Véloroute 53 between Vitry-le-François and Saint-Dizier reveals the region’s rich cultural and natural heritage. In Vitry-le-François, a town nicknamed the Cité Rose (or Pink Town) because of certain façades built from ruddy Savonnières stone, visit the grand central square, Place d'Armes, Notre-Dame Church and the Musée de la Batellerie. Then you cross two charming villages, Orconte and Eurville-Bienville. Once at Saint-Dizier, the castle’s medieval ramparts and the historic centre where the town’s industrial past mixes with modern pieces of architecture and street art add interest for inquisitive cyclists.

From Saint-Dizier, ride on to Joinville, a town marked by the French Renaissance and its links to the mighty Catholic family of de Guise. You cycle along the towpath beside the Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne. Along the véloroute, the Château de Bienville and the exceptional Château du Grand Jardin in Joinville provide opportunities for unforgettable visits. Do also take the time to wander around the streets of Joinville, a small town designated a Petite Cité de Caractère® for its rich heritage and the beauty of its gardens. During hot summer spells, stopping here for a night, you’ll appreciate the refreshing atmosphere.

From Joinville, you ride southwards along the towpath beside the Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne for Chaumont, an historic little town known as the Cité des Contes de Champagne. There are some particularly beautiful meandering stretches between Donjeux and Vouécourt. As to the construction solutions on display at Condes, they demonstrate the skills of 19th-century canal engineers, what with a Freycinet-gauge lock, a two-way tunnel, a navigational aqueduct and a swing-footbridge. Learning about all this engineering brilliance, you’ll feel quite knowledgeable on the subject too!

From Chaumont, cycle off to rejoin the Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne and continue due south along the towpath. Right after Chaumont, before Foulain and Marnay-sur-Marne, the way takes you zigzagging beside lovely meanders. There’s a little detour that’s really worth the effort, to the Tufière de Rolampont, a petrifying waterfall that coats the moss that grows here with tufa limestone. The further you ride along the towpath, the more the dramatically perched historic town of Langres comes clearly into view. You will have to tackle the steep slope to get up to its ramparts, a walk around them offering wonderful views.

On this stage, you’ll enter the region of Bourgogne Franche-Comté. Leaving Langres, you’ll also cross an exceptional French watershed, from where the waters flow either to the North Sea, the Channel, or the Mediterranean! As a prologue to the watery theme, it’s possible to make a little cycling pilgrimage to the source of the Marne River. Having greeted the young Marne, then head along a mix of greenways and quiet country roads up to Heuilley-Cotton. And you’ll rejoin the reassuring watery ribbon of the Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne, the gentle surrounding landscapes forged by the Vingeanne River.

The Canal entre Champagne & Bourgogne enters Burgundy in the commune of Chaume-et-Courchamps, near Percey-le-Grand. The countryside on either side of the canal reveals here and there a village grouped around its church, vast cultivated fields and imposing isolated farms surrounded by verdant woods. To refuel, you'll have to leave the protective canopy of the canal by bike and wander through the surrounding villages. You might as well take the opportunity to visit the castles of Fontaine-Française and Talmay, two not-to-be-missed sites on this stage. Shortly after Maxilly-sur-Saône, the canal joins the Saône, joining up with the Voie Bleue cycle route. Enjoy the exhilaration of southern Burgundy!

At Pontailler-sur-Saône, cross the river from west bank to east bank to then cycle southwards beside the waterway to Lamarche-sur-Saône. Having crossed the Saône again, you then leave the blue ribbon of the Saône Valley behind, entering Longchamp Forest. After riding along a series of forest tracks and stretches along quiet country roads, you cross a string of villages – Tellecey, Remilly-sur-Tille, Arc-sur-Tille and Couternon – before reaching the network of cycle paths set up across the bustling city of Dijon. This town is the terminus for this particular cycling adventure, with the very tempting prospect of exploring the historic, cultural and culinary capital of the Bourgogne Franche-Comté Region.