Biking (MTB) along the Canal between the Two Seas (France)

Did you find your nice right black glove?

Maybe it'd be wise to let me finish my story before asking the question! Besides, I lost the left one. This is a travel journal, not instant messaging...

Tuesday, December 24, 2019 (continued) I walk up to the feeder canal of the Golfech hydroelectric plant. It flows behind the drinking water treatment plant it supplies.

This causes cormorants to take flight, which is common since for the 2018-2019 season, the Fishing Federation obtained permission to shoot 1,000 cormorants.

At this spot, the mixed waters of the Tarn and the Garonne are shared between the Malause plant, where after passing through the turbines they return to the natural riverbed, and this feeder canal.

Then I head upstream toward the confluence. A fisherman unloading gear from his vehicle gives me a thumbs-up as I pass. I can’t imagine taking him on my bike rack when he weighs over 100 kg. That’d be non-stop wheeling:

www.google.com/...mp;bih=936&dpr=1

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiv3NnQ9-fmAhVVAWMBHStcCPAQjRx6BAgBEAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.motard-geek.fr%2Ftrike-v8&psig=AOvVaw1HQk5Nnprfx4fa6SjUzCrs&ust=1578158187898413

www.motard-geek.fr/...bike-lanes

With two front wheels, it’s even trickier!

I regret not having captured the moment by asking for his permission to take a photo. Why do I always have photographic regrets? The biggest one is not having taken a photo on the fr.eurovelo.com/ev6 in Austria of a childcare worker pushing 5 or 6 toddlers in a large stroller. I asked the other participants on that bike trip—none of them had taken a photo of those adorable little blond heads. I hesitated to turn back. Now, it’s too late, but I still regret it!

A screech interrupts my daydreams.



It’s a small branch that came to squat on my tricycle’s frame, which is strictly forbidden.

In this valley where the Garonne, the lateral canal, the hydro canal, the old N113, and the railway line all meet, www.google.com/...3.604652!3e1!5m1!1e3 I hear a train arriving for the first time today.

This freight train crosses a level crossing. Very few passenger trains today, even though the SNCF drivers’ strike is about to enter its first month. What’s astonishing—while management claims only 1 out of 3 TGVs is running (they pass here at a top speed of 140 km/h if the track isn’t degraded to connect Bordeaux and Toulouse) and that no tickets are left for sale—is that these TGVs are running half-empty! People preferred to take their cars for their end-of-year trips, knowing that during a strike, tickets would be refunded.

It blows my mind at a time when digital tools are supposed to optimize services far beyond what the best intentions could once achieve.

It was understandable that passengers didn’t warn they’d given up using their PREM’s tickets since they weren’t exchangeable or refundable.

This is what mainly motivated me to write:

Gilles ROULAND

4 rue Pierre Perret

82400 VALENCE d’AGEN, April 24, 2017

Subject: Chronicle of a simple round trip that stressed out the traveler

Mr. President of the SNCF, 2 places aux Étoiles 93210 Saint Denis

I had to cancel a trip I was supposed to take on May 14, file KFN5GK Agen-Paris, Qoftos Paris-Rang du Fliers.

For the first part on iDTGV, I was able to exchange my ticket for a 15 € fee. For the second part, a PREM’s ticket, all I can do is cry in Lisieux.

Now that you’ve announced SNCF will take over iDTGV management under the TGV name, I hope your services will adopt the same management system with a reduced fare and the flexibility to exchange for a fee. I’ve never understood why you don’t exchange PREM’s tickets. By taking them back for even 5 €, you could recover a seat and resell it for sometimes 100 € rather than leaving it empty.

I once bought a round-trip Montauban-Paris PREM’s ticket for an overnight train + 10 € for my bike’s spot. I couldn’t use it because protests were banned during COP21. I threw away both tickets. That seat could’ve been used by another traveler. Especially since there’s talk of eliminating overnight trains (which is stupid). I had the bitter taste of losing money but also of not allowing another cyclist to use that train with my non-refundable, non-exchangeable reservation. Even more frustrating since bikes are rarely allowed on trains. (Yet these are the only two complementary modes of transport viable for the future.)

I hope that in this age of IT and smartphone apps, you’ll allow more flexibility in exchanges, thus encouraging more advance bookings to optimize train management and occupancy.

To use my new travel document, file still KFN5GK, I showed up at Valence d’Agen station (where I live) 20 minutes before the departure of TER 871817 on Thursday, April 6. I then learned that this train, which was supposed to take me to Agen to catch my TGV, was canceled due to construction and replaced by a bus that would leave well after my iDTGV’s departure.

Once again, I was furious at having to walk 1.5 km with my luggage back home when I live just 500 m from the station. Indeed, access to Valence d’Agen station from the north side is blocked by a fence, while you can enter freely from the south. A few years ago, my first request for access from Avenue Flandres-Dunkerque, which the mayor supports, was refused. The second, which SNCF Réseau’s Midi-Pyr��nées territorial management acknowledged on 12/15/16, is under study. I hope you can support this access, which would allow middle and high school students—including boarders—to no longer cut through the fence to catch their train, and residents from the north of the town to no longer need their cars to reach the station. Because it’s up to you to make us prefer the train. If you need a car to get to the station, you might as well continue your trip by car, increasing your chances of arriving on time.

I quickly broke into a sweat due to the effort and the fear of missing my train. The person who drove me to Agen station (25 km away) could only take acceptable risks thanks to the 20-minute margin I’d allowed. And I was able to board car 11 (which was announced at marker A but stopped at the other end of the platform because the train was reversed).

I made the return trip on Thursday, April 20. When I arrived at Rouen station by tramway, the Intercité from Paris to Le Havre was announced with a 40-minute delay due to a signaling problem in Pont de l’Arche. Since I was heading to Paris via that city, I immediately feared missing my connection at Montparnasse station. Once again, I regretted there wasn’t a direct Rouen-Toulouse train like there is a Rouen-Lyon TGV that bypasses Paris. It reminded me of the time I had to throw away my Rouen-Lyon PREM’s ticket because my training course in the Rhône prefecture was canceled. Another time, I’d biked from my home in Valence d’Agen to Lyon (700 km in 7 days, following the Canal du Midi then the Canal de Sète to the Rhône). After a week of training, I’d reserved a 10 € bike spot for the return trip. When the TGV arrived at Lyon station, it was a new double-decker with no bike space. What a shame to push the profitability logic (which I support when it comes to increasing passenger numbers) to the point of eliminating the 2 bike spots that existed in a train. voyageforum.com/...st=6005558;a=6005558

And my train No. 3116 from Le Havre, file surxlb, had already arrived with a 13-minute delay due to a problem at the Malaunay level crossing.

