Newbies cycling around france!

[dingdongdead]

Hi Guys, I'm new to this forum and I'm going to apologise straight away if there is a thread identical to this one, I just dont really know how to navigate around the forum yet.

So a few of my friends and I want to cycle around France in the Summer, all of us are pretty inexperienced at this kind of thing. We basically just want to go to a pretty flat piece of France (is such a thing?) and hop from campsite to campsite, covering anywhere between 30-50 miles each day. OR the other option is to find a campsite and go cycling each day, using the campsite as our base.

Now my friends all have relatively old road bikes, some have single speeds, some have road bikes with 5 gears and I'm worried these arent up to scratch or that they'll not take panniers and just use rucksacks - are panniers a definate must? Im pretty set on usuing them but i need some hard evidence/persuasion for them to invest in some instead of "just get them".

Also, are there any particular areas we should visit or base our trip around? we just want somewhere flat, pretty, with plenty of lakes/rivers to dip out feet in.

If anyone could offer some advice, some information, some websites to look at to help us plan where to go and where to book campites, what to take and what not to take, equipment recommendations - anything and everything would be amazing!

and if anyone has any blogs of their own tours, id love to read them!

Thanks for your time guys!

 

[vernon]

If you intend to camp then there will be a lot of gear to carry in a ruck sack if you eschew the use of panniers and racks. I'd not like to pedal a bike carrying all of my camping gear on my back - the seat would could me in two.

If you are keen on rivers then have a look at Euro Velo 6. It follows the Loire and offers many opportunities for swimming and splashing about. Following the river means that it's relatively flat.

I'd prioritise getting the bikes checked over to see how to get racks mounted on them. Even if there are no rack specific mounts, there are ways and means of fitting racks. Your ar5es will love you for getting racks and panniers fitted.

The minimum kit:

Tent
Sleeping bag
Sleeping mat.
I spare change of clothes.
Basic tool kit: multitool, cable ties, duct tape, small adjustable spanner, puncture outfit, pump, spare inner tube.
Toilet roll - camp site toilets rarely supply the stuff.
Wash kit - use shower gell as shampoo, soap and clothes detergent.
Bike lock - 1 between 2 cyclists.

Optional extras
Stove
Eating tools
Dried foods.
Radio/phone/charger
Head torch

 

[delport]

Which port do you plan on going to?

St malo and outwards heading east is quite flat, and has a good cycle path.Caen eventually gets hilly, Cherbourg not flat,Calais too near Belgium.But Belgium is mainly flat.

Le havre i found okay, but then you may have to cross the massive bridge that would scare some people, i think Dieppe may be one of the few i haven't been to yet, so i don't know if that is flat or not.

I think you will need panniers, travelling at 30 to 50 miles a day how far do you eventually want to cover?If you are away a full 7 days do you want to wear the same clothes the whole week for example?And never get mud on them?Or change shoes?

Plenty of chat recently about travelling in France
here
http://www.cyclechat...ling-in-france/
http://www.cyclechat...rbourg-or-caen/
http://www.cyclechat...0-calais-paris/

 

[Mawsley]

Without wishing to hijack the thread: I'm planning on cycling through France with my brother.

At the moment we are planning on taking nothing more than a pair of road bikes, a lightweight rucksack, a couple of inner tubes and a bank card. The aim is to get 50-70 miles done per day, having caught a train to the Spanish border and aiming for a ferry port back home.

As someone who has toured extensively by motorbike I feel it is too easy to over-prepare. I think the best thing to pack is an attitude that problems create the funniest stories when you're back home in the pub.

 

[snorri]

As someone who has toured extensively by motorbike I feel it is too easy to over-prepare. I think the best thing to pack is an attitude that problems create the funniest stories when you're back home in the pub.

I like your thinking.

 

[vernon]

Without wishing to hijack the thread: I'm planning on cycling through France with my brother.

At the moment we are planning on taking nothing more than a pair of road bikes, a lightweight rucksack, a couple of inner tubes and a bank card. The aim is to get 50-70 miles done per day, having caught a train to the Spanish border and aiming for a ferry port back home.

As someone who has toured extensively by motorbike I feel it is too easy to over-prepare. I think the best thing to pack is an attitude that problems create the funniest stories when you're back home in the pub.

I've done the minimalist thing on a motor bike. Apart from the tent and sleeping bag everything else for me and my mate fitted into a medium sized carrier bag. We wanted to maximise the capacity to bring back duty free.

