Why this ride
Out of Saintry-sur-Seine, one way: 212 km, roughly 3 h 37 in the saddle. The stops in between: Scenic stretch in Les Ulis, Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines and near Osny. near L'Isle-Adam is the high point.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Morvan Southbound Weekend · short arc
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 212 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 37
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Photo stop near Saintry-sur-Seine
Planning note
Photo stop near Saintry-sur-Seine is where the day begins. Next is Scenic stretch in Les Ulis.
2. Scenic stretch in Les Ulis
Planning note
Scenic stretch in Les Ulis comes up about 39 km into the recorded legs. Next is Paris / Île-de-France escapes return.
3. Near Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, on the way back
In 1951 the poet Louis Aragon and the novelist Elsa Triolet bought an old water mill on the Rémarde river near Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, and turned it into their country home. They lived and wrote there for decades, and they are buried together in the garden. The Moulin de Villeneuve is now a museum, with their library, furniture and the park where they walked.
Read the complete Near Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, 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
about 66 km into the recorded legs you reach Paris / Île-de-France escapes return. Next is Food stop near Osny.
4. Food stop near Osny
Planning note
Somewhere to get off the bike, about 148 km into the recorded legs. Next is High point near L'Isle-Adam.
5. High point near L'Isle-Adam
Planning note
High point near L'Isle-Adam tops the climb. Next is Morvan Southbound Weekend checkpoint 8.
6. Saint-Gratien
Princess Mathilde, niece of Napoleon, held one of the most brilliant salons of nineteenth-century France at her château in Saint-Gratien. Flaubert, the Goncourt brothers, Sainte-Beuve, Maupassant and many other writers and artists gathered there in the summers, and the conversation, it was said, was the best in France. The château still stands, though not open to the public, on the edge of the lake of Enghien.
Read the complete Saint-Gratien 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 212 km. Next is back to Morvan Southbound Weekend.
7. back to Morvan Southbound Weekend
Nobody plans a holiday around Goussainville, and that is fine, because this stop exists to get you out of Paris with a full tank. Aircraft pass low overhead on their final approach, so loud that conversation stops and restarts, and the sky is stitched with white contrails.
Read the complete Morvan Southbound Weekend write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back to Morvan Southbound Weekend closes the day.
Leg by leg
Photo stop near Saintry-sur-Seine to Scenic stretch in Les Ulis
Photo stop near Saintry-sur-Seine → Scenic stretch in Les Ulis is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Scenic stretch in Les Ulis to Near Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, on the way back
Scenic stretch in Les Ulis → Near Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, on the way back is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Food stop near Osny to High point near L'Isle-Adam
Food stop near Osny → High point near L'Isle-Adam is 21 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
High point near L'Isle-Adam to Saint-Gratien
High point near L'Isle-Adam → Saint-Gratien is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.