Fancy a week trail riding through France??

[Harty]

Myself and a mate are putting together a trip to France from the 5th - 13th April, so it's a bit of a diy package on a shoestring!

We are getting the overnight Ferry on the Friday night from Portsmouth to Le Havre then when it docks in on Sat morning, grab some croissants for brekky, We then ride down to a campsite in South Normandy for 3 days, where we then do 2 days of trail riding.

We then head down to St Nazaire, make camp and then trail ride the next day. We then head back up to Rennes and camp, then back up to Normandy to camp, with the final day as trip along the WWII beach landings and museums, following the coast road back to Le Havre, for the 5.30pm ferry back to Portsmouth.

Ferry timings: LD Lines - Outbound: Fri 5th April 11.00pm - Inbound: Sat 13th April 5.30pm

The route has all been done and varies from minor roads/tracks and green lanes, but on Day 4 as it's 200+ miles there's a couple of 10 - 15 mile main road stretches to get us through the day.

Mileages per day:

D1 - 101
D2 - 124
D3 - 78
D4 - 207
D5 - 91
D6 - 97
D7 - 161
D8 - 125


For those who've not been and done this before, this sets the scene:

If you've ever fancied the real dual-sport thing of living on your bike, camping and trail-riding, then this is the perfect introductory week for you.

This is not a beginners week, some of the tracks are too technical for that and you need to have a bit of endurance about you because even though the days are not of great distance, the track density is high. A normal days riding is 9 - 10 hours on average, depending on weather, map reading, breakdowns and extended lunch stops!

So after reading that and you are still interested, then a bit more info in regards bikes and costs.

You will need a rack of some sorts and panniers to carry your kit, which will comprise of tent/basha, air bed, sleeping bag, clothing, washkit, toolkit, tubes, pump, waterproofs, stove, mug, plate, cuttlery, brew kit, 2 meals at least, snack bars..........this list is not endless, but just bear in mind that the more you carry, the bulkier the kit, the harder work it will be trying to ride with it! For this trip, it is always worth trying to buddy up with someone, so that kit can be shared between you and not be duplicated i.e. brew kit, tyre pump/compressor, spare tubes, underpants......err sorry that's just what me and Rich do. :laugh:

Your bike needs to at least get 100 miles to a tank of fuel, and you must have breakdown cover for Europe. We will be doing approximately 1000 miles in 8 days, so make sure that your bike is up to spec for the trip, as we're not hanging about trying to get bikes repaired unless it is simple enough to fix in short time. Therefore if you turn up with knackered sprockets/chain and wheels bearings on the way out, then you're on your own.

The ferry cost is approx £107 return for a reclining seat overnight, the rest of your money needed is just for fuel, food and beer/wine for 8 days. A budget of £300 - £350 should get you through the week for food, fuel, campsite fees and booze!

The more the merrier that have sat nav the better, so that everyone has the route, just in case someone needs to or accidentally deviates! personally I'll be using a garmin with France Topo mapping.

RIDERS


Myself - KTM690

Rich - DRZ400

Nick Schooe - DRZ400

Snowy - BMW G650 X

Bert - BMW G650 X

exrm193 - XR650L

[herman]

Excellent plan, we are over again at the beginning of March. If I can help with ferry codes, stop over here, etc then shout. Also have a mate with a van (and his own small enduro loop) and some gpx of lanes although they tend to be concentrated in an area rather than getting somewhere. Last visit

[Harty]

Cheers for all that Herman, will bear that all in mind

[MHsnowy]

I really like the sound of this........

[Harty]

I really like the sound of this........

More than welcome to come along Mark

[MHsnowy]

Where do you get the ferry to?

[Gavinskii]

Nice one Mark, would love to join you, but just don't have enough holiday this year.

Will be looking out for the write up and pics B)

[Harty]

At the moment Portsmouth - Caen

[Tramp]

HI harty..if your looking for a long trail the Gr long distance paths can be riden by moto's and have a very varied suurface and always pass by villages for food,fuel and wild camping spots...need any water enroute the tourist office or local cemetry always have some...yeh I know I must try harder to lead a normal life :whistle:


http://www.gr-infos.com/gr-en.htm
cool site with google earth maps

http://about-france.com/tourism/long-di ... tpaths.htm
puts our uk trails to shame

http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=849173
use the above link to get downloadable gpx files..for the different sections ..think the GR36 @1000km should do you :laugh: :laugh:
enjoy yourselves..

[Harty]

Russ your a gent, thanks very much for all that info

I've just discovered this site as well. You can zoom straight down to footpath level for the whole of France

http://maps.peterrobins.co.uk/f.html