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1000-mile cycle ride from the South of France to Dieppe!
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This podcast takes a light-hearted look at my epic 1000-mile cycle journey through France from the Mediterranean coast to the English Channel at Dieppe. Well, it was great fun even though at times I felt I'd overstretched myself. In this podcast I am assisted by my very good friends Lorna and Robert. Many thanks to them.
On 20th May 2025 I began my attempt to cycle over 900 miles (actually it ended up as 1000 miles) from the South of France to Dieppe and then back to Lewes in Sussex via the ferry. Whilst I was on my ride, I raised funds for medical and other civilian aid to be sent to Ukraine.
June 10th was the last day. I cycled for 20 days in total, plus two days of rest. The distance covered was 1000 miles. The ascent was over 14,276 m, that’s 46,837 ft ! !
It’s been a fascinating trip. I’ve enjoyed meeting people on the way and cycled with other cyclists at times. It has been an epic journey in often stunning scenery.
After getting off the night train from Paris at Nice I cycled a short distance along the Côte d’Azur to the place where Napoléon landed in 1815 after his escape from Elba. Then I followed the Route Napoléon, a 325-kilometer (200-mile) historical route from the French Riviera at Golfe-Juan, near Cannes through the Alpes-Maritime and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence to Grenoble. Beautiful crystal clear views of breath-taking scenery and some very steep climbs through the mountains!
From Grenoble I cycled into the Massif Central, but first following the River Isère cycle path and then the River Rhône (Via Rhôna). Then turning up into the hills, firstly on an old railway track, followed by very steep climbs to the source of the River Loire (1,350 m. 4,430 ft) in the Cévennes range at the foot of Mont Gerbier de Jonc. The route then follows the Loire River from a tiny stream to a large river, at Orleans. This River Loire route is a journey of about 603 km (375 miles). The book by Mike Wells ‘River Loire Cycle Route’ was of immense help guiding me through all of the twists and turns at the initial stages of the route. I then joined the EuroVelo 6 (EV6) at Nevers which takes you onto long stretches of canal path and on top of river ‘levees’. I had travelled from beautiful mountainous landscapes and scenery through to alluvial plains.
My route now left the River Loire at Orléans, and I cycled to the cathedral city of Chartres following the River L’Eure valley to the River Seine and up over the hills to Forges-les-Eaux where I joined the Avenue Verte to Dieppe.
I'm immensely pleased to have completed this cycle ride at the age of 78. It spurs me on to do other epic cycle rides! I used an electrically assisted bike.
For more information go to: https://ient.me.uk/2025/04/11/france-south-to-north-cycle-ride-2025/
Visit my website for more podcasts and articles - a space where the past meets the present, and where I try to use my experience and travels to bring history, places to life. Enjoy my travels by train and bicycle on trips through England, France and beyond. Check out my thoughts on current affairs and climate change, - some serious and some I hope you will find informative. Join me in these conversations across time and place; past and present.
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This podcast takes a light-hearted look at my epic 1000-mile cycle journey through France from the Mediterranean coast to the English Channel at Dieppe. Well, it was great fun even though at times I felt I'd overstretched myself. In this podcast I am assisted by my very good friends Lorna and Robert. Many thanks to them.
On 20th May 2025 I began my attempt to cycle over 900 miles (actually it ended up as 1000 miles) from the South of France to Dieppe and then back to Lewes in Sussex via the ferry. Whilst I was on my ride, I raised funds for medical and other civilian aid to be sent to Ukraine.
June 10th was the last day. I cycled for 20 days in total, plus two days of rest. The distance covered was 1000 miles. The ascent was over 14,276 m, that’s 46,837 ft ! !
It’s been a fascinating trip. I’ve enjoyed meeting people on the way and cycled with other cyclists at times. It has been an epic journey in often stunning scenery.
After getting off the night train from Paris at Nice I cycled a short distance along the Côte d’Azur to the place where Napoléon landed in 1815 after his escape from Elba. Then I followed the Route Napoléon, a 325-kilometer (200-mile) historical route from the French Riviera at Golfe-Juan, near Cannes through the Alpes-Maritime and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence to Grenoble. Beautiful crystal clear views of breath-taking scenery and some very steep climbs through the mountains!
From Grenoble I cycled into the Massif Central, but first following the River Isère cycle path and then the River Rhône (Via Rhôna). Then turning up into the hills, firstly on an old railway track, followed by very steep climbs to the source of the River Loire (1,350 m. 4,430 ft) in the Cévennes range at the foot of Mont Gerbier de Jonc. The route then follows the Loire River from a tiny stream to a large river, at Orleans. This River Loire route is a journey of about 603 km (375 miles). The book by Mike Wells ‘River Loire Cycle Route’ was of immense help guiding me through all of the twists and turns at the initial stages of the route. I then joined the EuroVelo 6 (EV6) at Nevers which takes you onto long stretches of canal path and on top of river ‘levees’. I had travelled from beautiful mountainous landscapes and scenery through to alluvial plains.
My route now left the River Loire at Orléans, and I cycled to the cathedral city of Chartres following the River L’Eure valley to the River Seine and up over the hills to Forges-les-Eaux where I joined the Avenue Verte to Dieppe.
I'm immensely pleased to have completed this cycle ride at the age of 78. It spurs me on to do other epic cycle rides! I used an electrically assisted bike.
For more information go to: https://ient.me.uk/2025/04/11/france-south-to-north-cycle-ride-2025/
Visit my website for more podcasts and articles - a space where the past meets the present, and where I try to use my experience and travels to bring history, places to life. Enjoy my travels by train and bicycle on trips through England, France and beyond. Check out my thoughts on current affairs and climate change, - some serious and some I hope you will find informative. Join me in these conversations across time and place; past and present.