Natural Crafts Aisne

The nature reserve of the Isle of Isle is nature in the heart of the city. A few minutes walk from the centre, the visitor is surrounded by wild and semi-wild nature. Located in a wetland area of approximately hectares, part of which is devoted to water sports and fishing, the reserve presents a wide variety of species in the moving waters, and a particularly rich avifauna of breeding birds or seasonal hosts: butternut, posh, coot, rousserolle, fauvette and, in times of migration, many ducks, sandpipers, curlew… The farmhouse allows visitors to observe chickens, ducks, sheep, peacock, geese, kids, lambs and ponies. A few steps away, the Wild Wildlife protection centre treats injured birds (kept out of the public eye). The Environment House, at the entrance to the park, regularly hosts exhibitions on local fauna and flora. Site tour by a peripheral path, guided every first Sunday of the month.

Like an island between the Ourcq and its canal, the mail is a beautiful walk that belongs to the city of Paris since the th century. The river is bordered by a footbridge built by a young engineer from the city of Paris, unknown at the time, named Gustave Eiffel. On either side of the bridge and the tower belonging to the former city hall, you can see: on the left, the garden of the property of the Sconin, the property of Jean Racine, and the right, the garden of the property Héricart, where La Fontaine is married.

Yes, La Marne, if one sometimes tends to forget it, is one of the most important assets of the commune. A few years before the Revolution, in 1784, when men hijacked it from its original bed to gain ground, the river caused significant flooding, which was repeated in the early th century. The preferred solution was to lift the right bank. But if his relations with man were sometimes tense, they also gave rise to beautiful works, including beautiful bridges, including the one built by François I, with 9 arches.

A few kilometres after the village exit, a sign indicates «Old Craonne», there is nothing, green meadows, groves… old Craonne was completely razed during the First World War. It was rebuilt 500 metres lower thanks to Sweden's financing. At the location of the old village and above many cellars was erected a arboretum of remembrance which counts fifty-seven species such as tulip of Virginia, giant Redwood, vineyards, bucolic… Currently managed by the National Forestry Office - NFB -The arboretum is, on the one hand, a place of memory and allows, on the other hand., amateurs of botany to discover a remarkable flora. It was in the cemetery of old Craonne that the famous writer Yves Gibeau wanted to be buried.

The marshlands of Liesse-Notre-Dame are a beautiful preserved natural space. On nearly 3500 hectares, one discovers a large marsh of about 232 hectares, with peaty ponds, wet woods and beds, as well as species of plants, bird species and different species of dragonfly. A partnership established in 2001 between the commune and the Conservatoire des Sites Naturel de Picardie helps preserve this unique place.

One of the city's emblematic places. Saint Vincent's tank is a huge wooded area, shaped by the two arms of the upper city. By observing it, difficult to say if you are in town or in the countryside, the panorama is striking. There you will find plenty of small trails to go there. The hiking tour entitled «La Goutte d'Or», where you will find details at the tourist office, will allow you to discover it.