Chassiron Lighthouse – Chassiron lighthouse loop from Le Grand-Village-Plage
Chassiron Lighthouse – Chassiron lighthouse loop from Le Grand-Village-Plage
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Chassiron Lighthouse – Chassiron lighthouse loop from Le Grand-Village-Plage
03:53
71.3km
130m
Mountain biking
Moderate mountain bike ride. Good fitness required. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.
Last updated: May 7, 2026
Tips
Cycling is not permitted along parts of this route
After 30.7 km for 62 m
After 30.9 km for 187 m
After 65.9 km for 240 m
Waypoints
Start point
Bus stop
Get Directions
137 m
Île d'Oléron Harbor and Beach
Highlight • Beach
4.87 km
Bois d'Avail
Forest
7.27 km
Chemin des Dunes
Highlight • Trail
22.6 km
Old Cypress of Chaucre
Highlight • Natural Monument
Translated by Google •
Tip by
29.0 km
Stone Cairns Near Chassiron Lighthouse
Highlight • Structure
Climb up to the lighthouse via the cycle path and descend along the ocean via this small path! Or the opposite :)
Translated by Google •
Tip by
30.7 km
Fish pass
Highlight • Lake
Most of these locks are located on or near Chassiron Point in the commune of Saint-Denis d'Oléron (Madame Naud, Le Grand Sabia, etc.).
The locks named Les Jeunes Pointes and Les Vieilles Longes are located at the tip of the point and are next to the lighthouse. Their shape is clearly visible from its platform.
Guided tours allow visitors to discover the fish locks, the rocky foreshore, and the edible seaweed that grows there. These tours are organized from the Chassiron lighthouse.
These fixed fish traps consist of a wall 500 to 700 meters long. They have the shape of a horseshoe, more or less symmetrical depending on the configuration of the foreshore on which they are built. On the Oléron coast, wherever the coast was rocky and there were stones, there were locks.
They are built with coastal stones stacked in such a way that they can withstand the assaults of the sea. These enormous masses of stone are made without any connection and become fragile as soon as one of their stones is moved. Their main role is, of course, to catch fish, but they also serve as breakwaters by mitigating marine erosion on cliffs and beaches.
Their system is simple: the fish enter the lock at high tide and find themselves trapped there at low tide, surprised by the rapid flow of water through the lock trap. All that remains is for the fisherman to retrieve the trapped fish. Various species of fish can be caught here: sea bass, sea bream, garfish, mullet, mackerel, and conger eel. The first locks date back at least to the Middle Ages, with texts proving that they existed as early as the 14th century.
There were once two rows of locks, the upper locks closer to the shore, the lower locks further away. At low tide, the lower locks located in the second row received water from the upper locks located in the first row. There were as many as 237 locks in the mid-19th century, including 45 in Saint Denis. Today, only 17 locks remain on the entire island of Oléron.
The locks are fragile; it is strictly forbidden to move the stones from the walls and to fish within fifty meters.
Translated by Google •
Tip by
30.9 km
Chassiron Lighthouse
Highlight • Monument
Translated by Google •
Tip by
31.2 km
Chassiron lighthouse
Highlight • Monument
Translated by Google •
Tip by
34.0 km
Plage de Soubregeon
Beach
34.7 km
Saint-Denis-d'Oléron Marina
Highlight • Structure
Translated by Google •
Tip by
46.3 km
Forêt domaniale des Saumonards
Forest
66.0 km
Étang de la Phibie
Lake
71.3 km
End point
Bus stop
Way Types & Surfaces
Way Types
23.1 km
17.3 km
16.2 km
10.3 km
4.41 km
< 100 m
< 100 m
Surfaces
33.4 km
21.3 km
10.3 km
4.30 km
1.17 km
991 m
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Elevation
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Weather
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Tuesday 7 July
29°C
21°C
0 %
Additional weather tips
Max wind speed: 14.0 km/h
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Our route recommendations are based on thousands of hikes, rides, and runs completed by other people on komoot.
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