To Paris the Green Way: Boisement to the Eiffel Tower

Sunday 6 April

Despite the rain forecast, the sun came out.  The road to Triel-sur-Seine was quiet with groups of lycra-clad cyclists out in force for their Sunday morning ride.  The route took us along the Seine into the Forêt of St Germain, Forêt of Marly le Roi, along Versailles, into the evocatively-named Forêt de Fausses Reposes, Parc de St Cloud, crossing the Seine on an acqueduct into the Bois de Boulogne - miles of cycle routes through forests and parks.  We rode half the circuit around the hippodrome, passing race goers to Longchamp.  It was the first day of the racing season 'Les Dimanches au Galop'.  Further on, we ran into the Paris Marathon in full swing.  Picking our way gingerly across the body of runners, we made it across the Boulevard Périphérique into central Paris.  The road closures for the marathon gave us a quiet run down towards the 'quai', where we crossed the Pont d'Iéna to meet the Tour d'Eiffel.  We celebrated with a photo before cycling home along the 'berges'.

Distance: 66km

A Brazilian band cheers on runners at the Paris Marathon

Hurrah!

To Paris the Green Way: Neufchâtel to Boisemont

Saturday 5 April

Planned to break the back of the 129-mile journey between Dieppe and Paris today.  It was a clear sunny morning - a little chilly for the fingers at the start.  We sailed through Forges les Eaux, Gournay en Bray, St Germer-de-Fly to arrive at Marines by mid-afternoon.  The roads were low traffic, passing through extensive farmland and quiet villages.  At Marines, we had to make up our minds whether to stop or try and ride on a bit more.  We were tired but after a brief rest in the town square and picking up some food for the next day (Sunday), we continued on our way, destination Boisement, more than 20km from Marines.  We checked into La Ferme Rose, the charming 15th century farmhouse of Claire and Yvon Chapon who run chambre d'hôtes and gîtes and enjoyed a convivial dinner with them and their guests.

Distance: 118km

The abbey St Germer-de-Fly 

Agricultural landscape

Rest stop in Marines

To Paris the Green Way: Newhaven to Neufchâtel en Bray

Friday 4 April

The ferry to Dieppe did not depart until noon, allowing us the morning for a leisurely breakfast and some food shopping.  The ferry terminal was 5 minutes from the hotel.  The 4-hour crossing was calm, the sea pancake-flat.  

In Dieppe, we followed Donald Hirsch's directions and found the Avenue Verte easily.  We cruised along a disused rail track which has been covered in Tarmac  and made very good progress of the 39km to Neufchâtel en Bray, where we stopped for the night.

Distance: 40km

Sur l'Avenue Verte

To Paris the Green Way: London to Newhaven

Thursday 3 April 2014

Cycling from London to Paris has been on the cards for a while.  We deferred the ride last autumn due to wet weather.  

On Thursday morning, 3 days after our return to Europe, we set off for Newhaven.  The plan was to follow the route set out in the Sustrans guide to the Avenue Verte.  It took us on the Clapham Common, Wandsworth Common before joining the Wandle Trail.  This was fine for a while, but as the Trail meandered through parks and was not well-signposted, it became slow-going and frustrating.  By 1pm, after nearly 4 hours, we stopped for lunch at Old Coulsdon, still within the M25.  The lack of progress prompted us to buy a map in Redhill and abandon the route proposed by Sustrans which, while designed to be low traffic or traffic-free, was convoluted and added miles to the journey.  We plotted a more direct route via East Grinstead and Lewes to our destination.  Although part of the A22 was busy, we enjoyed cycling the A275 to Lewes.  For the first time, we were in the countryside and the road was in good condition.

We arrived at the Premier Inn Newhaven around 6.30pm, exhausted and relieved to have made it before dark.  Had an Indian curry dinner before retiring to an early night.

Distance: 110km