I reach Gare Saint-Lazare with only a 12-minute delay, which allows me to board the TGV at Gare Montparnasse. This train 2959, file F7yrff, leaves on time. But the TGV ahead of us hits sheets of metal and stones placed on the track near Poitiers. We arrive in Bordeaux with a 40-minute delay, which can’t be blamed on SNCF but on vandalism.

My TGV drops me off in Agen 5 minutes after the theoretical departure time of TER 871847. Of course, it was delayed to ensure the connection. It’s announced to leave with a 15-minute delay. But nothing happens at the scheduled time. A signaling problem is mentioned. Then passengers invited to check the platform learn that a locomotive is stuck on a switch. Finally, we’re told it’s a problem at the Laspeyres level crossing.

I finally arrive in Valence d’Agen with a 50-minute delay. That’s a lot of breakdowns for a single trip.

I’d like to know if SNCF has given up on its public service mission or if it no longer has the necessary means? At the risk of endangering passenger safety!

While awaiting a response on each of the points raised:

- Exchange of PREM’s tickets for a fee.

- Bike access on trains.

- Elimination of overnight Intercités.

- Creation of access to Valence d’Agen station from the north side of the tracks.

- Direct Le Havre-Toulouse line bypassing Paris.

Please accept, Mr. President, my respectful greetings.

I don’t think I ever got a response. But maybe my letter inspired this change:

www.oui.sncf/...-my-train-ticket

If just once in my life, one of my letters could’ve led to an improvement that benefits everyone, I wouldn’t have fought in vain. Only TER tickets, now valid for a single day, remain non-exchangeable and non-refundable. It’s a shame because proportionally, they’re more expensive than national tickets, though in my Occitanie region, there are 1 € tickets during off-peak hours. Plus, I’ve just gotten my Senior card:



All honors to seniors! www.thetrainline.com/...senior-sncf-discount-card This card, which costs 49 €, I got for 25 € during Black Friday (the day when merchants’ accounts go from red to black).

No luck for Macron—every time I’ve gone to protest in Agen, the weather’s been nice, and I’ve never seen so many people.

Plus, it’s a chance to spend a good time with friends.























Unfortunately, not all reforms are good ones. www.lesechos.fr/...-competition-1159768

The SNCF TGV is now called inOUI.

iDTGV has become OUIGO.

I don’t know if the confusion was intentionally maintained with these ridiculous names.

But it’s unbelievable—when we go take a train, we don’t even know which one is running thanks to SNCF and which is running for a private subsidiary. Maybe we should ask OUI-OUI.sncf.

fr.shopping.rakuten.com/...kalicky?pid=3293227264

www.oui.sncf/train-tickets I shouldn’t even care about favoring public service anymore because: www.politis.fr/...on-the-right-track-40887/ Since January 1, SNCF has become a public limited company: revolutionpermanente.fr/...toward-privatization Soon, they’ll ask us to do a good deed by participating in the capital opening. As we saw with the www.lesechos.fr/...is-launched-1146346 How can we entrust the management and development of gambling to the private sector, which is both a vice and the opium of the people? "In France, users are estimated to pay 40% of the price of train tickets, with the rest subsidized by public funds," explains Marc Ivaldi, a rail economist at TSE. By opening up rail to competition and allowing a private operator to freely set prices, there’s a risk of seeing those prices rise... https://www.tse-fr.eu/about I insist heavily on this topic because using the train is almost essential for me to travel by bike. This summer, I biked from Le Havre to Basel: voyageforum.com/...st=9730054;a=9730054 As always (even with 10 € reserved spots), it was very difficult to board trains, especially when we were 15 trying to get on a TER (even a new one) with only 3 bike spots.

No way I’m biking to Le Havre or pedaling back from Basel after a 1,240 km trip.

A non-dismantled bike (40 kg with its 5 panniers and tent) refused on the train means giving up traveling, making only short round trips, or being stuck going in circles.

to be continued...

Tuesday, December 24, 2019 (continued and end) Upon arriving in Moissac, a family enjoying their school holidays in a healthy way lets me take their photo.



A couple tries the bike hitchhiking trick on me again. This time, I capture them and send them this memory by email.

I ask if their last name has anything to do with the singer. They tell me no, but that they’re distant relatives of fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line_Renaud. Given the "85" in their email address, I guess they’re from Vendée. They’re spending the holidays in their camper van (their son is in Guadeloupe). I suggest they visit the Ingres Museum by sending them this link: voyageforum.com/...st=9855414;a=9855414 with their photos.

Reaching the www.laregion.fr/...l-du-Cacor-a-Moissac, I can’t cross it on foot (which usually stretches my legs) as I usually do with my upright bikes. It’s tough to push a recumbent tricycle because you have to bend down to put a hand on the seat, and if you don’t hold the handlebars, the front wheels turn, risking a fall into the canal. Recumbent tricycles come in two main families, depending on the geometry: - One wheel in front and two in the back characterize the "Delta" version. - Two wheels in front and one in the back characterize the "Tadpole" version. See here: www.afvelocouche.fr/...-couch%C3%A9s/trike/

I’m forced to pedal and endure the bumps from the cobblestones.

The thermometer on my bike computer already shows 10 °C.



A family enjoys the other bank, which isn’t paved. Only 8 km of Greenway left to reach Castelsarrasin. where the frozen-food factory Brossard was bought out by the Japanese:

www.ladepeche.fr/...villon-japonais.html

Poor old thing!

www.dailymotion.com/video/xuuy9

While I’m taking a photo of this former BROSSARD factory, an elderly man stops beside me with his grandson. The tricycle sparks curiosity and even more sympathy than a bicycle.



Even a waterfowl waves at me.

No! It’s just gliding lazily, indifferent to my passing—it sees so many cyclists go by (my last name is ROULAND).



At the port of Castelsarrasin



It’s all good!



A bit too much for my taste, so I decide to tell the Mayor:

Gilles ROULAND

4 rue Pierre Perret

82400 VALENCE d’AGEN, December 25, 2019

Mr. Mayor of Castelsarrasin,

Please find attached the letter I sent you on August 6, 2017, for which I received neither a reply nor an acknowledgment of receipt.

Gilles ROULAND 4 rue Pierre Perret 82400 VALENCE d’AGEN, August 6, 2017

To the Mayor of Castelsarrasin, Living 27 km from your town, I often visit thanks to the Greenway along the lateral canal of the Garonne. I congratulate you on the development of the path and the Jacques-Yves Cousteau port. I appreciate the bike lane that lets cyclists cross the bridge without being exposed to cars, the flowerbeds at the port, and the aesthetic effort for the trash cans and the EV charging station. Though I’ve owned a Zoé for three and a half years, I’ve never had the chance to charge it there, but I saw one charging last Thursday. After leaving home by bike, doing the market, and having lunch at the port on the terrace of the former Lille coach, I was shocked that this snack bar uses disposable cups. Could you encourage the owner to commit to washing and reusing durable cups? Perhaps by offering them eco-cups with the Castelsarrasin coat of arms and signing an agreement.

