Saint-Blimont offers two distinct ways to spend a stay: sacred art and local history, as well as a signposted circular cycling route. The Église Saint-Blimont features stained-glass windows, a wooden statue and baptismal fonts. The Tour de Guet et Crypte adds a crypt, the village church bells and panoramic views to the historical attractions. The Circuit du Vanneau passes through Élincourt, a hamlet of Saint-Blimont. This lets you decide whether to focus your stay more on cultural heritage or on a cycling stage.

Sacred Art at the Église Saint-Blimont

The Église Saint-Blimont preserves stained-glass windows depicting several episodes from the life of Saint Blimond. There is also a polychrome wooden statue of Saint Blimond dating from the 15th century. The church’s baptismal fonts date from before the 15th century. Together, these furnishings showcase different forms of sacred art: narrative stained-glass images, a painted wooden figure and a baptismal font that dates back even earlier.

The reliquary of Saint Blimont is also part of the town’s history. On 1 August 1939, it was listed as a movable object under the Monuments historiques protection status. This designation applies to the reliquary as an object. For those interested in church art, it is distinct from the windows, statue and baptismal fonts: it connects religious significance with a specific heritage designation.

Watchtower, Crypt and Views

The Tour de Guet de Saint-Blimont is a 15th-century watchtower, 27 metres high. The crypt contains the tombs of Louise-Agnès de Saint-Blimond and Louise-Amélie, Princess of Berghes. The crypt was discovered in April 1996 during basic work on the church’s foundations. The village church bells are also housed in the Tour de Guet et Crypte, where they have rung since 1680.

A viewpoint awaits after climbing 108 steps: the Tour de Guet et Crypte offers panoramic views of the Picardy coast and the Vimeu. The tower can be visited free of charge all year round; check access arrangements before your visit. The number of steps is a specific detail of the climb that you can take into account when planning your visit.

Cycling the Circuit du Vanneau

The Circuit du Vanneau is a signposted 28-kilometre circular cycling route. Allow around two and a half to three hours for the ride. It passes through Élincourt, a hamlet of Saint-Blimont, and follows cycle paths as well as quiet country roads and tracks. Its distance and approximate duration give you two different points of reference for fitting the cycling route into your travel plans.

When weighing up the viewpoint and the cycling route, the figures describe different things: the 108 steps relate to the climb to the viewpoint, while the time estimate of around two and a half to three hours applies to the entire circular cycling route. You can therefore use these figures separately when planning your day. Those mainly interested in historical heritage will find different subjects in the church, reliquary and crypt; those planning a longer cycling activity can treat the Circuit du Vanneau as a separate item on their itinerary.

Discover more destinations: Petit Port, Yaucourt-Bussus, Mouflières, Nesle, Cahon Gouy, Le Crotoy, Bernes, Assevillers.

For the wider travel overview: Somme.