Vélocéan from La Baule to St-Nazaire
This stage offers a touch of old-fashioned charm. It also passes by Dissignac’s Neolithic mound before Le Bois Joalland Lake, appreciated by locals for its sports facilities. Before the lake, the way passes through woods and countryside; after it, it becomes more urban. Arriving at the port of St-Nazaire, wide boulevards follow the seafront, and the American First World War monument greets you with open arms.
Cycle route
Follow signs for Vélocéan. The way is along a mix of tracks and roads with only light traffic.
There’s a short stretch along a 10% gradient just before Pont Saillant.
Note that the end of the stage, going through the port areas of St-Nazaire, is not laid out yet.
It’s possible to join both the Loire à Vélo and Velodyssey cycle routes by taking a bus, Lila 17, taking you across the huge, magnificent Loire estuary bridge at Saint-Nazaire.
Gradients and elevation
Répartition des pentes
Road types
Surface
Don’t miss
Dissignac Neolithic tumulus; Le Bois Joalland Lake and landscaped park; St-Nazaire seafront, including the American monument (recalling the US soldiers who landed here to go to the Western Front at the end of the First World War); Escal’Atlantic, a stylish museum, set in Nazi submarine pens, but dedicated to St-Nazaire’s cruise-liner building; the startling contemporary art installations of the permanent exhibition, Estuaire, along the Loire Estuary.
