Why this ride
116 km from Hesdin to Hesdin, about 2 h 13 of riding. On the way it passes Beffroi de Saint-Riquier, Beffroi de Rue and back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin and Beffroi de Rue
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 116 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 13
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
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. Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin
Hesdin is a small market town in the green valley of the Canche, in the Pas-de-Calais, and it owes its existence to an act of destruction. The original town, a few kilometres upstream, was razed in 1553 by the forces of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, and a new fortified town was built here the following year as a strongpoint on the frontier between France and the Habsburg Netherlands. The grid of streets and the large market square still follow that plan. On the square stands the town hall, a former palace of the Habsburg governors, with a beautifully carved Renaissance balcony from which proclamations were read, and its belfry is part of the UNESCO list of belfries in Belgium and France.
Read the complete Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin is where the day begins. Next is Beffroi de Saint-Riquier.
2. Beffroi de Saint-Riquier
Saint-Riquier is a small village in the Somme, a few kilometres from Abbeville, and it punches far above its weight. In the early Middle Ages it was the site of Centula, one of the most important monasteries of the Carolingian empire, ruled by Angilbert, a courtier and son-in-law of Charlemagne, who made it a centre of learning and prayer with hundreds of monks. The great abbey church you see today is later, a Gothic building with a richly carved facade, but the scale of the place still reflects that history. The belfry, a solid square tower in the village, was a symbol of the townspeople's rights and is one of the belfries listed by UNESCO in Belgium and France.
Read the complete Beffroi de Saint-Riquier write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Beffroi de Saint-Riquier comes up about 31 km into the recorded legs. Next is Beffroi de Rue.
3. Beffroi de Rue
Rue is a small town of three thousand people that used to be a seaport, and the belfry in the middle of it is one of the reasons it still feels more important than its size suggests. Over centuries the Baie de Somme silted up and the sea pulled back, leaving Rue stranded a few kilometres inland among salt meadows and polders, but the stone tower that once watched the harbour still stands over the square. It is part of the group of belfries of Belgium and northern France on the UNESCO list, symbols of civic freedom built by towns that wanted the world to know they governed themselves.
Read the complete Beffroi de Rue write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 58 km into the recorded legs you reach Beffroi de Rue. Next is back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier.
4. back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Beffroi de Saint-Riquier write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier, late in the day. Next is Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin.
5. Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin to Beffroi de Saint-Riquier
Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin → Beffroi de Saint-Riquier is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Beffroi de Saint-Riquier to Beffroi de Rue
Beffroi de Saint-Riquier → Beffroi de Rue is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Beffroi de Rue to back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier
Beffroi de Rue → back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier to Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin
back through Beffroi de Saint-Riquier → Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.