The best traffic-free bike rides around Val-De-Mercy

Beautiful sculpture by the water.

Beautiful little village with many sights, e.g. washhouse, dungeon and lovingly restored houses

An old and massive stone bridge over the Yonne. It is cycleable and sees a lot of car and truck use, so be careful.

Flat, smooth cycle path along the Yonne. From there if you look back you will see a railway bridge. A nice place for a break or a picnic.

The stronghold of Belombre was the seat of part of the lordship of Escolives held, in 1507, by the lieutenant general of Auxerre, Blanchet David. Marie David brought it to Jacques de Meung dit de La Ferté, who died on June 4, 1589, massacred by the Leaguers of Auxerre. Madeleine de La Ferté Meung, her granddaughter, transmitted Bellombre to the La Bussière family and Catherine de La Bussière brought it to the Girard d'Azy family. The children of Paul de Girard sold it, around 1656, to François de Chastellux, who ceded this first half of Escolives in 1670, to Robert Chaponnel, Receiver General of Finances. He died on October 28, 1678 without issue, while he was undertaking the reconstruction of the castle. Anne Robineau, receiver general of Finances in Provence, who carried out the project developed by Chaponnel and built a new castle on the land surrounded by a moat on the site of the medieval manor. In 1709, Louis Gayot, buyer, united the two shares of the land of Escolives before selling the Château de Bélombre in November 1726, to Joseph Le Muet, King's attorney in the bailiwick of Auxerre. Rosalie Le Muet married in 1804, Jean Jacques Claude Baudenet d'Annoux. Their son, Louis-Hugues, who feared the dangerous invasions of the waters of the Yonne, decided to demolish the castle which he rebuilt on vast basements around 1870. The estate is located on the left bank of the canal. It is a large single-story building. Corner chains and harped stone legs support the entablature and an attic floor in the overhang of the broken roof. The moat and the stone bridge decorated with elegant 18th century ironwork have been preserved. (1) MH protected elements: facades and roofs; water pit ; the pillars of the entrance gate; the vestibule and the interior staircase with its wrought iron banister: registration by decree of December 6, 1977. The facades and roofs of the outbuildings; the terrace located to the southwest of the castle and the sleeping bridge; the bridge thrown over the moat, in front of the northeast facade of the castle; the gardens surrounding the castle; the perspective alley and the double water alley: registration by decree of June 7, 1993 The Chateau de Belombre 89290 Escolives-Sainte-Camille, private property, cannot be visited.

The building is listed as a historical monument by order of January 11, 1941.

View of the 18th century castle from the cycle path.

In 2019 a former outbuilding and the former studio of Pierre Merlier were fitted out in order to present and highlight different periods of the work of this artist. In 2020 a 3rd room offered visitors a larger number of wood sculptures, terracotta and polyurethane bas-reliefs, bronzes, paintings. The surprise is total, provoked by the quantity, the diversity, the themes tackled, the materials used, the theatrical and not museum staging of a unique and singular work. The buildings, the proximity of the Canal du Nivernais bordered by the towpath make this Museum an attractive place. https://www.ot-auxerre.fr/offres/musee-pierre-merlier-escolives-sainte-camille-fr-2643474/