A hike across the plateau leads to Moleron at an altitude of 550 m and offers panoramic views over the Bresse and the Jura. This gives you different reference points when choosing a route: a circular hike of a set length, and trails whose descriptions focus on the plateau, elevation and views.

The wooded areas of the Plateau de Vergongeat are rich in yellow daffodils, known there as “jonquilles.” Coligny and the surrounding area also have a network of marked trails for hiking, horseback riding and cycling. When planning your trip, you can also consider which kind of activity you would like to focus on. The local history and trails offer different themes for a stay, without requiring every interest to be catered to by the same route.

Getting to Coligny

Coligny can be reached via the A39 at the Saint-Amour exit or via the A40 at the Saint-Étienne-du-Bois exit. For your journey, you can choose the motorway and exit that best suit your route.

Discover more destinations: Saint-Maurice-de-Gourdans, Ardon, Thil, Saint-Vulbas, Versonnex, Mantenay-Montlin, Saint-Étienne-Du-Bois, Brégnier-Cordon.

Go to the regional travel overview: Ain.