Looking forward to your response, Mr. Mayor, best regards.

During my many bike trips through your town, I’ve regularly noticed a puddle of water at the fountain by the port entrance due to the high flow when it’s used and poor water collection. It would be possible to avoid some of these issues if the restroom sinks allowed slipping a small bottle or canister under the tap—see photo.



Recently, while traveling from my home to the Ingres Museum in Montauban:

voyageforum.com/v.f?post=9855414;a=9855414

I noticed the situation was getting worse:

The fountain keeps running long after it’s been used.



This is likely due to normal wear, but the lack of maintenance leads to a loss of drinking water in your town (where I lived from 1993 to 1998).

Looking forward to your response, I wish you, Mr. Mayor, happy holidays and hope that in 2020 you’ll be more attentive to environmental protection and maintaining municipal facilities to offer greater appeal to residents and travelers, balancing aesthetics, convenience, and everyone’s responsibility.

After quenching my thirst, I only have to take the return path. I meet many joggers who might be preparing for the holidays.

In Moissac, the Greenway along the banks is still flooded.

I take another break in front of the Moulin Hotel.

It’s displaying the Christmas and New Year’s Eve menus.

At my friend Dominique’s suggestion, we’ll celebrate New Year’s Eve at the Chinese restaurant whose terrace we can see from the canal.

No connection, but I’m suddenly hit with an urgent need—despite the 50,000 km I’ve already biked, I think this is the first time I’ve been caught off guard and forced to go in the ferns. Maybe I shouldn’t have eaten fruit, avocado, sauerkraut, and salad yesterday. While I always have paper towels in my upright bike’s panniers, this time I didn’t plan ahead. Since I didn’t bring anything to eat, I don’t have one of those napkins I usually keep after using it at a restaurant. Luckily, nature is forgiving (saving me from sacrificing the cloth I wrap my Dissolutine in to prevent punctures), and the green of these large leaves matches the goose-poop color. Since they’re damp with dew, I feel like I’m using Japanese toilets: www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0xh2o0VQCc

I meet the friendly fisherman again. He’s as "broucouille" as I am (as they say in Bouchonnois): www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuGcoOJKXT8 I couldn’t find my glove, and the other one will remain an orphan without its twin...

I'm using the forum's "reply" feature. I'm learning a ton from your stories—like that drinking water passes through nuclear plant turbines (???), that protesting is a good way to hang out with friends (I kinda figured), that the SNCF isn’t great (same, but it helps to say it again), and that MPs aren’t the only ones sneaking in random, maybe-good-but-off-topic stuff into their bills!!! Anyway, I’m off for episode 3!

Isabelle, I first thought I wouldn’t reply, telling myself I wouldn’t manage it. In these 16 pages, I’ve included links to your blog several times, even when it was off-topic. http://www.isabelleetlevelo.fr/ Because I find it well done and very interesting. It always stays up-to-date and is a reference for that. And many, like me, are subscribed to your newsletter. However, I didn’t link to the article you wrote after interviewing me and asking for a photo of my bike: https://www.isabelleetlevelo.fr/2019/08/30/deux-pinion-de-voyage/#fn-25762-2 Because it’s not at all flattering nor truly representative of what I told you during our trip between Le Havre and Basel: https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=9730054;a=9730054 Its goal, without naming it, was to attack the group https://www.cyclable.com/magasins Whose primary goal I agree with you is to do business and especially sales. But how can you claim on my behalf that the Toulouse shop, where you may have never set foot, is incompetent when I bought a high-end tricycle and bike from them! It’s true that I noticed a high turnover among the sales staff, but the mechanic has always been the same. I chose to buy PINION technology and had to wait a year for FahrradManufaktur to produce my TX1200: https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=8207147;a=8207147 I’m used to being an early adopter, and when I bought my first Zoe in 2013, I faced early challenges related to electric mobility. Someone has to give new technologies a chance when they seem promising. I do it when they look worthwhile. In my travel journal, I often go off-topic about my cars—sometimes even my old motorcycles (never about ex-votos). But it’s always to say I use them as little as possible (my Xsara Picasso is 20 years old and only has 150,000 km). In 13 years, I’ve only used my car for two bike outings: And it was for a good cause: https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=4462769;a=4462769 Even for an activist action: https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=9179254;a=9179254 But I regretted taking the gas-powered vehicle when I learned we could’ve gone by train with tickets at 1 €. But since I hadn’t tried to buy them, I’ll never know if they were actually available. It’s likely, though, since I think it was a Sunday. I still feel guilty about it. Anyway, it’s not always off-topic because I often talk about the Zoe, specifying that its only drawback is you can’t add a tow hitch (due to the battery floor), so no trailer or bike rack. The only advantage is that my tricycle fits in the trunk once folded and the back seat is partially folded (it can’t be fully flattened due to the battery floor): https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=7072067;a=7072067 It was to add a small chainring. Which Cyclable Toulouse did competently. When I moved to Valence d’Agen, the municipal employees collected green waste every Monday. This useful service for everyone, creating non-outsourcable jobs and more ecological than everyone driving to the waste disposal site, was cut when we merged into a Communauté de Communes. When I got tired of making 20 trips with the station wagon and trailer full, I bought a garden shredder to feed my compost. I’m stunned when I see a resident of Valence d’Agen drive to run along the canal (which crosses our town). I can’t even say if it’s better than moving a 2-ton vehicle to buy a baguette or worse, a pack of cigarettes, double-parking because they can’t fit into the shop for this vital purchase. I must say that if I have to take my car out of the garage to tinker (which I hate), I push it. But I can’t get it back up without the engine. Obviously, if I need it for a trip, I start it (at least every 3 weeks to lubricate the mechanical parts and especially recharge the 12V battery—obviously not to drive 1 km, otherwise the battery would be even more drained).

