Forest and Wood Festival
A celebration of forests and timber at the Château de la Bourdaisière
2026
About Forest and Wood Festival
Every autumn, the 55-hectare grounds of the Château de la Bourdaisière host the Forest and Wood Festival, organized in partnership with France Bois Forêt. Horse-drawn loggers, chainsaw sculptors, and carpenters demonstrate their crafts to the public, while foresters from the National Forestry Office lead guided walks beneath the estate's canopy.
The event is designed for both timber industry professionals and families alike: wooden games, archery, land art workshops, and storytelling walks keep children entertained, while adults can browse craft stalls and attend lectures on sustainable forest management.
Forest and Wood Festival — edition 2026
The 55-hectare grounds of the château de la Bourdaisière celebrate the forest and its trades on October 17th and 18th. Children can enjoy a forestry-themed scavenger hunt, while adults can attend two lectures by the ONF. Author Mickaël Brun-Arnaud and illustrator Benjamin Lacombe will be signing copies of "L'Atelier Grand-Feuille" and performing illustrated concerts with Cécile Corbel.
Highlights Forest and Wood Festival 2026
- Illustrated concerts with Mickaël Brun-Arnaud, Cécile Corbel, and Benjamin Lacombe, Saturday, October 17th at 2:30 PM and 7:00 PM
- "L'Atelier Grand-Feuille" exhibition by Benjamin Lacombe
- Guided walks with ONF foresters
- Two lectures by the ONF, Saturday and Sunday at 4:00 PM
- Forest storytelling walks with Jean-François Talon
- Scavenger hunt, land art, archery, and giant wooden games
Programme Forest and Wood Festival 2026
Saturday, October 17th and Sunday, October 18th, 2026, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM · Parc du château de la Bourdaisière
Saturday, October 17th Schedule
- 10:15 AM — Conservatoire des Sciences et Techniques Forestières: "How does climate change impact forests, particularly regarding wildfires?", meeting at the stand (also at 2:00 PM)
- 10:30 AM — Forest storytelling walk with Jean-François Talon (also at 2:30 PM and 4:30 PM)
- 11:00 AM — Guided nature walk with forestry experts from the Office National des Forêts (also at 3:00 PM)
- 11:00 AM — Conservatoire des Sciences et Techniques Forestières: Soil science workshop—learn to characterize soil and understand its impact on trees and forests, meeting at the stand (also at 3:00 PM)
- 11:30 AM — "Les chemins d'Abondance": Apple tree grafting demonstration and fig tree air layering (also at 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM)
- 2:30 PM — Illustrated concert with Mickaël Brun-Arnaud, Cécile Corbel, and Benjamin Lacombe (second session at 7:00 PM; flat rate of 20 € per person, includes festival admission, registration required)
- 3:30 PM–5:30 PM — Book signing with Mickaël Brun-Arnaud and Benjamin Lacombe (only for books purchased on-site)
- 4:00 PM — Lecture: "Biodiversity, an insurance policy for the future" by Brigitte Musch, forest genetic resources specialist at the ONF
Sunday, October 18th Schedule
- 10:00 AM — Book signing with Mickaël Brun-Arnaud and Benjamin Lacombe, until 1:00 PM
- 10:15 AM — Conservatoire des Sciences et Techniques Forestières: Soil science workshop, meeting at the stand
- 10:30 AM — Forest storytelling walk with Jean-François Talon (also at 2:30 PM and 4:30 PM)
- 10:30 AM — "Les chemins d'Abondance": Apple tree grafting and fig tree air layering (also at 11:30 AM and 4:00 PM)
- 11:00 AM — Guided nature walk with ONF forestry experts (also at 3:00 PM)
- 11:00 AM — Conservatoire des Sciences et Techniques Forestières: Impact of climate change on forests and wildfires, meeting at the stand
- 4:00 PM — Lecture: "The French forest: An overview of a remarkable heritage" by Yann Vandebleuque, forester at the ONF
Ongoing both days
- Exhibition "L'Atelier Grand-Feuille": Original paintings by Benjamin Lacombe, unpublished sketches, sets, wooden sculptures, and toys (closed Saturday, October 17th from 1:30 PM to 4:00 PM)
- Office National des Forêts: "Embûches chez les forestiers" scavenger hunt about forestry professions, exhibition on forest history, Halloween mask workshop, and forest-themed board games
- Nature activities by Carnuta, Maison de l'Homme et de la Forêt: "Unusual clues!" (animal tracks and droppings) and the adventures of Cliff the snail exploring animal "professions"
- Conservatoire des Sciences et Techniques Forestières: Forestry equipment display and quiz
- Land art workshops with Réginald Roussel
- Archery with CAVL de Montlouis-sur-Loire, ages 8 and up, in the afternoon
- Giant wooden games with an activity leader
- Wildlife and flora identification workshops
- Exhibitors and wood-related demonstrations
- Pony rides with Écuries d'Anadé: 5 € per ride, cash only at their stand
- On-site catering
Program as published by the château de la Bourdaisière. Free parking, dogs on leashes are welcome. Access to the "Deyrolle, leçons d'anatomie" exhibition is restricted during the festival.
Prices Forest and Wood Festival 2026
Where does it take place — Forest and Wood Festival
Forest and Wood Festival in brief
Other festivals near Montlouis-sur-Loire
Festival-goer reviews
No review yet. Be the first!
No rating yet — be the first!
Were you there?
Share your experience with the community
Have you spotted an error or missing information?
Help us keep this listing up to date. Every suggestion is reviewed by our team before publication.
Festival-goer photos
No photo yet. Share yours!
5 photos max, 5 MB per photo (JPG, PNG, WebP)
Published by Valentin Contard, festival listings writer. Reviewed, corrected and approved by Christophe Contard, editor-in-chief. .
A quick word
Find us more easily on Google
Add Festivals en France to your preferred sources: our line-ups and calendars will show up more often in your Google results. It’s free, it takes two seconds, and you can undo it whenever you want.
Add us to my sourcesYou stay on this page: Google opens a window, then brings you back here.