Europe,  France,  TDM,  Travel Journal

Aigues-Mortes & the Miniature Garden Trains – Road Trip in France #16

Aigues-Mortes is a fortified city right next to the Camargue National Park. Tourists come here to see its salt marshes as well as its ramparts.

Part 1: Travel Diary
Part 2: Practical Tips

Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14 and #15

Part 1: Travel Diary

Salins du Midi d’Aigues Mortes

If the medieval city is very small, the saltworks are outside the city and are enormous. One extracts there 500 000 tons of salt per annum!

Apart from this pink saline visible from the road, to visit the rest, you have to pay for a train (10.8€) that goes from one saline to the other.

Unfortunately we did not book in advance and everything is full until the next morning. The salt of the brand “La Baleine” is produced here, you can see the logo everywhere. The Camargue lends itself well to salt extraction, thanks to its flat land, natural ponds, and little rain.

The pink coloration of the water is related to the proliferation of microscopic algae type microorganisms called “dunaliella salina”. These algae aren’t useless, it is also a first choice food for fish and crustaceans. The salt mountains seen from afar are so huge that it was as if they were in the Pilat dunes.

Aigues-Mortes

One consoles oneself of this missed visit by going to the city. The ramparts are really impressive and well preserved. There are several (enormous) parking lots outside the city, but it is so much frequented that we turned in circle during a good moment before finding an available place.

The city center is very lively but smaller than you would expect, with 2 main streets full of stores and restaurants.

The Trains Of Colorado – Museum

Luckily I had spotted it before on Google Maps. I could have passed by this small family museum exhibiting miniature garden trains. We’ve already seen smaller trains at the Toy Museum in Colmar and miniatures (that don’t move) in Florida.

But this is indeed the first time we discover the category “garden trains”, with a scale of 1/24th. These trains are designed, as its name indicates, to be installed in gardens, so they do not fear (too much) water, nor the sun.

This small museum was created by Jean-Marie Pénard, a former carpenter, who became interested in garden trains only 5 years ago. First, he collected locomotives, then he started to install a real course. He sacrificed the living room, then a bedroom, then his entire first floor. The trains come from the United States, because he is particularly interested in old American trains. Just the purchase of these trains (and the decorations) is an obstacle course, because you have to go to fairs, buy on eBay and collectors’ sites…

We weren’t able to meet him today but we were able to chat with his son – who isn’t a train enthusiast, but participates in the family adventure with great enthusiasm. He is the one who takes care of repairing the trains, and helps to set up the workshop for his father once the season is over, so that the museum can grow richer from one year to the next. He told us about the future plans for the museum and I can’t wait to come back and see how it all evolves.

All locomotives are functional, and they change locomotives regularly: 30 locomotives and 100 cars take turns to create a unique experience every time you pass.

This one “BIG-BOY” is the Rolls Royce of all locomotives, it’s sublime. The gentleman was kind enough to operate it under our amazed eyes. There is a small red light that imitates incandescent coal and a small smoke coming out of the chimney. It does “tchouk tchouk” too 😀 I like it too much! Unfortunately, with the current course, which has too many tight turns, you can’t see it going through the first floor yet, but you never know.

There are no train noises in the garden because that would have made the neighbors furious. However, there are plenty of small details to observe: Tintin’s characters hidden here and there, red lights on the locomotives, the houses perfectly decorated, the stations very well done.

It seems simple to make, but in reality the house models are quite limited, and they need to be repainted to have more variety and make the decorations more realistic. Without taking into account that with the sun, the rain, the paint degrades and it is necessary to continue to maintain them. The rails are made of metal, so we must also think about installing them so that they have room to expand with the heat. The choice of plants isn’t insignificant either: they must be resistant but also small enough to blend in with the decor. In short, it’s harder than it looks.

There are boxes, allowing to increase the current intensity. So it regulates the speed of the train. For the moment, I don’t see any crossings between the two trains yet, but I think it’s studied to avoid crashes. Especially since the children also have access to the boxes to change the speed and can watch the trains closely, without Plexiglas… it’s also unique in its kind. Above all, the central platform has been put at a low enough height so that children can observe the trains quietly.

The most impressive is the viaduct created manually using thousands of small wooden pieces.
It is super stable and is 40m long. You have to be a carpenter to be able to produce such a thing. This bridge goes around the first floor!

https://www.facebook.com/877218999039251/videos/2249567445110898

This is a visit not to be missed under any circumstances, if you are in the area. I leave you the flyer below if you need it. Access to the museum costs 5€ for adults, 2 € for children. This money is used to buy other locomotives and develop the route.

Our next article, it’s this way

Part 2: Practical Tips

Useful links

Budget

  • Accommodation (in a farmhouse): Le Mas d’Icard, 65€, link Booking (breakfast, very simple, included. Air conditioning in the room, mosquito nets in the windows, I recommend)
  • The Colorado trains: 5€ for adults, 2€ for children, at 11 rue de la République, Aigues-Mortes
  • Les Salins d’Aigues-Mortes : 10,8€

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