But let’s get back to our bicycles! I signed up on VoyageForum in 2007, like you. When I created the topic “ Why bike (MTB) along the canal between the two seas: lateral to the Garonne from Bordeaux to Toulouse, the Midi Canal from Toulouse to the Mediterranean?” I naturally opened it in the theme https://voyageforum.com/forum/voyager-a-velo/ (I didn’t even know Travel Journals existed). And internet users joined this new discussion. When I later added other stories, Voyage Forum, without asking me, moved it to https://voyageforum.com/forum/carnets-de-voyage-textes-de-voyageurs/ (where there’s no bike section. As a result, people interested in bicycles can’t find my writing, or only by chance). And they shortened the title to: Mountain Biking (MTB) Along the Canal Between the Two Seas. Most of the 1.3 million members of this French-speaking site based in Quebec (I regret not meeting them during my trip on the https://www.routeverte.com/) understood that a travel journal isn’t a discussion and stopped participating. I’m happy with this site, but the downside is when I invite someone to read my stories, it starts (page 1) with exchanges in all directions, which might discourage them from continuing. I’d be tempted to delete this first page (before the move to Travel Journal) but I love my introduction too much, and you can’t recreate the circumstances of those somewhat gloomy beginnings—I wasn’t bringing a camera to avoid carrying extra weight (smartphones didn’t exist), and I wasn’t skilled enough with the internet to add relevant links. Fortunately, while I’d invited members of our local association to read my latest story with the catchy title “Thanks to global warming, I can now bike in winter,” this morning during gym, a woman told me she’d read all 16 pages and really enjoyed them. Since I estimate I spent nearly 1,000 hours writing them and she must’ve spent about 20 hours reading, I kissed her (for the New Year). That rewarded so much effort. Another woman said her husband was the one who loved it. So I thank Voyage Forum for keeping these adventure memories alive. Even though I often run into technical difficulties in my work, I describe them, and the team is quick to fix things (https://www.ozap.com/actu/-the-fix-l-unique-saison-arrive-le-25-novembre-sur-france-2/585382) or answer my questions:

Hello, While I’m struggling to write my travel journal with so many ideas flowing, I try to make it easier for my readers to understand by using parentheses, quotation marks, and capital letters since you don’t allow different colors or fonts. I’m left with italics to highlight certain contexts and bold characters.

While italics persist in my message, Bold disappears systematically after displaying several times at my repeated request to change: dots to Dots (you’ll understand if you follow French news that this is essential to help my readers get the reference to our pension reform).

Hello, We’ve fixed the issue with bold characters. Thank you for reporting it, and sorry for the inconvenience. Best regards, The VoyageForum Team www.VoyageForum.com Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

Hello, Thank you for your site. I’d like to know why my profile photo disappeared.

Happy New Year.

Hello, A technical error occurred; we’ve put your photo back online. Best regards, The VoyageForum Team www.VoyageForum.com Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

Re: Fonts, Italics, Bold [9870155] Thanks, it’s working again. Bold seems to persist. This problem only appeared recently. However, for years, I’ve often had issues with the many links I include in my travel stories. It seems you display condensed links, which is much nicer for the reader when the original is long. But sometimes they’re altered and don’t work. Example in the last page of my travel journal: http://www.google.com/...ust=1578158187898413 See attachment Thanks again for your site, which I wish a great decade and a perfect 20/20! Facteur4

Hello, Regarding links, they can indeed break when modifying text with certain browsers. We’ve just updated the site’s code so that links remain as plain text in the editor when modified. For incorrect links, they need to be fixed manually. Sorry for the inconvenience. Thanks again for your technical reports. They’re appreciated. Best regards, The VoyageForum Team www.VoyageForum.com Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

On the internet, everyone is free to engage with posts and take from them what they want. Sometimes to reinforce what they already believe. Coluche, referencing Descartes, said: "Intelligence is the most evenly distributed thing among men because, no matter how much they have, they always feel they have enough, since that’s what they use to judge."

Anyway, nothing can be off-topic in my travel journal. I write about what I want—what touches me or seems important for our society. It’s up to the reader to close the book if the subject doesn’t interest them or if they’d rather look away. Actually, it’s better than a book—it’s a multi-layered medium where, through links, you can open windows and minds.

Regarding bike shops, I’d like to have a friendly and efficient technician nearby. I’ve had one for years: http://www.reparacteurs-occitanie.fr/fr/entreprise/pomarede-jean.php With Mr. Pomarède, who’s 90 years old and to whom I’ve entrusted my 1990 PEUGEOT MTB many times. But for my Scorpion with Rohloff and my Fahrrad with Pinion, I’d prefer someone more familiar with recent technologies. There’s also the bike shop in Golfech: https://fr-fr.facebook.com/pages/category/Bicycle-Shop/Go-cycles-443694079058698/ Where I bought an Orbea hybrid bike for my wife. But I haven’t been able to check the two boxes yet.

However, I never wrote that drinking water came from the water used by the Golfech power plant. Besides, it’s impossible—Golfech is downstream from Malause on the Garonne. I don’t know how drinking water is produced for Agen, but it’s likely from the Garonne, into which the nuclear plant’s discharges are diluted. Because Agen is downstream from Golfech. Regarding gaseous emissions, it’s the opposite. The prevailing northwest winds blowing up the Garonne valley mean I get iodized air in Valence—not just from the ocean. Besides, the vapor plumes from the cooling towers often disrupt my sunny naps. The main impact of this type of plant is reduced local sunshine (it’s a bit of a battle between nuclear and solar). On the other hand, the plant doesn’t smoke, contrary to what’s often said. What comes out of the cooling towers is only water vapor. If smoke comes out of the site, don’t hesitate to call the fire department. For 2020, I wish you’d avoid answering questions at the same time you ask them.

Hello everyone, After 13 years of hosting my perpetual Travel Journal along the Canal des Deux Mers, Voyage Forum informed me that I’m asking them to store way too many photos (2,500). I’m surprised they didn’t alert me sooner. It seems that because I recently reported a few more technical issues than usual (bold characters, fonts, broken links, limited length of italicized text...), I drew their attention to it myself. Yet the team has always been responsive and interested in my observations. I had the impression that every time I was targeted by a few trolls, my VF guardian angel would step in and delete the aggressive and unproductive messages without me having to ask. Maybe one of our community members requested it?

I don’t understand why this site encourages posting photos but doesn’t warn that there’s a limit (aside from the imposed limit of 20 photos per post, though they tell you to just reply to your own message to add 20 more).

What I really don’t understand is that VF requires a minimum size for photos: Oops! An error occurred: In the «Travel Journals» section, your photos must have a width or height of at least 2000 pixels. Your photo’s dimensions are 1280 x 1024 pixels.

To illustrate my point, I had to take a photo of my screen because a screenshot that was too small was rejected by VF.



I promise this isn’t a provocation—I’m adding this photo to show my sensitivity to the data storage issue. A member of the RENAULT Zoé Pro Forum since 2013 (when I bought my first electric car), I recently asked members again not to copy previous posts in their replies, and an admin thanked me for it, as it’s a daily battle for them. I wanted to send VF this question, but I’ve exhausted their patience after their detailed and lengthy responses to my previous inquiries. I can’t share those here since they asked me not to post our exchanges.

