River · France
Loire
Loire is the longest river in France. It starts as a small spring on Mont Gerbier de Jonc, swings through the middle of the country and meets the Atlantic Ocean near Saint-Nazaire.
Picture credit: LPLT (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Ввласенко (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Trempebiscuit (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is the Loire?
The river starts here: Mont Gerbier de Jonc in the Massif Central, France.
It ends in the the Atlantic Ocean near Saint-Nazaire.
Countries on the river: France.
The story behind it
People often call the Loire the last wild river of Europe, because much of it still moves as it likes. In summer the water sinks and bright sandbanks appear in the middle of the bed; in winter and spring it can rise fast and press against the old stone walls that protect the towns. Terns nest on the sand islands, beavers cut willows along the shore, and salmon still swim upstream to spawn. Famous castles such as Chambord and Chenonceau stand near the banks, built long ago by kings who loved hunting in these forests. Cities like Orléans, Tours and Nantes grew up on the river because boats once carried wine, salt and stone along it. Today people cycle a long path beside the water, and fishers watch the changing sandbanks with great care.
Questions children ask
How long is the Loire?
Which country does the Loire flow through?
The Loire flows only through France. It first heads north from the Massif Central, then turns west and crosses the whole country to the coast.
Where does the Loire flow into?
It flows into the Atlantic Ocean in a long funnel-shaped estuary near Saint-Nazaire. Sea water pushes upstream with every tide, almost as far as Nantes.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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