Don’t let it be said that Loire bargemen are just freshwater sailors! Crossing the royal river on a toue, a traditional boat, requires a great deal of know-how.
“There’s no precise, well-maintained channel; the Loire is a river in perpetual motion. You have to slalom between sandbanks, gravel pits and currents: it’s complicated,” explains Christian Lequien, pilot of the Kaïros, one of the association’s boats.
Toues – or futreaux – are large flat-bottomed boats that were once used to transport goods up the Loire. They were raised by the wind (when it was blowing in the right direction: the Atlantic wind, or “vent de mare”), and lowered by the current.
Without wind, the boat had to be pulled by ropes stretched over the banks, with the help of horses and men. The last merchant boat on the Loire, belonging to the Poulain chocolate factory, sailed until 1914, before being dethroned by road and rail. Traffic linked Nantes from the estuary to Orléans.


Four boats were built in Montlivault by the Kaïros association, a social integration project, ” which will be renewing its efforts to build others “, says our Loire sailor with delight. The “ Marins du port de Chambord ” toues are a great success!
Today, the ferry crossings take place mainly in July and August, following in the footsteps of the old ferryman who worked here until 1958, and who is still remembered by the village’s oldest residents. ” We’re halfway between the two bridges at Blois and Muides-sur-Loire, so you can do a 20 km loop instead of 40 on foot or by bike “, says Christian Lequin.
On the other hand, boats leave from St Dyé-sur-Loire almost all year round for 1 to 2-hour trips, bookable at the Maison de la Loire.
A night in a toue cabanée
For those wishing to spend longer on the Loire, the association offers overnight accommodation in a “toue cabanée”, equipped with four berths, a small bathroom with solar shower and dry toilet, and a kitchenette.
Observe the Loire and its flora, beavers and coypu, terns, herons, seagulls and egrets, at dawn and dusk, enjoy a moment in nature in complete safety – the boat remains alongside the quay – in a sober and charming habitat: this is the key to success. Reservations are possible from April to October, and people flock to sleep there.