I wanted to tell them I was convinced that before storing photos, VF reduces them, because the resolution doesn’t need to be high for display on a PC screen, let alone a smartphone. I also wanted to thank them for ending this adventure. I’ll finally stop carrying this mission on my (fragile and painful) shoulders—to make cycling loved and share my passion for the Garonne and Midi canals. I don’t understand why, with such a heritage and obvious tourism potential (I’ve already met Koreans and Argentinians on the towpath), it still hasn’t been turned into a Greenway. I felt the same relief when the admin of the Facebook group Solarbikes 2017 forced me to stop my reporting work for followers during my trip to Morocco: https://voyageforum.com/discussion/rencontre-avec-velos-solaires-decouverte-verglas-ete-maroc-d8640255/ It was cutting 2 hours of sleep from my nights after 100 km stages while trying to keep up with the solar e-bikes. I finally felt like I was on vacation! I won’t be able to tell you about its transformation or share my tricycle trips on a 700 km bike path from Royan to Sète, which has been my dream since I discovered the towpath of the lateral canal to the Garonne 25 years ago when it was still a dirt road but already off-limits to cars except those from VNF. My goal was to show how easy it is to travel by bike on a flat route without a car (and how pleasant it is along this canal connecting the Southwest to the Southeast, crossing cities without having to deal with traffic). That anyone can do 50 or 100 km stages—since at 57 kg for 1.82 m, I manage it (muscles are like fat, they don’t stick to me). I thank Voyage Forum for motivating this incredible adventure. Without their logistical support and the large number of members, I wouldn’t have taken on this narrative task, which I estimate took 1,000 hours of work. I kissed (for the New Year) a woman from the gym who had just read with interest the 16 pages of this travel journal. I estimate she spent 20 hours on it if she read everything and clicked on the links. I asked her if she’d also read my Morocco story. She said yes but preferred what I wrote about the 1930 Moissac flood.

I won’t even be able to tell you about the meeting I’m attending in Toulouse: https://lio.laregion.fr/Comites-departementaux-mobilites https://www.laregion.fr/-occitanie-2040-

Thanks to everyone for your encouragement and appreciation. Thanks to VF for this amazing adventure.

This journal will self-destruct once I finish copying and pasting. I have the texts and photos but not their optimized and meticulously synchronized chronological and geographical assembly. While hiking, I take few notes—photos are my memory aid. Or rather, as soon as I ask the team running this great tool to delete it...

I joined Voyageforum in 2007. When I created the topic « Why bike (MTB) along the canal between the two seas: lateral to the Garonne from Bordeaux to Toulouse, the Midi from Toulouse to the Mediterranean? » I naturally opened it in the theme https://voyageforum.com/forum/voyager-a-velo/ (I didn’t even know Travel Journals existed) And internet users joined this new discussion.

When I later added other stories, Voyage Forum moved it to https://voyageforum.com/forum/carnets-de-voyage-textes-de-voyageurs/ (Travel Journal, where there’s no bike section. As a result, people interested in cycling can’t find my writing, or only by chance) And shortened the title to: Mountain Biking (MTB) Along the Canal Between the Two Seas

I’m happy with this French-speaking site based in Quebec (I regret not having met them during my trip on the https://www.routeverte.com/), which connects 1.3 million members. But the downside when I invite someone to read my stories is that it starts (page 1) with chaotic exchanges, which might discourage them from continuing. I’d be tempted to delete this first page (before the move to Travel Journal), but I love my introduction too much, and you can’t recreate the circumstances of those somewhat gloomy beginnings—I wasn’t bringing a camera to avoid carrying extra weight (smartphones didn’t exist), and I wasn’t skilled enough with the internet to add relevant links. During this sale period, I invite you to read or reread these 16 pages for the price of one (afterward, it’ll be too late).

It’s the towpath of the lateral canal to the Garonne that gave me the taste for cycling (without it, I wouldn’t be writing to you at three in the morning French time). I made many discoveries along it all the way to Bordeaux (where I went several times for work assignments, by bike thanks to the Greenway https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=6005558;a=6005558), opening the doors to the Arcachon Basin and the many bike routes in Gironde. Heading toward Toulouse, I’ve biked along the Canal du Midi 10 times, which I fell in love with. Almost all my bike trips start or end on this canal. Even when I returned from Quebec and landed in Toulouse, I biked the 90 km to get home along it. In 13 years, the towpath has partly become a bike path, been listed as V80 in the national bike route plan, and is now part of the Two Seas Bike Route with a 700 km itinerary between Royan and Sète. I attended the Steering Committee meeting for the Canal des Deux Mers à Vélo (V80) on March 7, 2016, at the Tarn-et-Garonne Departmental Council in Montauban to represent https://www.af3v.org/index.php, of which I’m a member: https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=7401075;a=7401075

I only thought it necessary to create another Travel Journal for my Morocco trip. Yet, leaving from home, I biked 350 km to take the boat in Sète solely on this Canal des Deux Mers. And when I got off the plane in Toulouse, it was the same scenario as when I returned from Montreal 9 years earlier. The difference? Many more bike paths now. There’s even a sign to reach the city center by bike. In Montreal, I ended up on the highway. Very few people imagine you can get to an airport by bike.

I wish you an excellent year 2020: Replace date added with name, then click the up arrow to choose ascending order to see the photos in chronological order https://share.orange.fr/#T6TGtH1dzS19a3ab14ac/closefullview May every step on your path be guided by Light so that together in this decade, we create a new paradigm, so I no longer feel ashamed to belong to the human species, especially the male gender: https://www.francetvinfo.fr/culture/livres/affaire-gabriel-matzneff/l-ecrivain-gabriel-matzneff-cite-a-comparaitre-pour-apologie-de-crime-pedophile-par-une-association_3775945.html https://www.francetvinfo.fr/societe/harcelement-sexuel/ https://www.franceinter.fr/pedophilie-quand-des-internautes-commandent-des-actes-sexuels-sur-des-enfants-a-l-autre-bout-du-monde and this film that haunts me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIfPsonIPNs For my part, in this new decade, I’ll try to step away from the virtual a bit (spending less time in front of the keyboard and screen) to get closer to reality. I’ll suggest to my Works Council that we organize a week-long discovery trip along the Canal des Deux Mers by bike without the assistance of a support vehicle. I’ll propose to the Lectures section of the secular association http://al.valencedagen.free.fr/ to present my bike trips, starting with Copenhagen-Paris: voyageforum.com/...st=7138190;a=7138190. The only thing that worries me is that the resolution of my photos might not be high enough to project them on a big screen...

To wrap up this **travel journal by bike**, here’s a little hike—with, of course, photos of my Canal. Saint-Porquier, Sunday, January 12th Or the sun over the Tarn-et-Garonne! Replace date added with name, then click the up arrow to select ascending order to view the photos in chronological order

https://share.orange.fr/#oJJe0XSNWE22f3da699e Wood pigeons—no doubt about it!

