The Meuse valley

Leaving, leaving, leaving Charleville, this is what the young Rimbaud wanted. In 1863, the railway crossed the steep-sided Meuse valley: it went where the Industrial Revolution was unfolding, to Revin, Fumay and Givet. Rimbaud jumped on the train and into progress. He was to see this fabulous machine pass beneath the mountain of the Four Sons of Aymon and cross the Meuse over huge viaducts.
These days, it is possible to cycle from Charleville to Givet along one of the loveliest green paths of Europe (open to non-motorised vehicles). You can return by train, if you wish, along this same line that carried Rimbaud towards his dreams of escape. Bicycles can be taken on the trains free of charge.