I set off on the Edinburgh to Plymouth train on 12th September. Just the 9.5 hours to endure but that was the price to pay for endeavouring to stick to green principles. That night I took the Plymouth to Roscoff overnight ferry and once on French soil started my bikepacking journey towards my destination, my sister’s place in Carcassonne. To get home I’d originally planned to take the train from there northwards to one of the Channel ports. In the end, though, after spending 4 days’ R&R in Carcassonne I decided to carry on down to the Mediterranean Coast in order to achieve a complete north > south transit of the country.

To summarise, I rode to Carcassonne in 17 days (including two nights/one day spent static in a campsite due to incessant heavy rain) then took another 2 days to reach Montpellier, ending up having ridden just over 1,000 miles. I wild camped 13 nights, with 2 nights in the campsite plus 2 last minute AirBnB bookings (torrential rain on the first occasion and the need to wash my clothes properly and get my electronics fully recharged on the other).

The afore-mentioned rain was the exception it has to be said and the weather was generally very kind throughout. The biggest bugbear were the mosquitoes that plagued me at various points during the journey.

Rather than ramble on about the whole thing I'll just do a (hefty) photo dump with comments where appropriate.

Vélodyssée Trail, Britanny by Jimmy G, on Flickr

I followed the Vélodyssee route from Roscoff as far as Lacanau in the Gironde Department before heading inland towards Bordeaux and onwards to Carcassonne. In the early part of the route much of it was on former railway lines, on either hard-packed dirt or smooth gravel surfaces... which was nice. Might not have been quite so nice if it had been raining, though!

Vélodyssée Trail, Britanny by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 1, Britanny by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 1, Britanny by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 2, Britanny by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Behind a hedge next to the Brest - Nantes canal.

Brest - Nantes Canal by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 3, Britanny by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Singletrack by Jimmy G, on Flickr

It wasn't all prime gravel!

Segregation by Jimmy G, on Flickr

I was very impressed throughout by the cycling and pedestrian infrastructure. Light years ahead of this country and the drivers don't have anything like the hostility towards cyclists so often encountered in the UK.

Untitled by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 4, Pays-de-la-Loire by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Fishermens' Huts by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 5, Pays-de-la-Loire by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Beach Art by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Heart-shaped beach art.

Untitled by Jimmy G, on Flickr

More street art, this time in La Rochelle

Gravel Charente-Maritime-style by Jimmy G, on Flickr

The following bivvy was next to the Rochefort transporter bridge over the Charente River. An impressive structure and the crossing was a memorable experience.

Bivvy No 7, near Rochefort, Charente-Maritime by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 7, near Rochefort, Charente-Maritime by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Aboard the Rochefort Transporter Bridge by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bike setup

Aboard the Rochefort Transporter Bridge by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Forest Trail, Nouvelle-Aquitaine by Jimmy G, on Flickr

WW2 Bunker Art, Nouvelle-Aquitaine by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Just one of the WW2 bunkers along the Atlantic Coast now serving as canvasses for the local street artists.

Bivvy No 8, Nouvelle Aquitaine by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Around dusk, only about about 50 feet in front of me, I saw what I thought were two dogs chasing each other and was expecting the owner to appear at any moment. I soon realised, though, that they were in fact wild boar. For hours afterwards I had to listen to a gang of them grunting and squealing nearby until a heavy downpour dampened their enthusiasm.

Slugfest! by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Boar Hunt by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 9, Saumos, Nouvelle Aquitaine by Jimmy G, on Flickr

An overnight halt under the verandah of a local boules club. I didn't get a lot of sleep due to the busy road close by and then sideways rain coming in. Thought I'd get away with just the mesh inner but had to rapidly get the flysheet on in the middle of the night!

Bivvy No 10, near Tabanac, Nouvelle-Aquitaine by Jimmy G, on Flickr

I fancied camping in the abandoned building but the brambles and nettles dissuaded me.

Garonne Canal, Gironde by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 11, next to the Garonne Canal, Gironde by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Garonne Canal by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Toulouse Tunnel Art by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Riding through Toulouse was an interesting experience - a seemingly chaotic mix of pedestrians, bikes, electric scooters and cars which just works somehow.

Bivvy No 12, Ayguesvives, Occitanie by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Canal du Midi, Occitanie by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Carcassonne Castle by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Berry steep climb : ) by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Bivvy No 13, near Béziers, Occitanie by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Flamingoes near Montpellier, Occitanie by Jimmy G, on Flickr

Just a few of the hundreds of flamingoes I saw in the numerous lakes to the west of Montpellier.

Seems very lame to just say "what a fantastic trip", but... well... what a fantastic trip . Lucky with the weather, and all that wine... all that bread... all that cheese.... all those lovely slugs...

And yeah the drivers....true enough sadly..... sigh.... hohum....

This looks ace!! Nice one and thanks for sharing

A stunning trip with ace photos, especially that sunset one. Many thanks .

Brilliant Following on from the Badger Divide you've not been hanging about.

Thanks guys. The trip has given me so many great memories and I'm already looking at other options over there for next year.

Love the photos of the camp set ups, looks brilliant, thanks for posting.

