In 1962 a 10-year-old boy, Louis-Marie CHARDON, began playing in an incredible exploratory playground. His father André CHARDON had just acquired some property to expand the family’s orchard holdings.
The hillsides were planted with apple trees, but the valley floor was left abandoned and covered in brambles.
Little by little, Louis-Marie began discovering troglodytic dwellings there, and the idea to preserve this historic valley was born.
In 1984, Louis-Marie inherited the land. With any free time he could spare after his job as arborist, he began to work on the caves. That is how he discovered the 53rd and last known underground refuge of the Indre et Loire region.
15 years later, the site was resurrected, giving birth to the “Troglodytic Goupillières Valley”, which Louis-Marie CHARDON opened to the public in 2000.
The hillsides were planted with apple trees, but the valley floor was left abandoned and covered in brambles.
Little by little, Louis-Marie began discovering troglodytic dwellings there, and the idea to preserve this historic valley was born.
In 1984, Louis-Marie inherited the land. With any free time he could spare after his job as arborist, he began to work on the caves. That is how he discovered the 53rd and last known underground refuge of the Indre et Loire region.
15 years later, the site was resurrected, giving birth to the “Troglodytic Goupillières Valley”, which Louis-Marie CHARDON opened to the public in 2000.
