Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet / Barcarès The Vélosud

The route

Much of this stage is along roads shared with motorized vehicles, but traffic is generally light. A few stretches take you along rough-surfaced country tracks. However, the last 14km are along a cycle lane along the Agly River, guiding you right up to the beach. 
Please note that at time of writing, the definitive, final version of the stage was still being laid out, and it will take a few seasons for the whole stage to be gradually completed.  

Points at which to take care:

• At Cases-de-Pène, at the intersection with the D117, a road with a lot of traffic, which you have to ride along for 200m on the right-hand side before negotiating a left turn with great care. 
• At Peyretortes, along the Boulevard National, come to a halt to then cross the two lanes on this avenue, heading to the left, in the direction of the continuation of the route, along paths.
• At Rivesaltes, crossroads and round-about for the slip-road for the D117, where you first ride along the road, keeping to the left, then approach the round-about with great care to continue from there along the cycle route, going to the right of the restaurant.

Links with further cycle routes

• As you get close to the Mediterranean coast, there’s a link to Eurovelo 8 (EV8), a European-wide cycle route known by the name of the Méditerranée à Vélo, going from Athens, in Greece, to Cadiz, in Spain. At Kilometre 62.7 of our stage (at a bridge on the D81 road), you can branch off towards Canet-en-Roussillon, Argelès-sur-Mer (from this resort, you can also head off to join the iconic Pyrenean Route des Cols) and Spain.
• Heading in the other direction, so northwards, from Le Barcarès beach (at the very end of this stage and of the whole Vélosud cycle route), you can ride on close to the Mediterranean to Leucate, Narbonne and Sète, and then right around to Menton on the Franco-Italian border, following the Méditerranée à Vélo.

Practical information

• Office de Tourisme intercommunal du Fenouillèdes 
• Office de Tourisme de Tautavel 
• Office de Tourisme de Rivesaltes 
• Office de Tourisme du Barcarès

Transports

SNCF French National Railways train stations

• Gare de Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet : Train Rouge tourist train (with link to Rivesaltes), https://www.letrainrouge.fr , telephone to book seats in advance 04 68 200 400
• Gare SNCF de Rivesaltes, regional TER Occitanie trains (you can transport your bike for free on these) towards Narbonne or Toulouse.

BUS

• LiO regional bus network, line 500, from Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet (stop at Château d’eau) to Cases-de-Pène (stop at Boulangerie) – Stops too at Maury and Estagel.
  https://www.lio-occitanie.fr/horaires-et-plans/

Don't miss

• Saint-Paul de Fenouillet: the Clue de la Fou, as you leave Saint-Paul, where the waters of the Agly have dug out, through time, an amazing furrow at the base of a limestone syncline (the strata stretching upwards), in all forming a remarkable combe, known as the Clue de la Fou. A very old stone bridge demonstrates how long this has been a place for people to cross the river.
• Maury wines: made, it’s said, as far back as prehistoric times by the people of Tautavel, and then for what became the seat of a Roman settlement, Amauriola, (from which the area’s name derives), the vineyards in slightly more recent times watched over down the centuries by the medieval hilltop fort of  Quéribus… the terroir of Maury is certainly packed with history and can claim to be the oldest of the modern wine appellations in the wider Roussillon Region… if also the smallest! Try out the sweet white wines made around here, either at the Cave Coopérative in the village or then at properties right beside the Vélosud cycle route.
• Tautavel: the Musée de la Préhistoire isn’t the only spot in this village that will attract your attention, recalling millennia of human habitation here. Tautavel was also a fortified medieval hill, as the ruins of its 11th-century castle attest (reachable on foot), or the Torre del Far (a further hour on foot), the latter nicknamed the guardian of the Roussillon, offering vast views, and looking down on you all day long, standing proudly aloof, alone on its almost 500m summit. Back in the village, there’s also the wall painting, the Mur de Moretti, the shade of one of several café terraces, or then the simple, refreshing narrow streets, washhouse and fountains in the old village to appreciate. 
• The Mediterranean vegetation: after the startling Gorges du Verdouble, the road climbs in gentle curves up to a high plateau baked by the sun. It’s frequently windy up here, and the relentless sunshine reflects off the white stones, making any water that falls evaporate very quickly. To survive in such an environment, only Mediterranean vegetation is adapted, such as evergreen oaks, juniper bushes, strawberry trees, broom and rosemary.
• Cases de Pene: EcoZonia, a state-of-the-art animal park, dedicated to the planet’s predators. Laid out in a natural mountainous site, the paths and trails lead you to view Siberian tigers, brown bears, Amur leopards, European lynx, great grey owls, eagle owls and peregrine falcons  
• Rivesaltes: this town has a long history, going back to the 10th century, and from its early days to the Revolution was under the authority of Lagrasse Abbey and its abbots. Located on the plains through which invading troops could march, the town was fortified in the 12th century by order of Alfonso II, King of Aragon. Enter the historic centre to appreciate its old streets, the quarter around St Andrew’s Church, the Tour de l’Horloge (a belfry), the Musée de la Maison Natale du Maréchal Joffre (a major French military leader from Belle Epoque through to World War I) and to learn about the legend of Babau, a terrifying creature in the Agly River…