A few weeks ago, Ivan and I decided we needed a change of scenery to see if we could track down some warm weather. So we grabbed our bikes, left Laura the boat in the Port of Roanne and headed to the south of France to cycle along the Canal du Midi. It was also my birthday and what better way to celebrate than a nice holiday within a holiday?
What’s with the weather?
On the morning we left Roanne a big cold snap formed and it started to snow. As Aussies we still behave like excited kids whenever we see snow, but it’s not the best weather for riding a bike. Oh well! It didn’t dampen our spirits, just our clothes.
Thankfully the snow stopped falling as we headed further south on the train, but it was still cold. It was only 6 degrees in Castelnaudary for the start of our bike adventure.
The Canal du Midi
The Canal du Midi is a magnificent location for a bike ride. Built 350 years ago to connect the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea, the canal still functions today. It is listed as a Unesco World Heritage site because it’s considered not just an engineering marvel but also a work of art. It was built by hand out of local stone and blends beautifully with the landscape.
Now, technically the Canal du Midi starts further west than Castelnaudary (in Toulouse to be exact) but that section looked a bit hard for us, so we ditched it. Especially after we’d done very little exercise over winter. Another reason we picked Castelnaudary as our starting point was the fact that it’s a pretty little town and is the birthplace of one of our favourite French dishes – cassoulet. Castelnaudary is also right near the Minervois wine region which is one of our favourite wines. So my birthday dinner consisted of cassoulet and a glass (or maybe two) of Minervois. Perfect!
Heading off
After two nights in Castelnaudary and eating more than enough cassoulet we were ready to go. Our first leg was 52km which took us along the canal to Trebes.
The beauty of riding along a canal is that it’s almost flat, so you don’t need to be super fit. And the beauty of riding along a canal in France is the scenery. And of course the food. Oh and there’s the wine. The Canal du Midi winds its way through many villages and towns so there’s always something interesting to see around every bend.
Easy riding (mostly)
Every canal in France has some type of path next to it which can be used by bikes or hikers. The Canal du Midi bike path is probably 70% sealed and easy to ride. But the rest is unsealed and not quite so easy. We were grateful for our hardy mountain bikes but wished we’d invested €5 in mud guards. “We won’t need them” I said to Ivan in the bike shop before we left. Oops!
Our schedule
It took us six days of riding to cycle 250km and in between we stayed at each stopping point for two nights. This was not only to give our bottoms a bit of a break between ride days but also to have the opportunity to explore each region. We stayed at Trebes, Homps, Capestang, Cap d’Agde and Sete and ended the ride in Montpellier.
A work of art
There is no way anyone could ride along the Canal du Midi and not be impressed by both the way it has been built and its beauty. It’s hard to imagine that it was all made by hand 350 years ago.
Ivan can ride AND film
How does Ivan ride and film at the same time? I’m not sure, but he is very good at it. I’m not so good, as you’ll see in the next bit. Ivan can even ride over water, use the camera on his phone and not fall in. He’s a genius!
My big stack!
I had a few attempts at riding and filming at the same time. One resulted in an almighty fall from the bike where I nearly landed in the canal. Luckily it only resulted in a few bruises to my legs and a big bruise on my ego. This video still makes me laugh.
Wineries everywhere
It was wonderful to see so many wineries dotted all over the place. Hopefully we’ll get to enjoy their harvest one day.
Beziers
We didn’t stop in Beziers but the parts we did see from the canal were spectacular. There’s a staircase lock with seven locks all in a row. After the staircase lock the canal flows across an ancient bridge over the Orb River. I told you the Canal du Midi is an engineering feat!
The changing landscape
The video below hopefully gives you some idea of how amazing and changeable the landscape is on the Canal du Midi. There is beauty everywhere.
The Mediterranean Sea
Our first view of the Mediterranean was just outside of Cap d’Agde. It was exciting for me to see this famous sea for the very first time. I took off my shoes and had a paddle in the water. It was a very short paddle lasting a few seconds as the water was freezing! Any wonder as the snow covered Pyrenees that separate France from Spain are nearby.
Our accommodation in Cap d’Agde was amazing as it was right on the water. There were many restaurants nearby serving local seafood. We loved the fresh oysters.
Beautiful Sete
One of our favourite stops was Sete. It’s a busy port city with many restaurants and sits right on the Mediterranean. We loved our accommodation in Sete which looked right out over the sea.
Flamingos
Right near Sete along the canal there were a number of places where we saw flamingos. Hundreds of them. Who knew that France had flamingos? Not me. So what a lovely surprise it was to see them and hear them make their funny little grunting noises.
Montpellier
The final stage of our biking adventure was a 38km ride from Sete to Montpellier. We had a magical day with the canal on our left and the Mediterranean Sea on our right riding through salty marshlands catching many sightings of flamingos. The weather was a perfect 26 degrees of bright sunshine as we rode into the ancient city of Montpellier.
After exploring Montpellier for a day we jumped back on the train to get back to our canal boat Laura in Roanne.
Other comments about the ride
We absolutely loved our trip and would recommend it to anyone. You don’t need to be super fit but you do need a strong bike that can handle different surfaces. And I would suggest mud guards.
There were so many amazing things to see along the Canal du Midi. Here’s a few extra photos that I thought I’d pop in.
In our next post we say goodbye to our winter port of Roanne as the canals and locks are now open and it’s cruising season once again. Ivan and I are heading off in our canal boat Laura exploring the wonders of the inland waterways of France.
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