A Cycling Guide to the Canal de Garonne and the Canal du Midi

The Cycling Guide to the Canal de Garonne and the Canal du Midi, the canals between two seas, takes you on a journey, an adventure, across France from the elegant city of Bordeaux on the Atlantic coast to the gregarious port of Sete on the Mediterranean coast. The route takes you through thousands of years of history and culture, through beautiful, diverse landscapes; picturesque, medieval villages and historic towns. Here the ghosts of people long past are now shadows on the stones, their stories whispers carried on the wind. The cyclist follows the path once trodden by the horses that pulled the barges full of passengers and cargo that runs alongside the canals from when they were an important economic highway. These two extraordinary feats of man-made navigation are now peopled for pleasure by fellow travellers whether by boat or bicycle and a haven for flora and fauna. The guide begins with chapters on travelling the canals, the history of the region, how the canals were created and a biography of the genius who built the Canal du Midi, Pierre-Paul Riquet. The guide is then divided into a 10-day itinerary of not very demanding distances to allow time for really exploring the region. The cyclist can however vary the days to suit their schedule but the logic behind the daily rides is to provide maximum interest not distance. At the end of each days ride is a list of useful addresses such as the Tourist Office, a bike shop where applicable and accommodation. There follows further sections on how to get to the region, health and money advice and a short, word and phrase section that might be useful for non-French speakers.