Day #02: Paris to La Ferté-Gaucher

Hooray! After cycling almost 75 miles (Mark’s longest bike ride ever, and Shauna’s 2nd longest) we finally arrived at La Ferté-Gaucher, our first destination outside of Paris. La Ferté-Gaucher is a small commune in the countryside of the Ile-de-France region of France – the same region (like our states) as Paris – and much of the surrounding area is farmland. We cycled past countless sprawling wheat fields and cornfields stretching as far as the eye could see, a really beautiful sight. However the real excitement today began earlier, on our way out of Paris.

Paris to La Ferté-Gaucher

  DAY #02 of 35   France   74 miles total

This morning we departed Paris and officially began our journey across seven countries. Of course what ride out of Paris would be complete without a short cycle around the Arc de Triomphe? After a quick photo to mark the beginning of our epic journey it was time to put the pedal to the metal and get riding.


The Arc de Triomphe was commissioned in 1806 after the victory at Austerlitz by Emperor Napoleon at the peak of his fortunes. A most fitting departure point for our Napoleon Cycling Tour.
19 riders, 4 guides and a historian will attempt Stage 1 through France and Germany.

Escape From Paris

We began by meandering our way from the center of the city to its suburbs first on mostly-empty Sunday morning streets – we cycled right past Moulin Rouge and Gare du Nord, but aren’t yet adept enough at snapping photos while moving on our bikes to prove it – and then on predominantly purpose built bike paths. The ride was not a fast one, as there was a fair bit of stopping and starting, but even at a slow pace we had to keep a close eye on the Garmin to watch out for all the turns. Exiting the city was no easy feat, but much more pleasant being a Sunday than it would have been on any other day of the week. Ride and Seek really has the details of these trips perfected! For a group of 20+ to be able to ride bikes out of one of Europe’s largest cities is testament to the progress that Paris has made in accommodating cyclists.

Map of our route from Paris, France to Bautzen, Germany. The first stop changed since this was published by Ride and Seek: we rode 13 miles further than Saint-Ouen-sur-Morin to La Ferté-Gaucher in the French countryside
Our route from Paris, France to Bautzen, Germany

On May 9th, 1812, Napoleon and his Grand Army made a similar departure from Paris. They too were also bound for Russia however unlike them, our journey will have a much happier ending 🙂

Once we reached the Paris outskirts the city slowly began to fade into the background as the countryside became more and more prominent. Away from the metropolis and all of the traffic, twists and turns that comes with it, we were able to pick up the pace a little bit during the last half of the day.

We didn’t get photos while rolling through the Paris streets, but after one section with lots of broken glass, the group stopped to check our tires. 3 people had punctures in the next few miles!

City streets gave way to cycling/walking paths along canals leading out of Paris.

Our first coffee break complete with water, snacks and supplies provided by Ride and Seek’s star support team headed by Collette.

Entering the countryside east of Paris.

Rolling hills of wheat fields and trees for miles on end.

Occasionally we got a bit off the beaten path.

And sometimes the wheat was reallllly tall!

A zillion tree-lined lanes, driveways and fields.

We did it! Victory on Day 02. Mark’s longest ride ever, and Shauna’s 2nd longest at almost 75 miles.

This ride is definitely not a race, and between stopping and starting for traffic lights, pedestrians, dogs, coffee break, lunch and beaucoup de photos, it took a total of 7 hours for us to cycle the 74 miles from the busy streets of Paris to the wide open farmlands of La Ferté-Gaucher.

Today’s Route

Tomorrow we will continue east and the wheat fields surrounding us will be replaced with an even more beautiful sight: vineyards! That’s right, we are headed through the heart of Champagne country on the next leg of our journey. Cheers! 🍷

Next Stop:   Châlons-en-Champagne

6 thoughts on “Day #02: Paris to La Ferté-Gaucher”

    • A pain au chocolate every morning so far… a bit sorry to be leaving France for that reason alone! I’m sure we’ll find some good German treats this next week, but not so sure about Poland?! 😜😘

      Reply
  1. I am with you vicariously. Keep sending the striking picture stories via your photos. It allows me to participate without breaking a sweat. You guys are my heros!

    Reply
  2. I don’t know how you are sharing such wonderful posts after your long days! But, thank you! Really enjoying every minute with you!

    Reply

Leave a Comment