The Perche by bike

This section of La Véloscénie leaves Chartres, capital of stained glass and light, via a greenway meandering by the Eure. Then the route crosses the plains that serve as Paris's granary to head for pretty Illiers-Combray, closely associated with the great novelist Marcel Proust. Continuing through the open landscapes of the Beauce Plain, you quickly come to Thiron-Gardais and its abbey grounds, offering a foretaste of the Perche area close by. This remarkable section of La Véloscénie leads you almost all the way on a greenway through the historic, unspoilt province of the Perche. From Condé-sur-Huisne to the Pays d'Alençon, the trail crosses the magnificent undulating territories of the Perche's Regional Natural Park. The lush countryside is strewn with old manors, mills and villages and was the cradle of the famous Percheron horse. Cycling through such idyllic countryside makes the route seem that much easier.