Dunkirk Ferry port to Lille cycle suggestions pls

[Brains]

It looks to me like a shorter alternative route to using the left port gate and turning left at the first roundabout may be possible. Stay in the cycle lane out of the port to where it ends at a level crossing, then turn right onto a short gravel track across the level crossing and left onto the roads among the port buildings. The ones I can see in photos have 30 and 50kph limits (roughly 20 and 30mph) and I would expect fewer lorries leaving in a bunch than from the ferry.

Turn left at the end of the first road, follow the next one to a roundabout and then straight over that and the next roundabout to reach the one where you can turn left onto D940 through Loon-Plage. It's only a fifth of a mile longer than staying on the direct road towards the autoroutes. https://cycle.travel/map/journey/134693

Let me know if anyone tries this, please.

We checked this option out.
It's doable, but the only exit is via the railway line where you could walk your bike over to the road.
In the meantime you will have every HGV from the ship thundering past you
I'd go with the map above version which has been fine tuned by a number of riders

 

[mjr]

We checked this option out.
It's doable, but the only exit is via the railway line where you could walk your bike over to the road.
In the meantime you will have every HGV from the ship thundering past you
I'd go with the map above version which has been fine tuned by a number of riders

In 2017, we managed to get most of the way to the railway line gravel track before the HGVs caught up. I'm less worried about them until the cycle lane vanishes.

In 2018, we used the route above. It's OK but it is another mile longer and I may be on a later ferry next time so more pressed for time.

 

[mjr]

In August 2020, the Cycleway from Dunkerque/Dunkirk was completed to the Belgian border. The only remaining difficult bits are from the port gate to Loon-Plage (which apparently is up to the port management company to fix the roads, not the government) and finding the way across Grande-Synthe to the start of the new Voie Verte un the cutting.

 

[mjr]

Another update: it looks from streetview and satellite like after you reach the end of the first bit of D601 cycleway from Loon Plage to Grande Synthe and cross the roundabout, you can now stay on the left, take the first path/road on the left, then right at a roundabout along Rue Debussy, left at end into Rue Chopin, left at end into Rue France and right at end onto Av du Gen de Gaulle cycleways, then keep on forwards to join the next section of the D601 cycleway by MacDo which avoids the messy centre of Grande-Synthe and the cycleway confusion near Decathlon and flows fairly easily all the way to the centre of Dunkirk.