Bromptomaniac

I’d been thinking about a few different cycling routes, but on their own, each felt too short, especially since I’d need to figure out how to get to the starting point and back from the finish. So, I decided to connect them all into a single long-distance loop that would start and end right at our house.
Since La Vagabonde passes, figuratively speaking, just around the corner, that’s where I started.

Day 1 — Prudhomat to Saint-Yrieix-le-Déjalat (La Vagabonde), 92km
The first day I went from 0 to 60 like a sports car — except in my case that meant cycling more than 90 hilly kilometres after two months off the saddle since my Loire Valley trip. Unsurprisingly, my legs tired quickly, which made for a longer day than planned, since I simply couldn’t pedal any faster.
I followed La Vagabonde almost the entire way, with one small exception. The route was pleasant but unremarkable — neither the nature nor the architecture stood out. I had trouble finding a campsite where I wanted to stop for the night, so I deviated slightly. The village with the campground had no grocery store or restaurant; the reception had a little food, which was enough to quiet my appetite.

Day 2 — Saint-Yrieix-le-Déjalat to Pelletanges (La Vagabonde), 81km
Even though it hadn’t rained overnight, the outer shell of my tent was soaked — the night had been crisp, and condensation had built up. Apart from the first fifteen kilometres, where I climbed to 850m, the route was generally forgiving, with no major climbs. The scenery was much the same as the day before: forest and the occasional lake, though the lakes were badly depleted after the hot, dry summer. Today I crossed the Millevaches plateau — its literal translation is “a thousand cows,” and while I did see plenty of them, the name actually comes from the Occitan for “a thousand springs.”It was a shorter day, both in distance and time, and I reached the almost-deserted lakeside campsite around 4pm. This time there wasn’t just no grocery store along the way — there was no food to buy at the campsite either. Luckily, halfway through, in Bugeat, I picked up some bananas, energy bars, and croissants. That should get me through the night.

Day 3 — Pelletanges to Montluçon (La Vagabonde), 109km
Last night was colder than the one before, and even though I was better prepared than on my last trip — I’d brought a thicker sleeping bag — I still felt the cold and slept poorly. Most of the day I cycled through the Creuse department, one of the least populous in France. There was a lot of forest, which started to feel repetitive. My left knee had been bothering me from the first pedal stroke, and it only got worse — the sudden jump in daily distance was catching up with me.Once again, there wasn’t much to see along the way. If I were interested in tapestry, I might have lingered longer in Aubusson, known for its tapestries and carpets, but I’m not, so after a coffee I moved on. I then reached Chambon-sur-Voueize, one of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France, and wasn’t especially impressed. I’d planned to stay there, but Montluçon was only 25km further, so — doing what I do best, pushing myself — I carried on. Luckily there weren’t many hills, and I arrived around 4pm. To reward myself, I rented a studio in the city centre: tonight I’d sleep in comfort.
This concluded the La Vagabonde section of the trip.

Day 4 – Montluçon to Longues (Stitching) 110km
Staying at AirB&B paid off – I slept well. After a coffee and a pain au chocolate I headed to Clermont-Ferrand or thereabouts. There were no campgrounds in the city itself, so it was either stop short or push past. Guess which I chose? Yes, of course I went further, about 20km, to the first campsite past town.By the time I reached Clermont-Ferrand I’d already done 90km and was pretty tired, so I just did a quick tour of the centre and carried on.Today’s ride was about connecting La Vagabonde to La Grande Traversée du Volcan, the route crossing one giant, deeply eroded stratovolcano, often called the largest volcano in Europe. That’s tomorrow.It’s Saturday, and some of the camping guests are feeling festive: loud music, with louder conversation trying to overpower it. Hopefully it dies down before I turn in.

Day 5 – Longues to Allanche (La Grande Traversée du Volcan), 100km
La Grande Traversée du Volcan has officially begun, even though today’s first forty kilometres were really just a warm-up: the route itself only starts at Brassac-les-Mines. I stocked up on groceries there, since shops close at noon on Sundays. From Brassac to Massiac the road mostly followed the Alagnon River and stayed nearly flat. The real fun started right after Massiac, where the next 25km climbed non-stop. I made it to Allanche thoroughly exhausted, and I’m now recharging, myself and my gadgets, for tomorrow, which will be even harder: a climb to 1,500masl. Oh, help me God!