Taking each day as it comes, sort of reminds me of reading about Robert Louis Stevenson and travels with a donkey in France and claims he invented the sleeping bag on his trip :

"The logic behind the sleeping bag was this: Stevenson complained that if local people could tell he was on a camping trip, they'd drop in on his campsite at all hours of the night, and wake him up to talk. So the sleeping bag served a triple purpose: bed at night, luggage by day, and camouflage against nosy parkers."

https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A87846844

Fab trip Jimmy, thanks for sharing the photos. I'm really fancying a euro tour, hopefully next year!

looks fantastic that mate.
me and the wife spent most of september riding the opposite direction...... kind of.
Valence to St Malo. 3 weeks of car and traffic free riding............ amazing.

France is head and shoulders above us travel wise. kind of a cycling paradise.

Thanks Ton. Couldn't agree more. As further proof, when I travelled back up to the Channel on a series of trains (via Toulouse and Paris), the whole experience was so much easier and more pleasant than in the UK. On time, spacious, clean, lots of room for bikes and easy to plan and book via the SNCF app.

That looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing.

Superb. I am very jealous! I would really like to do a bikepacking trip in France.

That looks rather nice, a trip in france has been on my bucket list for a few years now. I just have to get over my fear in my 35 year old knowledge of French.

I'd highly recommend it guys. Re the language issue: I'm a decent French speaker and it certainly helped make things easier. However, I wouldn't let limited (or a lack of) French prevent me from taking the plunge. Go for it if/when the opportunity arises!

Nice ... I love riding through France along the canals and Voie Verts. What a great time of year to be there too. Must've been an enjoyable trip with what looks like some peaceful camp spots

Great write up and what a cracking trip. Lots of vicarious enjoyment/slight envy for me. Brilliant stuff. Living within 1h30mins of a channel port, i've often thought it's probably easier for me to get to France than Wales, and I must make an effort to take a trip, even if just for a pootle around a bit of northern France. My French is pretty much non-existent, but I guess giving it a try is worthwhile...and interesting that you got to camp near Pegasus Bridge too.

jameso wrote: ↑Wed Oct 23, 2024 2:28 pm Nice ... I love riding through France along the canals and Voie Verts. What a great time of year to be there too. Must've been an enjoyable trip with what looks like some peaceful camp spots

Yes James, it was nice to be out there towards the end of the season. It was still pretty busy in some of the coastal towns at the weekends but, on the other hand, it felt odd passing the totally silent water parks, etc. in the holiday camps in La Vendée.

faustus wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2024 9:47 am Great write up and what a cracking trip. Lots of vicarious enjoyment/slight envy for me. Brilliant stuff. Living within 1h30mins of a channel port, i've often thought it's probably easier for me to get to France than Wales, and I must make an effort to take a trip, even if just for a pootle around a bit of northern France. My French is pretty much non-existent, but I guess giving it a try is worthwhile...and interesting that you got to camp near Pegasus Bridge too.

Thanks Faustus. If I were a good deal closer to a Channel port I'd be over there more often. The long train journey required to get me down to the South Coast (and back at the end of the trip) wasn't a load of fun but worth it in the end. Anyway, I'd recommend just going for it and I'm sure you'd not regret it!

Looks great Jimmy I do like France, but haven't done a lot of cycling there.

I have to say, my recent experience cycling in France was that, yes, there isn't the outright hostility towards cyclists on the roads you get in the UK, but it doesn't necessarily translate into being given more room.

Glad to hear you found the journey easy by train. I've always been put off by the need to box bikes on TGVs (and Eurostar if not going via the channel ferries), but sounds like the way you did it is more feasible.

We got the TGV from Paris to Nantes and they didn't ask for the bikes to be boxed - the conductor just tipped some seats up and we tied our bikes to them. Might depend on the TGV route and the conductor.

thenorthwind wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2024 8:05 pm Looks great Jimmy I do like France, but haven't done a lot of cycling there.

I have to say, my recent experience cycling in France was that, yes, there isn't the outright hostility towards cyclists on the roads you get in the UK, but it doesn't necessarily translate into being given more room.

Glad to hear you found the journey easy by train. I've always been put off by the need to box bikes on TGVs (and Eurostar if not going via the channel ferries), but sounds like the way you did it is more feasible.

Thanks Dave. Based on my pre-trip research, I just accepted from the outset that I couldn't get on the TGVs with a fully assembled bike. I found the SNCF app (English version available) very useful when planning my train journeys and it clearly indicates which trains you can take your bike on. Sometimes there's a 5 - 10 Euro charge (Intercité, Inoui and Ouigo trains) whereas TER (regional trains) are free although the bike space must be booked in advance. I had no trouble finding space although at one point (Montpellier to Toulouse) the 5 designated bike spaces eventually filled up as the journey progressed. Two guys (who hadn't pre-booked) later tried to get on with mountain bikes. In fairness to the train staff, they were prepared to allow them on at first but gave up in the end when it became clear the bikes would be causing an obstruction.

Re driver courtesy/giving cyclists adequate room when passing: Probably about at least 65% of my route was off-road and on those occasions I was on the road I found the drivers to be very accommodating. Certainly way more than the UK - not hard I suppose! I did, however, have one extremely close pass. so much so that the drivers following behind that car gave me an even wider berth than usual. I remain convinced that the driver was preoccupied looking at a phone or GPS and just didn't see me or was under the influence of some substance or other.