All this inspired me to write a poem:

May two thousand twenty Guide your path Of certain Delevoye Do not follow the way Facing these few traitors Do not retreat One must know when To raise one’s fist high Of these beasts Do not listen to their prose When they propose To take money from the poor Do not heed this Trump Who is surely mistaken For this decade Chase away these vile deeds Break these vile enemies I will not rest On my banner Until I embroider Jaurès And the Popular Front In my crusade, I seek That light, that brilliance Which Ambroise Croizat so intensely embodied On this Epiphany day Some roosters must Have their crowns trimmed Share their galette Those who tell the wretched That if they have no bread They should eat cockleshell! I cry out like the fiery Fanny Equality, Fraternity, Homeland May all these wealthy ones With inherited golden balls Stop putting Fanny To the most destitute Endowed with wooden balls Do not listen to racists Those excited by Brexit Or a future Frexit Hateful nationalists As in *Tomorrow* Fighting is not in vain If a new path We take hand in hand Let’s share two thousand wines With friends And a reminder Epicurus reminds us!

Even if sharks ride your wave: https://www.lemondemoderne.media/greta-la-menace/ Greta, I love you!

I also went through a depression when I turned 60, even though I wasn’t particularly dreading that milestone. After Easter, I suffered from stomach pains for a month, causing severe insomnia. The https://www.doctissimo.fr/medicament-METEOSPASMYL.htm prescribed by my doctor significantly reduced the stomach pain but not the insomnia. I read or watched replays on Orange TV, only managing to sleep a few minutes on the couch or in my kids’ old beds to avoid disturbing my wife’s sleep. Yet, aside from my usual anxiety, I had no particularly acute worries, and at night, I wasn’t obsessed with anything. I simply couldn’t sleep more than a few minutes—I’d doze off and wake up constantly. I tried relaxation aids based on plants and melatonin (the sleep hormone) with no success. I lost 3 kg and had to cut short my bike trip with my friend Dominique in the Pyrenees Piedmont in early June. Since my doctor refused to prescribe sleeping pills, I listened to relaxing music for part of the night. Thanks to my daughter for the relaxation apps and https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.thermesallevard.respi_relax&hl=fr and her reading recommendations. My GP said it was depression (it’s true my morale was at rock bottom, and I was exhausted—by 9 PM, I’d fall asleep in front of the TV, go to bed, and 10 minutes later, I’d be up again: impossible to sleep) and advised consulting a psychologist. I almost made an appointment with a private-sector one. But since I learned that the *Centre Médico-Psychologique* in Valence d’Agen offered free care, I had an appointment with a nurse who created my file and scheduled me with a psychiatrist on July 3rd (apparently, it was lucky to get an appointment so quickly) after three months of suffering. Thankfully, my wife always supported and stood by me. Thanks to her. I had warned *CycloTransEurope* that I might cancel my accommodation reservations for the Le Havre–Basel hike from July 12th to August 2nd. Since she prescribed an antidepressant and a sleeping pill, I still took the train to Le Havre and even bought a last-minute ticket for the previous Paris–Le Havre train at full price. I was foolish—I could’ve traveled with the ticket I’d bought three months earlier, especially since there was no ticket check. I only managed this trip thanks to https://www.doctissimo.fr/medicament-ZOPICLONE-MYLAN.htm Especially since we mostly slept in youth hostels and group lodgings. But the antidepressant: https://www.doctissimo.fr/medicament-MIRTAZAPINE-MYLAN.htm had no effect on me, and I remained anxious and pessimistic throughout the trip. Fortunately, the group was mostly made up of friendly cyclists. I only had another appointment with a psychiatrist in Montauban on September 3rd. So I couldn’t go without sleeping pills for more than two months and feared dependency. She prescribed https://www.doctissimo.fr/medicament-PAROXETINE-MYLAN.htm to replace the antidepressant I was taking for nothing. It took five months—after three weeks of taking Paroxetine in September—for it to improve my condition. Too late to participate in https://www.af3v.org/Plus-Belle-la-Voie-2019-sur-la-V65.html I had to cancel my reservation at the last minute. Fortunately, this time it was just camping.

Since I was feeling better—more energetic, combative, and alas, vindictive again—I decided to stop the antidepressant after three months of Paroxetine. Since it’s strongly advised not to do this without medical advice and there are many side effects (even risk of suicide in young people), I gradually reduced the treatment: ¾, ½+, ½-, ¼ of a paroxetine pill per day, week by week. I’m looking forward to 2020 with serenity, even if I still have stomach pains and gas. Since my depression might have been caused by various diets—gluten-free, dairy-free, alkalizing—and the related deprivations, I let loose. But now I’ll follow the advice of my naturopath https://www.patricia-giffard.fr/ and my relaxation therapist (whose methods are starting to pay off).

I think my trip to Morocco https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=8369614;a=8369614 wasn’t unrelated to the onset of this depression. Though it took place in September 2017, I felt uneasy due to the stark difference in living standards and was deeply disappointed by human nature. Besides, the anxiety about the future of humanity may have been the main factor. And above all, the stupidity of our leaders, who only talk about *Growth*, which accelerates our race toward collapse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xziAeW7l6w&feature=youtu.be

I’ve only now managed to talk about it because I was ashamed of being depressed when I “have everything to be happy”: a sufficient pension, a house I own, a wife, and three wonderful children.

It’s curious that while countries wage military or economic wars, a bad flu or another coronavirus is enough for states to cooperate. The death of a top basketball player almost made Barack Obama and Donald Trump buddy up! I’d said he’d shake things up, no doubt about it: https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=2148688;a=2148688 Trump, on the other hand, will destroy our *Common Home*. They’re not playing in the same league: https://www.marieclaire.fr/michelle-obama,1292151.asp Another great woman: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgc2VFhQSxg

"With Aragon, I declare: Woman is the future of man" — Jean Ferrat. The little boy plays with toy cars. The little girl plays at being a mom or a teacher. The man swoons over a Ford Mustang V8 (and over Anderson: https://www.elle.fr/People/La-vie-des-people/News/Pamela-Anderson-son-evolution-de-Malibu-a-aujourd-hui). The woman devotes herself to her family. Fortunately, there are a few genius men: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis-Claude_Vincent http://www.omhega.fr/Omhega/Liens/Principes-BEV.pdf I invite you to follow the detailed advice in this book: https://livre.fnac.com/a3241021/Roger-Castell-La-Bioelectronique-Vincent#omnsearchpos=1 which can lead us toward *Health*, where official medicine struggles to take us.

To wrap up this travel journal and stop bothering you, I’d ask you to remember only this quote: "The worst offense against life is to do, out of lack of courage, the opposite of what one believes in" — Michel Dogna. You’re welcome to reply: "OK Boomer!" https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/OK_Boomer Either way, we’ll stop communicating soon. From January 22nd to 29th, 2020, a hacker blocked Orange and La Poste’s websites. It was very hard for me to access my emails with my @orange.fr address and impossible with my @laposte.net one (which I have to keep for nostalgia’s sake, as a public service). https://services-client.net/la-poste-net/ (I don’t have a Gmail, Hotmail, Facebook, or Twitter account—they reek of Big Brother.) . final

I found a solution to keep promoting the Canal des Deux Mers by bike. By hosting the photos from my latest trip on a site that stores them after reducing their size. Unlike VF, which requires a minimum quality and now limits the number of photos to 500 in a travel journal.

