Cleppé: Nature, Trails and History

When looking for a hotel in Cleppé, the area’s different themes can help you plan your trip: waterways and a nature trail, walking options, and traces of its church and castle history. You can choose what to focus on depending on whether you are interested in nature, exercise, a family-friendly treasure hunt or historic buildings. Each of these themes offers a distinct perspective.

Waterways and a nature trail

The Etang Les Colons in Cleppé is a body of water on the riverbank. The fishing association has created a nature trail there, with information boards. This brings together two aspects: its riverside location defines its setting, while the boards give the trail an educational character. If you would like to include nature in your trip as well as walking, the Etang is a point of interest in its own right. The information boards add a learning element to your visit and make the nature trail a distinct attraction by the water.

Walking routes with different profiles

The GRP® Autour des Gorges de la Loire: Cleppé / Balbigny runs between Cleppé and Balbigny along the left bank of the Loire. It is an easy walking route, 9 km one way. When planning, consider both the route type and distance: the 9 km is the one-way distance, not a loop. Check the trail conditions before setting out and take the one-way route into account when planning your day.

The Circuit de la Tour offers a different experience: it leads to the Loire and crosses the Béal irrigation canal via a footbridge. The route is suitable for all-terrain strollers. While the GRP’s length, easy rating and one-way format shape your planning, the Circuit offers practical guidance through its links to the Loire, crossing of the Béal and stroller suitability. This makes it possible to distinguish the routes by their stated characteristics, without presenting them as a single walking option.

A treasure hunt for families

The Randoland activity in Cleppé is a family-friendly treasure hunt. Clues are found among historic, architectural and natural features. This gives exploring a specific purpose: you focus on the features where the clues can be found. Families travelling with children can use it as a playful way to discover history, architecture and nature. The Randoland route is also suitable for strollers. This detail adds to the activity’s description, while the clues themselves are what make it distinctive.

The church and former castle site

The oldest part of the Église de la Nativité de la Vierge dates from around the year 1000. Cleppé’s Romanesque church tower houses one of the oldest bells in the Forez; it dates from 1446. These dates refer to different things: around 1000 for the oldest part of the church, and 1446 for the bell. This distinction separates the approximate date of a section of the church from the date of a specific historic object.

The Tour de Cleppé offers another link to the past: it is the only surviving tower of the former castle of Cleppé. The church tower and its bell, and the former castle tower, therefore provide two different points of reference when exploring the history of the area.

Discover more destinations: Saint-Just-En-Chevalet, Doizieux, Firminy, Pouilly-sous-Charlieu, Arthun, Saint-Symphorien-de-Lay, Montrond-Les-Bains, Bessey

For the broader travel overview: Loire.