Cycle touring needs a little bit more preparation and maintenance of the soul. Finding yourself 25km from accommodation at the end of a long day on a bike is a lot different from having to cover the distance on a motor bike.

 

[delport]

Without wishing to hijack the thread: I'm planning on cycling through France with my brother.

At the moment we are planning on taking nothing more than a pair of road bikes, a lightweight rucksack, a couple of inner tubes and a bank card. The aim is to get 50-70 miles done per day, having caught a train to the Spanish border and aiming for a ferry port back home.

As someone who has toured extensively by motorbike I feel it is too easy to over-prepare. I think the best thing to pack is an attitude that problems create the funniest stories when you're back home in the pub.

No cycle repair stuff, just inner tubes?
I am also heading to the spanish border but i will be carrying bike repair items.

There is a difference between light weight and just showing off, paying for stuff you didn't have to pay for if you took the correct items in the 1st place.
Say your bike has a serious problem that can't be repaired until the next day, would the tools not then have come in useful?

I like the non cautious approach myself, and not planning too much, but cycling with only a bike tube in your pocket over massive distances isn't for me.

My budget may only be £5 a day, so i will repair any bike problems myself.

 

[srw]

Take a look at the links in my sig - we did a pretty flat French end-to-end last year.

 

[vernon]

No cycle repair stuff, just inner tubes?
I am also heading to the spanish border but i will be carrying bike repair items.

There is a difference between light weight and just showing off, paying for stuff you didn't have to pay for if you took the correct items in the 1st place.
Say your bike has a serious problem that can't be repaired until the next day, would the tools not then have come in useful?

To be fair, if there's a serious problem a basic tool kit is probably no use. Mine wasn't when my frame snapped.

I like the non cautious approach myself, and not planning too much, but cycling with only a bike tube in your pocket over massive distances isn't for me.

My budget may only be £5 a day, so i will repair any bike problems myself.

If the bike isn't stressed by a touring load and has been freshly serviced there shouldn't be a need for tools though their presence is always reassuring.

 

[delport]

To be fair, if there's a serious problem a basic tool kit is probably no use. Mine wasn't when my frame snapped.




If the bike isn't stressed by a touring load and has been freshly serviced there shouldn't be a need for tools though their presence is always reassuring.

I will carry more than a basic tool kit.

On my last trip it went well, plenty of broken spokes and a single puncture.Without proper tools i would have had to put up with broken spokes at very inconvenient times.My bike had been fully serviced before i started the trip.

Also there is some serious accidents just waiting to happen, i noticed while cycling in parts of Wales sheer drops weren't even fenced off, or had any railings, sheer drop as in 100 feet drops.Cycle slightly off course and it was easy to fall down 100 feet.
I know the cyclist is going to be in France not Wales, but there are things like that in all parts of europe.I came across another 100 foot drop just walking through a City centre in the dark over in east germany.

 

[andym]

Hi dingdongdead (the original poster)

Are you still there. Sorry this thread got so catastrophically hijacked. Hopefully you're still around and there's still the chance of a sensible discussion.

Yes there are parts of France that are flat, in fact a lot of France is flat. But unfortunately not terribly interesting. The classic gentler but still interesting areas are the Loire valley and Burgundy - although there are others that are worth considering eg Les Landes in the south west, or parts of Britanny and Normandy (other bits are pretty hilly).

If it were me I'd be very tempted to put Burgundy at the top of my list, both because it has good bike-friendly rail connections with Paris, but also because the regional tourist board provides lots of very good information:

http://www.burgundy-...velo--01en.html

As far as the bikes are concerned, there's nothing wrong with old road bikes, and you don't have to have 27 gears. However, it is pretty essential that they are all properly serviced and in good order before you go (might be worth planning a group ride before you leave).

As Vernon says, if you want to go from campsite to campsite 'self-supported' then you need to be able to carry your stuff and rucksacks aren't going to hack it. However, there are options that might be worth considering. You could for example look around for a company that would organise the transfers and provide backup. A quick Google search might well turn up some local specialist companies (or failing that email the Bourgogne tourist people). Alternatively, you could do what French cycling clubs do, and hire a van to take the bikes over and then take it in turns to drive it/do the shopping and meeting at pre-arranged places. Or you could take turns to simply take your luggage and one of your bikes in a taxi to the campsite each day. OK I'll probably be derided by the macho men for suggesting these, but for a mixed group of newbies they might well be worth considering.