Tour of the Luberon, Canal du Rhône à Sète, Canal du Midi: 812 km in 13 days

Tuesday, June 16, 2020 – Valence d’Agen to Nîmes by train (326 km), then biking to Châteauneuf-de-Gadagne (63 km). My friend and I were ready to go on June 2 when the lockdown radius was extended beyond 100 km. But the weather put a stop to our plans. With the bad weather persisting, I suggested heading to the Southeast, the only region spared. We took the TER (where bikes are transported for free) from Valence d’Agen to Toulouse. Then we had reservations for a 4-seater car (spots 1 and 2) and two bike spaces for 2x10 € without specifying the car in the Toulouse-Nîmes train. Fortunately, while I was used to the hassle of the old Corail cars with their two big steps and accordion doors that close automatically, I asked a conductor on the platform, who told me the bike car is always car 3 in Intercités (except in rare cases—see previous posts). The train arrived on time but not in front of the expected marker. Since we had removed our 5 panniers (which is essential to board https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiture_Corail), we pushed our bikes and I rushed to load them into car 3 before running back to get our luggage left on the platform. Unfortunately, we were at the opposite end from the bike compartment. Dominique managed to go through the corridor with his bike, but mine wouldn’t fit because of the handlebar width. I had to wait until Carcassonne to get off, as the conductor suggested, and reboard at the other end. We decided not to take a third train to Avignon, as it’s so difficult to change platforms with loaded bikes in French stations (stairs). Actually, Nîmes station has elevators. Off we went for the first pedal strokes. Even though Dominique brought his tent this time, I still had the heavier bike (36 and 38 kg). It took us 6 hours to cover the 60 km between Nîmes and the campsite I’d spotted east of Avignon to get closer to the route: https://www.veloloisirprovence.com/page/autour-du-luberon-a-velo. Since I’d participated in rides organized by https://www.af3v.org/ and Vélo Loisir Provence (see report here: https://lamediterraneeavelo.wordpress.com/), I had the brochure with the route, but I didn’t want to carry it (too bad—I’m in the photo on page 4 trying to board the train). So I downloaded it here: https://www.veloloisirprovence.com/fichier/624.pdf. While we wanted to avoid Avignon and its traffic, we had to cross it because we couldn’t find our alternative route. The upside was that we got a few hundred meters of a COVID lane reserved for bikes. We only arrived at the Fontisson campsite at 7:30 PM. Open since the day before, it had very few guests.

Wednesday, June 17 – Châteauneuf-de-Gadagne (8:30 AM) to Cucuron (6:30 PM): 77 km (6 hours of pedaling at an average speed of 13 km/h) There were only a few raindrops during the night, but it was chilly in the morning. After a few kilometers and buying our first melon and other supplies, we started the Luberon loop in Robion, following the signs to Cavaillon. The route is well-marked, and unusually, it has two colors. Signs with a white arrow indicate the clockwise direction. The counterclockwise route we took is marked in ochre, allowing for a more gradual climb. We got lost several times in Cavaillon, where we lost the Luberon à Vélo route (we later learned that near the station, you have to follow the white markings, not the ochre ones we were looking for. A sign explaining this anomaly due to history used to exist but is no longer there). Here’s the massif and the first climbs to reach the campsite at 400m. After the cicadas that accompanied us yesterday with their song when it wasn’t drowned out by cars, we discovered lavender fields.

Thursday, June 18 – Cucuron (10 AM) to Manosque (5 PM): 46 km. 5 km after leaving the campsite, Dominique realized we’d forgotten the sleeping mat he usually wraps around his self-inflating mattress. We’d left it to dry on the railing by the pool. That meant 10 extra km for him while I watched his bags. He also brought back my toothbrush, which I’d forgotten in the restrooms. Highest point at 500 m for a foot soak and picnic in Vitrolles-en-Luberon. Then down to the Manosque campsite, where the pool was waiting for us.

Friday, June 19 – Manosque (9 AM) to St-Maime (3:45 PM): 49 km We enjoyed the Manosque campsite and pizza delivery in a Zoe (since restaurants weren’t open in campsites yet). The climb to 600m was rewarded by a visit to Forcalquier. The descent to the St-Maime campsite was under the sun and a cool wind. I took advantage of the pool again.

Saturday, June 20 – St-Maime (8 AM) to Céreste (5 PM): 49 km (average speed 11 km/h) After a long but gradual climb, we reached the highest point of the route at nearly 800 m. Since we hadn’t done our shopping yet, we continued pushing our bikes to the village of Vachères, which reaches 835 m. Our efforts were rewarded with 360° views and the only shop: a bar-grocery that also serves as a restaurant. Actually, it was “thanks” to a misoriented sign in Saint-Michel-l’Observatoire that we got lost all the way to the gate of the Haute-Provence Observatory (where you can’t see anything) and arrived in Vachères at lunchtime. Then we descended to Céreste and its natural area (managed by a nearby farm), where we slept under the trees.

Sunday, June 21 – Céreste (8 AM) to Maubec (4:30 PM): 56 km We visited Apt, where we could do our shopping at the Intermarché. It was the young German cyclist we’d met the day before at the natural area who suggested we stop in Maubec. The campsite is nice, and the village is charming.

Monday, June 22 – Céreste (8:30 AM) We quickly reached Robion, completing our 241 km Luberon loop. Just before the https://www.veloloisirprovence.com/ office opened, we surprised Sylvie Palpant, whom we’d met during the 2017 and 2018 Plus Belle la Voie rides organized with Alain Michel from AF3V. She was delighted by our visit, and we were able to share our amazement, praise for the signage, and difficulties we’d encountered over a drink. Photos of the first 331 km here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/TThDfukoh2X7Ncn56

She gave me the freshly published bike guide for the Méditerranée à Vélo: https://www.francevelotourisme.com/conseils/preparer-mon-voyage-a-velo/cartes-topo-guides-velo/guide-mediterranee-velo (I’m featured in stage 1 this time). We left Robion at 10 AM after getting advice from Sylvie on how to reach Tarascon and with the guide for the French section of https://fr.eurovelo.com/ev8, which we’d be taking. We followed the route and discovered a small section of the old railway line being developed.

