Pont-Audemer

Description:

Introduction

Pont-Audemer, a former centre of the leather tanning industry in France , is alively small town full of surprises and generally a place to spend a pleasant afternoon or morning.  Markets are held on Monday and Friday morning.

Geography

The town is on the River Risle 24 km (15m) east of Honfleur and 58km (35m) west of Rouen in Eure, Upper Normandy.

Economy

Until the beginning of the 21st century, Pont-Audemer was a centre of the leather tanning industry and one of the oldest in France by reason of its situation on the river Risle. The town is now a much visited tourist centre and is known as the Venice of Normandy.

Culture

There are occasional organ and other recitals in the St Ouen Church. The Alfred Canel Museum should not be missed.

Tourism

A tour of the old town on foot is not to be missed.  Visitors can wander along little alleys and pathways which run between the old timbered buildings and little alleys.  The town centre is almost an island between the river and the canal.  The pretty bridges are a particular feature of a tour of the old town.

Worth a Visit

Both the Church of St-Ouen, dating from the 10th century and enlarged in the 16th, and the municipal museum of Alfred Canel should be seen. The church has some fine features, including stained glass, and the museum houses over 25,000 books, documents and manuscripts as well as furniture, some paintings by Norman landscape painters and scientific and other instruments and tools.

Sporting and other activities

There are way marked paths in the surrounding area. Walking, horse riding and cycling are all popular activities here. There are also possibilities for canoeing, kayaking, water skiing and fishing with specific lakes for fly fishing.