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The Gard department is the western counterpart to Provence on the other side of the Rhone. With a Mediterranean flair and a hilly world of garrigue, vineyards, olive groves and historic villages, ancient farms and country estates, the Romans already enjoyed themselves in this fertile region. The foothills of the Cevennes offer us ideal conditions for a fantastic cycling holiday, with plenty of rurality, cultural highlights and Mediterranean cuisine. Of the villages between Piemont cévenol and Pays d'Uzès that we will pass through on our 5-day cycling tour. The cultural highlights of our route include the detours to the Pont du Gard (World Heritage Site), the small town of Anduze as the gateway to the highlands of the Cévennes and with its famous Bambouseraie (largest bamboo grove outside Asia), the dry stone huts of Blandas, the beautiful historic villages of Sauve, Sommières, Vézénobres and of course the beautiful town of Uzès. Anyone who refers to the region as the "Tuscany of France" is neglecting the very special charm that this diverse area has to offer.
Itinerary start: On day 1, we will meet you at 10am in Calvisson at the "voie verte" car park labelled as such on google maps, 100m from the D40/D40D intersection.
If you wish to come by train, the meeting point will be at the SNCF station of Vergèze - Codognan. Please specify this when you register. This will add 5kms of cycling on the first and last day.
The first day is spent winding through wooded hills, immersed in an agricultural mosaic of vines, olive groves and cereals, with the foothills of the Cévennes in the background. We start off gently on the greenway built on the old Nimes - Le Vigan railway line, in the direction of Sommières. At Junas, we make a short detour to the grandiose site of the ancient Bon Temps quarries, named after the combe that shelters them.
Arriving in Sommières, we encounter for the first time the river Vidourle and the famous Tiberius bridge.
The rest of the itinerary varies between tracks, small roads with little traffic and greenways. After passing through the large town of Quissac, we reach the beautiful medieval (and artistic!) village of Sauve. The Vidourle, which is underground for several kilometres upstream, has the good idea of reappearing here to bathe the feet of the town. If we feel like it, we can end the day with a short walk along the paths of the chaos of boulders of the "Mer de rochers", a unique site located above the village.
Distance covered: approx. 45 km / altitude gain: approx. 350 m.
Today, we head for Anduze, nicknamed "the gateway to the Cevennes". We leave Sauve by the small road to Villeseque, and go to drown in the garrigue. On the way, we pass the asinerie de la garrigue, specialised in donkey milk cosmetics. With the Cévennes in front of us, we drive on confidential itineraries passing by charming hamlets, in the middle of vineyards, oak and pine forests or wheat fields. We reach the heights of Anduze, from where we just have to let ourselves slide to the charming historic town centre and its narrow medieval streets.
We then make a return trip to the famous Bamboo Garden to visit this fantastic exotic garden, unique in Europe, which, through the bamboo, transports its visitors from Japan to Laos via the United States. We then head for our accommodation near Anduze.
Distance covered: approx. 35 km / altitude gain: approx. 450 m.
We start the longest stage of the route which will take us to Uzès, a magnificent ducal city. Don't worry, the route is easy! Departure from Anduze along the Gardon river and first stop at the Madeleine pottery. We couldn't leave Anduze without discovering this production. Here, eight potteries perpetuate the tradition of production of large vases with garland decorations since 1610. We head for Vézenobres, a beautifully restored and spectacular medieval hilltop village. We reach Uzès through a hilly vineyard landscape. Overnight in or near this pretty village.
Distance covered: approx. 55 km / altitude gain: approx. 550 m.
This morning, we set off into the Eure valley, while descending this valley in a dream setting, we note the presence of our first vestiges of the Roman aqueduct, which we will find on our route several kilometres further on. As we leave the Eure valley, we take a big historical leap forward as we pass the Haribo museum (which you can visit)! On small roads lined with magnificent dry stone walls, we cross the bucolic countryside and begin our descent towards the Pont du Gard site. We reach the pretty village of Vers-Pont du Gard where a café terrace is open to us for a break over a drink... An open-air trail, "Mémoires de Garrigue", allows us to travel through the history of Mediterranean agriculture and the local terroir before admiring the bridge (by bike!). Classified as a Unesco World Heritage site, this exceptional structure shines in the heart of a magnificent natural setting symbolised by the entrance to the Gardon gorges. We then leave the Roman prowess to reach, after having crossed the pretty villages of Collias, Sanilhac and Sagriès. Through a mixture of tracks and small roads, we then reach our stopover point at Russan.
Distance covered: approx. 45 km / altitude gain: approx. 400 m.
From Russan to La Calmette, we drive through a landscape of agricultural and market gardening plains, dotted with large villages. La Calmette is one of the few villages in the Gard to have been built in spirals, called "circulades". Next, a change of scenery as we enter a forested area criss-crossed by numerous tracks on which we travel. At Caveirac we join a green track which leads us to Calvisson, the starting point of our journey, contemplating the plain of Vaunage bordered by its hills. The loop is complete!
Distance covered: approx. 30 km / altitude gain: approx. 250 m.
Distance and altitude difference are given for information only.
Itinerary end: At 3pm, in Calvisson, at the "voie verte" car park, as indicated on Google maps, 100m from the D40/D40D intersection. This schedule can be modified if you wish.
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