All that’s left is to head home We just had to ride along the towpath of the Canal du Rhône à Sète, which is still off-limits to bikes, and the Canal du Midi, which still isn’t developed: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Beaucaire, +30300/Toulouse/@43.2896158,2.5067515,8.5z/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x12b5da243517387d:0x4078821166b46a0!2m2!1d4.644269!2d43.807235!1m5!1m1!1s0x12aebb6fec7552ff:0x406f69c2f411030!2m2!1d1.444209!2d43.604652!3e1

Return Stage 1 Monday, June 22 – Robion (10 AM) to Tarascon (4 PM): 56 km Unfortunately, the EV8 signage failed us again in Cavaillon (this town is really getting on my nerves), and we ended up crossing the Durance on the D99, which Sylvie had strongly advised against due to the many trucks and narrow passages between the plane trees. I understand why this bridge is off-limits to bikes despite the extra-wide lanes. Even though the wind wasn’t strong, my bike, which is sensitive to it because of its height and the large surface area of the panniers, started to wobble, and the crossing felt long. We found the EV8 again to reach Plan d’Orgon, where the LIDL bike parking was waiting for us. After restocking, we picnicked in a public garden in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. The wind never gave our many plastic bags a break—of course, we weighed them down so they’d never end up in nature. Luckily, the wind was in our favor the whole way back. We enjoyed the pool at the friendly Camping Tartarin. On this Monday, we searched in vain for an open restaurant in Tarascon.

Return Stage 2 Tuesday, June 23 – Tarascon (8 AM) to Aigues-Mortes (68 km): 6h15 on the bike at an average speed of 11 km/h After crossing the Rhône, we took the Canal du Rhône à Sète in Beaucaire. At the first bridge, the towpath was blocked on the left bank. We went back to the start and took the road toward Saint-Gilles, quickly finding the grassy but passable towpath (recently mowed). We suffered from the heat due to the lack of shade and progressed slowly. We were only in Saint-Gilles by 12:30 PM. Luckily, the restaurant terrace welcomed us. The towpath gradually improved until it became a bike path when we joined the Viarhona and Eurovelo 8 routes. Exhausted after 68 km, the La Petite Camargue campsite we’d aimed for after Aigues-Mortes didn’t welcome us because it wasn’t yet open to the public. The young man at reception let me fill my collapsible jerrycan, which is essential for drinking and washing, since we had to settle for wild camping.

Return Stage 3 Wednesday, June 24 – Aigues-Mortes (8 AM) to Balaruc-les-Bains (5 PM): 61 km We picked up the Eurovelo 8 at Le Grau-du-Roi, then the Canal du Rhône à Sète at La Grande-Motte. It’s still off-limits to bikes, even though it’s pleasant and surprising when it crosses the étangs. After swimming in Frontignan, we picnicked at the port. I found the campsite in Balaruc-les-Bains http://www.mas-du-padre.com/ where I’d stayed before my bike trip to Morocco: https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=8640255;a=8640255.

Return Stage 4 Thursday, June 25 – Balaruc-les-Bains (7:45 AM) to Capestang (5:30 PM): 83 km We left the Balaruc-les-Bains campsite at 7:45 AM. It’s our record since it takes us 2 hours to get ready (breakfast, washing, packing the tent, and stowing everything in the panniers). We rejoined the Eurovelo 8 in Sète, then the Canal du Midi at the round lock in Agde. The towpath is more or less rideable—sometimes overgrown with vegetation. After swimming, we had dinner at the Capestang port while waiting for nightfall to pitch the tent. We weren’t chased away from this superb grassy spot with picnic tables in front of the port, probably because the campsite is closed for the entire 2020 season due to COVID.

Return Stage 5 Friday, June 26 – Capestang (9 AM) to Carcassonne (7 PM): 91 km (7 hours at 13 km/h) A long stage (still flat) with a fairly passable towpath. The storm started as we finished setting up the tent, but it barely rained, and we walked to the nearby Cité, where many cassoulets were waiting for us. I recommend https://campingcitecarcassonne.com/ again. This campsite offers shared spots for hikers (up to 3 tents), and we paid 14.32 € for the two of us. Of course, there were few campers.

Return Stage 6 Saturday, June 27 – Carcassonne (8:15 AM) to Gardouch (6 PM): 86 km Since Dominique had to go home, we wanted to take the train, and by 9 AM, we were at the station. We couldn’t get tickets in Carcassonne. The TERs (bikes free) were packed due to the 1 € tickets (anti-COVID measure). The Intercités (bikes 10 €) had all their rare bike hooks sold out (only one spot was left the night before when I checked the SNCF website at the restaurant). Since it had barely rained, we took the Canal du Midi toward Toulouse. We ate a mixed salad at the Castelnaudary port, where boat rental companies were desperately waiting for tourists (usually foreigners at this time of year). After the Gardouch lock and a tour of the shops, we found a great spot to pitch the tent. It was only after swimming that we discovered we were in front of the town’s wastewater treatment plant. A little worried about the pipe going into the canal, it turned out to be a water intake. Fortunately, the wastewater is discharged into the Gardijol, which has its own canal bridge to continue its course. Since its flow is very low, we had to deal with the smells. We weren’t the only ones—a woman told us that camper vans often come here. Another dog walker told us he prevents his dog from swimming in the canal due to leptospirosis transmitted by the urine of coypus https://leptospirose-prevention.fr/contracte-t-on/. That didn’t stop our wild camping and swimming in the Canal du Midi from being highlights of this adventure. After Capestang, where the canal water was very pleasant, it was cooler in Gardouch because we’d just passed the Naurouze threshold, the highest point feeding the canal with water from the Saint-Ferréol basin.

Return Stage 7 Sunday, June 28 – Gardouch (7:30 AM) to Toulouse (11 AM): 41 km We finished with the recently repaved section by Haute-Garonne, which has long turned the towpath into a greenway up to Port Lauragais, the department’s limit. The day before, we’d been able to buy 1 € tickets to return to Valence d’Agen. While waiting for our TER, we discovered the redeveloped Jean Jaurès promenade.

This expedition ended after 823 km in 13 stages, each as enjoyable as the last thanks to the landscapes, the weather, and the lack of technical problems. Except that my bike, which has now reached 5,000 km, still makes some creaking noises in its gearbox located in the pedal crank https://voyageforum.com/v.f?post=8207147;a=8207147. And Dominique’s MTB, which is almost 30 years old, needs a new chain and sprockets, and maybe other bearings. We were a little cold at night in the mountains but not enough to use the bouillon cubes and vermicelli I’d brought. I’m also bringing back the mackerel can that stayed at the bottom of my pannier, proving we didn’t lack anything. Too bad this type of trip isn’t accessible to everyone due to the lack of train equipment and towpath development.

Photos of the 490 km return trip: https://photos.app.goo.gl/94HDPRJL1x46iWzm7

Hi 8xc, I hope you're doing well. I think you're still on VoyageForum since I can reply to our exchange from 13 years ago. I couldn't help but think about it again when I heard the news: Sarkozy loses his Legion of Honor, shock among Republicans | Mediapart With the feeling, as is often the case for Ecologists, of having been right too soon. Have a good Sunday