Eurovelo 6 Basle to the Atlantic. Any thoughts.

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
Post Reply
juice
Posts: 137
Joined: 12 Jul 2007, 4:46pm

Eurovelo 6 Basle to the Atlantic. Any thoughts.

Post by juice »

I am thinking of do this route along the Loire, next June. I would be camping all the way. Has this been discussed here before, and any thoughts on what its like.
vernon
Posts: 1584
Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 6:03pm
Location: Meanwood, Leeds

Re: Eurovelo 6 Basle to the Atlantic. Any thoughts.

Post by vernon »

The Loire is great to cycle along. I've done it twice. It's well signposted and there's plenty of camp sites.
Ann Kennedy
Posts: 41
Joined: 29 Jun 2008, 12:58pm

Re: Eurovelo 6 Basle to the Atlantic. Any thoughts.

Post by Ann Kennedy »

I've done most of the EV6 from Mulhouse to the Atlantic - easy cycling (though going in that direction you are facing the prevailing wind). Maps from Huber (available from Stanfords and cartovelo - or they were last year) are very good. The signposting of the EV6 route is variable - depends on the local departement - but the maps are easy to follow and offer some route variations too.

Don't know about camping - not my thing - but my impression is that most villages in France of any size have a municiple campsite. June should be ok but could be busy in July/August, especially in the more touristy areas.

Have fun! :D
vernon
Posts: 1584
Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 6:03pm
Location: Meanwood, Leeds

Re: Eurovelo 6 Basle to the Atlantic. Any thoughts.

Post by vernon »

Ann Kennedy wrote:I've done most of the EV6 from Mulhouse to the Atlantic - easy cycling (though going in that direction you are facing the prevailing wind). Maps from Huber (available from Stanfords and cartovelo - or they were last year) are very good. The signposting of the EV6 route is variable - depends on the local departement - but the maps are easy to follow and offer some route variations too.

Don't know about camping - not my thing - but my impression is that most villages in France of any size have a municiple campsite. June should be ok but could be busy in July/August, especially in the more touristy areas.

Have fun! :D


The maps are also available for less money from Amazon. Most villages do not have a municipal camp site. I wild camped on five or six nights because there wasn't a campsite to hand when i wanted one. There are lots of camp sites marked on the EV6 maps but be aware that the ones in Orleans are all closed. I turned up a the nearest camp site to Orleans and found it full but the owner found space for me.

The maps are very good as they indicate places of interest. Riding at a leisurely 40-50 miles per day gave me plenty of time to sample the food wine and tourist attractions.
User avatar
ConRAD
Posts: 761
Joined: 20 May 2010, 10:55am

Re: Eurovelo 6 Basle to the Atlantic. Any thoughts.

Post by ConRAD »

I've done it entirely from Budapest to the Atlantic (Le Croisic)

MAPS
- EuroVelo 6, by Huber-Verlag
- La Loire à vélo, d'Orléan à la mer, Ed. Ouest-France
both available in any bookshop in any shopping center as soon as you reach your selected starting point

CAMPINGS
Not everywhere; nevertheless I recommend to use as much as you can Chambres d'Hôte and Gites (cheap and truly French accomodations)

DANGERS
The only critical point is the bridge on the Loire at St.Brevin les Pins if you want to reach St.Nazaire railway station on the other side of the Loire.
Traffic is very high.
It appears however that max speed has now been slowed down from 90 to 70 km/h!
There are two very narrow pavements aside of the main bridge structure but you might have problems if your bike is fully loaded.
Image
Post Reply