James McConnachie writes: 'They call the Loire the last wild river in France. Not in a violent, white-water sense - though it floods frequently and dramatically in winter - but meaning natural or untamed.
The classic image of this gentle wildness is the river's sandy fringe, lined with willows and shimmering poplars. But if anything captures the spirit of the Loire it's the tern, a slightly built seabird that looks like a gull built for racing, and only visits for the soft, summer months.
At ancient Loire towns like Saumur, Beaugency or Amboise you can stroll along the bridge just before dusk and watch terns fishing in the fast-moving water below, hovering, darting and swooping under the solemn gaze of the château.'
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