Bike 600km roadtrip

My Cycling Adventures: A Journey of Lessons and Exploration

The goal of this post is to share my cycling road trip experiences, the challenges I encountered, and the lessons learned along the way.

Edition 1: Paris - Cabourg

My first trip, Paris - Cabourg (240 km in 2 days), was done with no preparation. We left with way too many bungee cords on our bikes—first mistake. The second mistake became clear the next morning: painful saddle sores. Advice: wear cycling shorts for this kind of trip!

We also carried too much water. I had two 3L hydration packs and several bottles, making my load quite heavy, already burdened by a tent and other gear. In reality, since we passed through many villages, it was easy to ask locals for water, which also gave us a chance to connect with them.

The trip mainly took place on departmental roads between fields and villages, with strong winds that made the journey unpleasant. I wouldn’t particularly recommend this route, and unfortunately, I didn’t take any photos during this difficult journey …

Edition 2: Cabourg - Saint-Malo (500 km, 3000 m elevation gain)

This second trip was much better organized. We had planned the entire route, and here’s an animation of the journey:

This trip was much more enjoyable, as I had the pleasure of discovering the D-Day beaches, a place I had never visited before, which helped me brush up on some history. This time, with the same amount of gear, we wore cycling shorts, and the kilometers passed easily. We only had one flat tire throughout the trip.

Here are some photos:

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Edition 3: Fontainebleau - Orléans (250 km along the Loire)

For this shorter weekend trip, I switched from a mountain bike to a gravel bike. However, on the second day, I had four flat tires in a row, despite using puncture-resistant tires. I later discovered that I had been improperly installing the inner tube after each repair, which caused it to pinch and puncture again during inflation.

Here are a few photos of my new setup, along with some beautiful views from the trip.

Gallery