Beaujolais Dawn Sweep · short arc

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Fuel stop near Montluel

   Montluel is the kind of small French town that most people only see as a sign on the A42, which is a shame. It climbs a slope above the little River Sereine, on the escarpment that the locals call the Côtière, the step where the Rhône plain to the south rises up onto the plateau of the Dombes. For centuries this was border country: Montluel belonged to the House of Savoy and only became French with the Treaty of Lyon in 1601, and the old centre still has the narrow, defensive feel of a frontier town.

   Read the complete Fuel stop near Montluel write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Beaujolais Dawn Sweep is where the day begins. Next is Lyon / Rhône-Alpes rides return.

2. 2. Near Beaujeu, on the way back

   The Haut Beaujolais is not the Beaujolais most people imagine. North-west of Beaujeu the vineyards run out and the hills rise into forest, dark Douglas fir plantations, beech woods, steep pastures with Charolais cattle grazing on them. This stop sits in that upland country between Beaujeu and Matour, where the roads loop over ridges and down into narrow valleys with small farming villages.

   Read the complete Near Beaujeu, on the way back write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Lyon / Rhône-Alpes rides return comes up about 67 km into the recorded legs. Next is Food stop in Balbigny.

3. 3. Food stop in Balbigny

   Balbigny is a small town on the Loire, at the northern end of the Forez plain, where the river leaves the open basin and enters the hills towards Roanne. It is a crossroads: the A89 and A72 motorways meet nearby, and old roads from Lyon to Clermont-Ferrand and from Saint-Étienne to Roanne pass through. For riders, it is a practical stop for fuel and food on the way across the region.

   Read the complete Food stop in Balbigny write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   A break here. Next is Photo stop near Pélussin.

4. 4. Photo stop near Pélussin

   Pélussin sits on the eastern flank of the Massif du Pilat, high above the Rhône valley south of Vienne. The town is spread across a sunny slope, among orchards, vineyards and meadows, and from its terraces you look down on the river and across to the hills of the Dauphiné, with the Alps on the far horizon on clear days.

   Read the complete Photo stop near Pélussin write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Photo stop near Pélussin, about halfway. Next is Beaujolais Dawn Sweep checkpoint 8.

5. 5. Near Irigny

   South of Lyon, the Rhône broadens into a powerful, heavily engineered river, lined with locks, power stations and chemical plants on the east bank. The west bank, where around Irigny, Charly and Vernaison, is softer: a strip of villages, orchards and market gardens rising gently towards the Monts du Lyonnais. Rides begin and end here for a simple reason: it sits outside the congested core of the city but within easy reach of it.

   Read the complete Near Irigny write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Finish at Beaujolais Dawn Sweep checkpoint 8. That is the ride. Next is High point near Bourgoin-Jallieu.

6. 6. High point near Bourgoin-Jallieu

   South and west of Bourgoin-Jallieu, the flat valley of the Bourbre gives way to a tangle of low hills, and these are the high points of the Bas-Dauphiné: rounded ridges, small woods of oak and chestnut, walnut orchards and farms with pebble walls. Further south they become the Terres Froides, the cold lands, a name that sounds harsh until you ride there in June and find nothing colder than a breeze across the hay meadows.

   Read the complete High point near Bourgoin-Jallieu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   High point near Bourgoin-Jallieu is the summit of this stretch. Next is Scenic stretch near Tignieu.

7. 7. Scenic stretch near Tignieu

   Tignieu-Jameyzieu sits on the plain between Lyon's eastern sprawl and the Rhône, where commuter villages have spread over old farmland and gravel terraces. It is not a destination in itself, but a few minutes north-east the scenery changes sharply. The Isle Crémieu, a limestone plateau bounded on three sides by the Rhône, rises above the plain, with cliffs, oak woods, dry meadows, small lakes and villages built of pale stone.

   Read the complete Scenic stretch near Tignieu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Scenic stretch near Tignieu closes the day.