Languedoc is France’s new hotspot for cyclists says Anna Richards as she pedals her approach by means of epic surroundings and picturesque villages.
I used to be a bike owner lengthy earlier than shifting to France, discovering it totally acceptable to show as much as work, social occasions and the whole lot in between caked in a mix of sweat, mud and bike grease. Biking in France is one thing else although, it’s within the soul of the nation. After epic bike journeys alongside the Rhône, mountain biking within the Alps and routes flatter than crêpes on islands off the Atlantic Coast, I may have found the perfect half of all of them in France for biking. Languedoc.
The range is spectacular. Cycle tracks round crimson rock lakes that look as if they need to be in outer area. Craggy limestone pillars. Salt flats house to native Camargue bulls.
I’ve ridden a rickety bike far too massive for me alongside the slim string of land between the Mediterranean Sea and the saltwater lagoon, the Étang de Thau, wobbling perilously subsequent to the water. I’ve bumbled over the cobbled streets of villages misplaced in time, and felt the exhilarating rush of a downhill dash from the hills of Haut-Languedoc to the vineyards unfold out like a relaxed ocean of vines under me. This time I had three totally different routes to check — on three very totally different bikes.
First up, I used to be on a flamingo hunt. The bike was a butt-buster, desperately in want of oil, however my route was flat, making for plain pedalling. I began from Château Capitoul, however you possibly can equally lengthen the route by 10 km and set off from Narbonne, the place Roman vestiges cover between bistros and shoe retailers. Down from Capitoul, lengthy grass rapidly offers method to water as deep and rich-looking as a sapphire. A cycle path skirts across the étang to succeed in Gruissan city, the Barberousse Tower cherry-like above the rooftops. The flamingos have been there, toothpick-like legs, milky pink, motionless, like cardboard cut-outs in opposition to the shore.
An additional 3 km alongside a cycle path so straight that if the literal proof of Romans in Narbonne didn’t have me interested by the Roman Empire, this route actually did, and I arrived at Gruissan Plage, 2 km of sand.
There’s a really well-known picture of a person and his son, bike laden with baguettes, using down an avenue of aircraft bushes (Boy, Bicycle and Baguette). It was a French tourism marketing campaign in 1955, and the picture encapsulates France’s biking tradition, although it was staged. It was taken by the well-known photographer, Elliott Erwitt, however it might have simply been taken on my second route, the place I used to be on a quest to seek out Molière and mussels. From Château St Pierre de Serjac (as a result of this bike owner loves a luxurious sleep), I made for Pézenas, on market day, the historic capital of the area. This time I used to be on a street bike, flying down the gently undulating roads flanked on both facet with aircraft bushes.
Molière lived in Pézenas for a spell, and it’s allegedly the place his well-known play Le Médecin Volant was first carried out in 1655. The theatres, bookshops and literary themed cafés pay homage to the city’s well-known alumni, however since Molière is previous information — nearly 400 years previous — I used to be extra within the city’s 17th century structure, and the spectacular Saturday market. An additional 16 km took me to the Étang de Thau, the place you may eat swollen oysters for a pittance at Le St Barth Tarbouriech, an oyster farm on the water which provides Michelin-starred eating places. To place gas in my legs, I tucked into the mussels and a tielle Sètoise (a pie crammed with octopus ragu) too.
A closing bike experience was on the playing cards, 80 km lengthy, on a brand-new loop which opened this February, marketed because the Oenovélo. Needing to bash it out in half a day, I opted for an e-bike. After 700 m of elevation acquire, I felt it was a smart choice.
The tourism board recommends splitting this route over two to a few days, to get the utmost ‘oeno’ along with your ‘vélo’, and it appears smart, notably with wineries like La Cave de St Chinian and Le Domaine de Soustres for tastings. Château les Carrasses is just about on the cycle path, making an incredible cease, and so they’ve bought all of the bike restore amenities and know-hows for weary cyclists. Flowers framed the vines, and for a very good two thirds of the route, I cycled proper alongside vineyards. A lot of the route follows an previous railway line, and former station homes inject retains of character. Probably the most scenic stretch was alongside the Canal du Midi, operating from simply earlier than 18 km nearly unbroken to Capestang. Weeping willows cling over barges on water the color of algae, and in Capestang the sun-drenched foremost sq. makes for an ideal refuel level for tapas and a beer. Signage is slightly intermittent, obtain the GPX hint (visugpx.com) on a very good navigation app.
There are 4,000 km of biking routes in Hérault, and so they’re accessible to everybody — none of those 2,000 m + climbs to mountain passes that function the final word challenges throughout the Tour de France. Be it Roman-straight roads to ruins of the identical period, or an excuse to work up a thirst for a wine tasting, if holidays on two wheels are your factor, head to Languedoc.
Anna Richards is a author & guidebook creator residing in Lyon. Her work has appeared in Lonely Planet, Nationwide Geographic and lots of extra.
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