Waking up on a sunny day in a sleepy beach side town cannot be beat and La Franqui fits that bill perfectly. We enjoyed our breakfast of fresh fruit, yogurt, and breads at Le Stregheria before heading to the train station that was just 3km away. It was a leisurely ride along a waterfront road lined with small condos just waiting for their owners to return for the warm days of summer. It really is a very nice spot.
Today`s ride to Cucugnan came about from rethinking our planned ride out of La Franqui. For a number of reasons, we began to think that the route that we had planned for leaving the Mediterranean and going to Cucugnan was just not quite as good as it could be. Instead, by adding a short stint on a train at the start,, we could avoid some less pleasant roads and this would perfectly place us to ride very quiet roads. As it turned out the altered plan led us to many kilometres of dedicated cycling paths that had been added to this area in the last couple of years. As a result, it was a fantastic ride!
Down by the beach people were setting up for a windsurfing event - the Brets Funboard Tour Leucate 2024. It was a shame, but in this place where the wind is supposed to blow all the time, it did not look like the competitors would get out on the water today.
We arrived at the Rivesaltes station and quickly found our way out of town and on to a short bit of gravel road, through a tunnel and under the busy highway D117. Soon we were on a small single lane road heading toward the hills. The transition from ocean to mountains was very quick.
We have left the coast and are now into the hills. The coast is nice but the inland mountains are beautiful too.
Crossing the bridge at Cases de Péne. Just beyond the town, we linked in to the number 81 cycle route that we rode for 20 KM --all the way to our turn off at Maury.
Sometimes long stretches of the path were done in concrete. Not sure why this material was being used. It is not as smooth as asphalt and surely more expensive. Puzzling.
The hotspot in town. Looks like anything goes in the signage department. The oddly placed statue is of Franco Arago. He was a French astronomer, physicist and statesman, born here in Estagel.
We left the cyclepath here and did not go into Maury. Instead, we turned onto the very quiet but steep D19. I took this picture to show how new this signage was. The new cycle routes through this area are excellent.
The final leg of the day was a solid 250 metre vertical climb from just outside Maury to the top of the ridge that separates the two valleys. It was nearing the end of the ride and we tackled the uphill slowly but relatively easily. We stopped at the top to admire the views of the ruined Château above us and Cucugnan down in the valley below. Of course the ride down is always fun and so fast.
Nice new cycle markers to show your progress up to the Château de Quéribus.
Cucugan is a quiet village and if it was not for a tourist bus and some Catheres walkers, there would be only a few locals here. But we struck up an interesting conversation with a mother and daughter who were visiting the area from Toronto. We had small world moment in that we knew a person in common. After exploring the town it was clear that rain was coming as forecasted. Dinner was a simple affair at the bar across the street from our very comfortable Logis hotel. The town was quiet in the evening and we called it an early night.
Another ride in the books. This one worked out very well.
The Moulin d'Omer dominates the village of Cucugnan. Built in the 17th century It was put back into operation in 2006.The freshly ground flour used in the bakery next door is milled there.
Looking up the valley from Cucugnan is beautiful but that cloud is as scary as it looks! Within 20 minutes there was thunder and lightning and it was pouring rain.
