Why this ride
A 244 km round trip from Montpellier - roughly 3 h 39 in the saddle. On the way it passes Arles, Pont du Gard, back through Pont du Gard and back through Arles.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Montpellier long day · Pont du Gard
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 244 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 39
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Camargue Scenic Route
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For 1 km this is Camargue Scenic Route, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 42 km
- Named road
- Camargue Scenic Route
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Montpellier
Montpellier is a young city in an old shell. More than a quarter of its population is made up of students, and its university, whose medical faculty dates back to the thirteenth century, is among the oldest in Europe. The centre is the Place de la Comédie, a huge oval square paved in stone, with the opera house at one end and the fountain of the Three Graces in the middle, and from there the old town of tight, shaded lanes spreads out, with elegant stone houses and hidden courtyards.
Read the complete Montpellier write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Montpellier is where the day begins. Next is Arles.
2. Arles
Arles is where the Rhône splits in two and the Camargue begins, and for more than two thousand years it has been a city of power, art and sun. The Romans made it one of the great cities of Gaul, building an amphitheatre that still hosts events, a theatre, baths and an underground gallery, the cryptoportiques, and the Roman and Romanesque monuments of Arles are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Romanesque church of Saint-Trophime, with its carved portal and cloister, is one of the finest in Provence.
Read the complete Arles write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Arles comes up 31 km in.
3. Arles
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Arles write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
62 km in you reach Arles. Next is Pont du Gard.
4. Pont du Gard
Built without mortar, three tiers of arches carry a water channel across the gorge of the Gardon nearly fifty metres above the river, and the stones still fit together as if they had been placed last week. The Pont du Gard was one section of an aqueduct some fifty kilometres long that brought spring water from near Uzès to Roman Nîmes in the first century, with a total drop of only a few metres over the whole distance. It is a masterpiece of surveying as much as building, and it has stood through floods that have destroyed far younger bridges.
Read the complete Pont du Gard write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Pont du Gard, about halfway.
5. Pont du Gard
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Pont du Gard write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Pont du Gard sits at 124 km, about halfway. Next is back through Pont du Gard.
6. back through Pont du Gard
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Pont du Gard write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Pont du Gard comes up 155 km in. Next is back through Arles.
7. back through Arles
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Arles write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
186 km in you reach back through Arles.
8. back through Arles
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Arles write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Arles, late in the day. Next is Montpellier.
9. Montpellier
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Montpellier write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 244 km.
Leg by leg
Montpellier to Arles
Montpellier → Arles is 82 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Arles to Pont du Gard
Arles → Pont du Gard is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Pont du Gard to back through Arles
back through Pont du Gard → back through Arles is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Arles to Montpellier
back through Arles → Montpellier is 82 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.