Good luck.

 

[Mawsley]

No cycle repair stuff, just inner tubes?

There is a difference between light weight and just showing off, paying for stuff you didn't have to pay for if you took the correct items in the 1st place.
Say your bike has a serious problem that can't be repaired until the next day, would the tools not then have come in useful?

If my bike can't be repaired until a following day then I'd spend the evening talking to locals in the nearest bar or pizza restaurant - unless that too is misconstrued as showing off, in which case I would be at the edge of the town wringing my hands and wishing I'd carried my full Snap-on tool chest with me.

 

[djmc]

Most of France is interesting. As far as flat areas that are also interesting and which I have visited are.
Pas de Calais.
Most of the people who tell you to go elsewhere have never been there on a bike. Some of it is flat (south-east of Calais towards St Omer), some of it is hilly (round Boulogne). The Semaine Federale of the FFCT (French equivalent of the CTC but much bigger) went to St Omer in 2009. There are a lot of areas connected with the 1st and 2nd world wars.

Vendée. Mostly flat particularly near the sea. Fautes-sur-mer was very badly flooded last year. Interesting wildlife.

Dieppe and areas around. Typically Norman architecture in villages. Historically important and several important literary figures came from the area (Flaubert, Maupassant).

World war II beaches such as Arromanches can be approached either from Ouistreham or Cherbourg.

These are just areas relatively easily accessible from ferries.

Pick an area which seems relatively easily accessible and look at maps. Some areas are fairly hilly, others much less so, but even areas which people seem to discount (Calais for example) are interesting both from the scenic point of view and also from a historic, gastronomic etc. point of view.

Camp sites are probably cheaper than in England. Most towns and villages have municipal campsites and often these are well appointed.

It is very valuable to be able to speak French. A lot of people speak a little English but often this does not go very far. People are far more receptive and very much friendlier if you try to talk French.

Many large supermarkets (Carrefour and others) sell cycling spares, motorists are far more accommodating towards cyclists than in England.

 

[willem]

This is interesting, two different and yet so similar questions. The problem with old road bikes is that they may be in bad shape, the problem with new road bikes is that they may be too fragile. Apart from a decent overhaul, the solution is the same: take less and have a look at the the gearing as it may be too high (and fit the widest possible tyres). For a camping trip you are very likely to need panniers, unless you have ultralight gear(10 kg?) that will fit inside a Carradice Camper Longflap. And forget about rucksacks.
Willem

 

[Arch]

Le havre i found okay, but then you may have to cross the massive bridge that would scare some people, i think Dieppe may be one of the few i haven't been to yet, so i don't know if that is flat or not.

The big bridge at Le Havre, the Pont de Normandie, is fine to ride over, although beware of cross winds. There's a fairly wide cycle lane, and being France, people make the effort to give you space. If you like bridges, you'll love the Normandie.

Dieppe is a good place to start touring in France, you just find the end of the Avenue Verte cyclepath, and then you can do your first day (well, 40 miles or so) entirely traffic free on a lovely shared path to Neufchatel en Bray or Forge les Eaux.

The Loire is lovely, ride along it and it's fairly flat, with dozens of picturesque towns, chateaux etc. Touristy of course, so if you went in August when all the French are on holiday, it might be crowded.

With regard to luggage, get racks and panniers, unless you are prepared to camp in bivvy bags with no change of clothes. Rucksacks will give you hot and sweaty backs and aching shoulders, and it's much less easy to recover from aching muscles sleeping in a tent. Also, you'll be putting a significant amount of weight high up, which won't help your centre of gravity, and might be the difference beytween a wobble and a fall in an emergency. Put the load on the bike, really. Also, try and have a bar bag each, for your camera, money, valuables and so on. If you base yourself in one place for a few days, you can ride off with just the bar bag for your essentials.

Finally, when you pack, try and leave a little spare room in one pannier - you'll need to carry picnic food, and stuff to cook at night, and you can shop in markets as you go. If you haven't been to France before though, bear in mind that a lot of places still close down at lunchtime, even some supermarkets. Stock up on bread and cheese and stuff early.

See this link for a report of one trip through France, albeit a slightly unusual one thanks to our style of bikes. I mean, trikes.

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/trikingfrance2010