Fountain of the Dyeing Bridge

Beforehand, our guide, who is very curious, invites us to make a detour along the river, just after the Pont-Neuf, almost opposite the Château Grenier. There, to the right of the BVB stop and behind two micro-electricity stations, a path goes up the left bank of the Avançon, about two hundred metres, a somewhat bucolic stroll with, opposite, the sloping vineyards of the Montet hill.

After a few minutes of walking, a suspended footbridge spans the river. If you feel like it, you can cross it and go up to the right towards the "Quartier de la Scie", an old district which, as its name indicates, had an industrial vocation. There is also a restaurant, and then the old winding road that led to Le Bévieux. Now a tunnel has been built and the road is faster.

But let's go back to the footbridge over the Avançon. Instead of crossing it, you can go to the right. In front of two buildings there is a fountain, a small pool that never really interested the authorities.

The archives tell us that, in 1945, the Municipality and even the Prefect made it clear to an owner who wished to repair the basin that this small fountain was of no public interest and that he should do the work himself. The owner was reminded that only a pipe connecting the fountain to the municipal network had been built at the beginning of the 20th century to prevent the water from coming directly from the Avançon, with all the epidemiological risks that this entailed.

So much for the little story. After passing in front of this small basin, the path goes along a few houses and crosses the road that goes up to Bévieux. A little further down, it is stage 11 with its typically Bellerin fountain.