Calais to Dieppe (1st timer)

[Xoffie]

Hello There

Myself and my girlfriend have decided we'd like to get started with some small (in comparison to what I've been reading here) tours and an obvious place to start outside of Blighty was the French Coast.

We are complete novices, though I enjoy riding at the gym and am massively into travel I have no idea what realistically I could cover in 1 day (and if that would leave us wiped for the rest of the trip).

I was wondering

a) If anyone had done this route. It seemed like a fairly easy beginners attempt and obviously is by the coasts so hoping it will be picturesque but how do you guys navigate? Simple case of a road map, google maps, following the signs (I know, Rookie Rookie). Are coast roads a bad idea? What kind of roads should we be riding on? Obviously I'd prefer not to get mown down.

Could anyone recommend good stop of points?

c) My gf likes the idea of camping but I think for a first attempt we would be better with the comfort of hotels and without the weight of equipment, am I missing out on true touring? Should I dive in?

And lastly, are puncture repair kits and the like adequate?

OK, im thru looking the newb, any mercy posts welcome

Xoffie

 

[Xoffie]

OH

And how far can two new bikers expect to go per day without being wrecked the next?

 

[snorri]

an obvious place to start outside of Blighty was the French Coast.

The close proximity may make it appear the obvious place to start but the Calais Dieppe area is a fairly bleak part of the world, Better to look towards ferry ports further north, Ostend , Zeebrugge, Hook of Holland or Ijmuiden, and devise tours around these areas.

 

[Tim Bennet.]

Calais to Dieppe is a fantastic tour. It's a fine area that is oft maligned by those who have never done it. This was the coast painted so often by the impressionists such as Monet. There are cliffs and beaches as well as fine rolling countryside inland with a remarkable number of forested areas.

It also has history from Agincourt and Crecy to both World Wars.

Certainly from Boulogne (an alternative starting point if there are still ferries to there) down the coast are great traffic free cycle lanes beside the coast road down as far as the Somme Estuary.

Camping by the coast can be a little hit and miss. Many of the sites cater for families wanting to spend the entire summer by the coast as cheaply as possible. But inland, the usual municipal sites appear in many villages.

A couple of weeks would be plenty for a first tour, even though it is rolling terrain with constant ups and downs.

 

[Robert]

I'd second that, it's an unfairly maligned part of France. There are some grim resorts - I'm thinking of Berk sur Mer, but there are some lovely parts as well. We did a weekend tour last Autmn from Boulogne down to the Bay of the Somme and back, I'd thoroughly reccomend that.

A good way out of Calais is to head down the canal (or rather the road next to it) and travel south to Guines and Desevres, from there you can follow the valley of the Course to the inappropriately named Montreuil-sur-Mer - which is another lovely place. Le Crotoy and Sainte Valerie are also worth visiting.

I don't think you're missing out by not camping. I did my first tour with my partner last summer & I let her choose the hotels, it cost an arm and a leg, but it was worth it, she's hooked now.

 

[snorri]

Calais to Dieppe is a fantastic tour. It's a fine area that is oft maligned by those who have never done it.

I went back a second time thinking I must have missed something the first time, but I still didn't get it. Never mind, it's the diverse views in CC that keep the site interesting.

 

[jay clock]

It is quite hilly.... if you are first timers, I would consider someone a bit easier. I took my girlfriend on two tours in France - see here http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/landes and here http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/larochelle . In terms of daily mileage Kate was convinced 15 in a day would be too much but managed 35-50 easily. Lots of little and often practice before leaving.

 

[Tim Bennet.]

I went back a second time thinking I must have missed something the first time, but I still didn't get it.

.

 

[Robert]

Great Pics. Like all regions, there are some grim seaside resorts, but also some stunning bits. I wish I'd have thought of going via Dover and returning via Dieppe when I went, that's a great idea.

 

[Tim Bennet.]

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