The Rhone

kangarouge

I'm thinking of taking the bike bus to Narbonne next year and then cycling along the coast to Arles. From there I would like to travel alongside the Rhone almost as far as Lyon before heading north west to Clermont Ferrand. I am therefore wondering if anyone can recommend the route along the Rhone and any possible camp sites.

mercia_man

I would personally prefer to head inland from Narbonne and cycle east through the beautiful hills of the Languedoc and the Cevennes and then head north through the equally beautiful Ardeche before heading north west to Clermont Ferrand. That's because the coast between Narbonne and Arles is flat and relatively dull compared with other parts of France and campsites by the sea are really expensive. Cycling north up the Rhone is not that good because it's built up with busy main roads. Get just a few miles away from the Rhone on either east or west and you are in much nicer countryside with quiet lanes and cheaper sites.

Once you are away from the coast, there's lots of good cheap small sites, municipal and privately owned. An area I particularly like is the northern Ardeche west of Valence around Mt Mezenc and the Gerbier de Jonc - beautiful mountains which remind me a bit of Scotland. There's a great (very cheap) little campsite in the hamlet of Mars, just west of St Agreve, that I can recommend called La Prairie.

kangarouge

Many thanks. I really like the sound of your suggested route and will investigate it more.

craigenty

I'd 2nd what Mercia Man has to say - cycling away from the Rhone you'll be away from the busier roads although it's nice to nip down to visit Avignon.
Once you're into the Monts d'Ardeche the scenery is stunning and further north, the cycling around Mt Mezenc and the Gerbier de Jonc is fantastic and the roads up there are very quiet.