Few questions about cycling in France

[roundisland]

What I do is take just one steel tent peg with my lightweight ones. I bash a hole in the ground with it then extract it to reuse the hole for an alloy one.

Of course you can get strong lightweight pegs but they are pricey and still not as strong as a good steel rod.

Must admit I have used municipal sites when they are closed. Just to pitch the tent for the night really as the other facilities can be a bit lacking.

Excellent idea.

 

[Jimmy Doug]

Hi c-g_24,

For most people 50 miles a day is very doable indeed - that's only 10 miles more than my commute (and I'm 43)! However, I do agree with people that you should factor in a couple of days off - no matter whether you're doing 10 or 100 miles a day. Sometimes you want to stop somewhere, sometimes things just happen. Last time I was cycling in the Perpignan area, for instance, I got stranded near Narbonne for two days because the wind was too strong to cycle in. Oh, yes, the south of France isn't all sun and fun - the winds can be ferocious. You might have heard of the Mistral? Well, that's only an issue in the Marseille/Provence/Rhône valley area. The Mistral is very strong - but at least you know what direction it's coming from. But in the south west you get winds coming from all directions and at any time. It's probably less of an issue in April than in the summer months however.
Is there any reason why you want to start in Perpignan? In my opinion it would be easier to do it the other way round. The hills in the centre of France can be very tiring. If you start in Caen it'd probably give you time to build up your strength and stamina before you meet them. On the subject of planning, most roads in France are a pleasure to cycle on. But remember to avoid the N roads; and although most of them are fine, be careful even of D roads because they occasionally become practical motorways.
I second the use of Via Michelin - it will help find cycle-friendly routes. I would also use ridewithgps which has a very handy gradient profile feature that will help you with the hills. With ridewithgps you can download your route for your gps (I use osmand - which is free and can be used offline - very handy if there are roaming charges).

 

[jay clock]

In terms of pegs (slightly off topic!) I have a dozen of these. http://www.cleats.co.uk/index.php/review/product/list/id/15/ Look lovely and work a treat. I bang them in with my SPD cleated shoes, and they pull out with the nylon cord easily

 

[c_g_24]

Thanks again to everyone for the replies and advice.
The reason I chose to cycle Perpignan to Caen (rather than the other direction) is because I wanted to get the tedious part out of the way first - the train journey. I considered flying, however I have to admit that I am not a fan of being in a plane and will avoid it where I can. The other option I have been considering is getting the ferry down from Portsmouth to Santander and cycling up from there. However I got in touch with the ferry company and they said I can't book a bicycle on the ferry until a few weeks before, and it wouldn't be a definite I can get it on there.

I had looked at the cycle express, however it doesn't operate in April. I will have to do this trip in April as it is the only time I can get off. I hadn't heard of the Mistral. I have just had a look and it doesn't sound like something that is going to be helpful. Hopefully it won't appear while I am over there.

 

[Jimmy Doug]

I hadn't heard of the Mistral. I have just had a look and it doesn't sound like something that is going to be helpful. Hopefully it won't appear while I am over there.

As I said, the Mistral is not a feature of the Perpignan area. Here you have many different winds coming in from many different directions - but it's mostly a result of the sun heating the rocks (that's what one of the locals told me once anyway!) and so is unlikely to be a major issue outside of the summer months.

 

[oldsalty]

hi jimmy is may a good month to tour france i plan to fly to perpignan and cycle camp back to roscoff north france i would like to start on the 3rd of may i .would like it warm, but not too hot !can you help me with this? ,as you live in france

 

[jay clock]

hi jimmy is may a good month to tour france i plan to fly to perpignan and cycle camp back to roscoff north france i would like to start on the 3rd of may i .would like it warm, but not too hot !can you help me with this? ,as you live in france

should be fine. Southern half of France should be ok, and by the time you get to northern parts it will be a week or two later and similar to the UK.

GO for it

 

[Jimmy Doug]

o

hi jimmy is may a good month to tour france i plan to fly to perpignan and cycle camp back to roscoff north france i would like to start on the 3rd of may i .would like it warm, but not too hot !can you help me with this? ,as you live in france

Hi,

If you want someone to notice a question, can I suggest you click the "reply" button or "quote" - that way anyone subscribed to the post will be notified. I only saw your question because jay clock answered it in the correct way - by quoting it first.
So, my answer then! Yes, no problems at all for May. Indeed, I think it's probably one of the best months for touring France. The north is very pleasantly warm (although Brittany will probably be wet - but then it always rains in Finistère whatever the time of year!) and the South shouldn't be hot yet. As jay said - go for it!

 

[oldsalty]

o
Hi,

If you want someone to notice a question, can I suggest you click the "reply" button or "quote" - that way anyone subscribed to the post will be notified. I only saw your question because jay clock answered it in the correct way - by quoting it first.
So, my answer then! Yes, no problems at all for May. Indeed, I think it's probably one of the best months for touring France. The north is very pleasantly warm (although Brittany will probably be wet - but then it always rains in Finistère whatever the time of year!) and the South shouldn't be hot yet. As jay said - go for it!

hi jimmy

sorry about error replying ,as its my first post my i be forgiven ,i have been reading jay clocks blog on crazeyguyonaike across spain good trip some man legs like tree trunks ha ,thank you for your reply i also have a second date that i can go on my trip which is july 29 ,which would you pick, i have planned to do a min of 50 miles per day i don't want to race up france and see nothing ,i have been using strava to plan some of my routes and can upload them to my garmin ,will also note your comments on right of way yours ,jb

 

[Jimmy Doug]

There's nothing to forgive - I was just trying to give you advice to help you get responses to your future questions. In your shoes, I think I'd go for the May months for your tour. July can be very hot down south and, as I've already said, there can be a lot of wind to contend with too. May would be easier in my opinion. But don't worry too much, I'm sure you'll have a great ride whichever you choose. 50 miles a day is very achievable for most people - but you will obviously find it harder in the hilly areas.

 

[jay clock]

hi jimmy

blah blah blah jay clock blah blah blah some man legs like tree trunks blah blah blah