Description
We meet in Marines (one hour drive from central Paris) on Saturday morning at 9 am for a breakfast and briefing together. You will deposit you luggage in our assistance vehicle. After having made contact with « your » horse while preparing it, we leave for a ride towards the Seraincourt castle where we will spend 3 nights.
Built in the seventeenth century for a minister of Louis XIV, Seraincourt castle is imbued with historic events. Among the personalities who have stayed here we could for instance mention Ninon de Lenclos, courtesan at the Court Louis XVI, who secretly met the Duke of Villarceaux here. More recently, Pola Negri, Hollywood’s first silent film star, married here in 1920. All movie stars of the time were there : Charles Chaplin, Douglas Fairbank, May Pickford ….
On Sunday morning we depart from Seraincourt, heading north in the direction of Fremainville, a small village on the slope of a hill in the middle of nature and woods. We will visit a fountain at a monastery built by the Carmelites. The fountain was a sacred place where people came on pilgrimage. The virtues of its water were recognized within the tradition to restore partial or full sight. During our ride we also pass by a distillery which was used while making the famous French movie “Rabbi Jacob” in which it was used as a chewing gum factory! In the evening we will return to the Seraincourt Castle for dinner.
Monday morning, we head south, passing by Oinville. In this charming little village, which is part of the natural park of Vexin, you will discover the classified historic monument of St Severin’s church built in 1127. We will see it’s manors, wash houses and windmills, including the Mill of Bonnival. Built in 1760, the mill has been used as a leather goods, a comb and a watchmaking factory. Today it is used to generate electricity.
The theme of this trail ride is Vexin’s culinary specialties. During the week-end you will taste a lot of local food. All lunches and dinners are made with fresh local products. We also organize a beer tasting to make you discover the local traditional Vexinois beers. We return to Marines on Sunday afternoon and our ride ends around an aperitif at approximately 6 pm.
And, as always, good spirit and friendliness will be on the menu of this gastronomic trail ride!