Day 6 – Allanche to Marcolès (La Grande Traversée du Volcan), 95km
Today was always going to be the hardest: the climb to Pas de Peyrol, which at 1,589m above sea level is the highest pass in the Massif Central but I was telling myself: “I am already at almost 1,000m, so gaining another 600m over 30km shouldn’t be too bad”. Of course I was kidding myself. For twenty kilometres the road rolled up and down, and almost all of that 600m of climbing was packed into the final 11km. I pushed myself as long as I could, but for the last couple of kilometres I was mostly pushing Greengo, my Brompton, rather than riding it. Plenty of people were climbing Puy Mary, a 1,783m summit nearby, but I gave that a miss. From the pass it was forty kilometres of descent all the way to Aurillac, and if the climb was hard, the descent was scary: it drops steeply right after the pass. I didn’t linger in Aurillac. Julie and I visited once before and weren’t impressed, though that may have been the weather, or our mood at the time; maybe we’d like it better on a return visit. The only camping open after Aurillac was in Marcolès, 25km further on and a bit off the route, so tomorrow I’ll need to find the most direct way back to the official path at Maurs. Marcolès turned out to be one of the Most Beautiful Villages of France, and this time I wasn’t disappointed: it’s a genuinely lovely place.

Day 7 – Marcolès to Laguépie (La Grande Traversée du Volcan + Stitching) 111km
Today was a transition day: one-third finishing La Grande Traversée du Volcan and two-thirds reaching the start of the next leg, the Vallée et Gorges de l’Aveyron. The riding itself wasn’t too hard, but the heat was; it hit 31°C in the afternoon, and naturally there was one last steep climb waiting right at the end, exactly when legs and patience were both running low. Tomorrow looks much cooler, which is welcome, though possibly rainy, which is less so.

Day 8 – Laguépie to Vazerac (Vallée et Gorges de l’Aveyron) 114km
Today I covered the whole Vallée et Gorges de l’Aveyron route, and then some more. It was one of the easiest legs of the trip — apart from a couple of small uphill battles, it was flat or outright downhill.It could’ve been shorter, but it wouldn’t be me if I didn’t make a few wrong turns. One was particularly costly: not only did I have to climb, but the road led me straight back to the village I’d left half an hour earlier. Ten extra kilometres and about forty-five minutes, gifted to no one in particular.The most impressive part of the route was between Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val and Montricoux, where cliffs rise up vertically with fantastic views. Unfortunately my phone died halfway through, so I didn’t get many photos — you’ll have to take my word for it.After that came apple orchards and, rather surprisingly, kiwi plantations. Nothing much else to report. I wouldn’t do this route as a standalone segment — too short for the logistics of getting there and back.Instead of finishing in Montauban, where the official route ends, I veered off towards the village of Lafrançaise, where I joined La Vagabonde, which will carry me home tomorrow.

Day 9 – Vazerac to Prudhomat (La Vagabonde) 114km
Last push! I decided yesterday that today would be the day I finished the trip. I loosely followed La Vagabonde until Labastide-Murat, kissed it goodbye, and continued home. The first half of the day wasn’t too bad, but after lunch my legs just wouldn’t push, no matter how much energy I expected to have. Worse, I was heading into hilly terrain, nothing dramatic, but relentless: short downhill spurts that gave me no real recovery before the next slow climb. On top of that, my left knee, which had been niggling all trip, flared up worse than on any previous day.At one point, close to home, I actually considered calling Julie to come and pick me up. Then it came down to a simple choice: hurt knee or hurt pride, and I chose to finish. Since Julie could see my real-time position, she was waiting outside as I pushed Greengo over our village’s cobblestones. Happy ending.

Stitching – Why?
Honestly, I don’t know. I did this trip because I had planned it a while ago and because I had a bit of time to kill. The only part I was really interested in was crossing the volcanoes of Auvergne, and to a lesser extent, riding through the gorges of the Aveyron River. The rest was simply a means of getting there without the hassle of public transportation. That interesting part was only a small portion of the more than nine hundred kilometers I eventually cycled. I consider myself a tourist on a bicycle, and as there wasn’t much to satisfy my tourist side (a few nice villages and views from around Puy Mary; yes, after so many trips I am jaded), this trip became mostly cycling for the sake of cycling. Thus: longer rides, sore legs, a blistered bum. Even though I’m used to pushing myself to overcome difficulties, I don’t really enjoy it. I suppose I need to consider my trips in this light: I enjoy them when I have a theme, a carrot that keeps me going (exploring the mini-states of Europe, or the most beautiful villages of France, or the beers of Belgium and the Netherlands), and I should discard those that don’t ring a bell.

Stitching tour in numbers:

930 km — distance cycled5 — segments stitched together (La Vagabonde, La Grande Traversée du Volcan, Vallée et Gorges de l’Aveyron, and two I plotted myself)
6 — out of 9 days I cycled for more than 100 km
1 589 m above sea level — highest point I climbed to (the pass Pas de Peyrol)
80 — volcanoes in the area known as the Chaine des Puys, a UNESCO listed world heritage site
11 212 m — elevation gain
1 — French department on my way that I hadn’t been to before