Why this ride
From Avallon it runs 328 km to Avallon; allow about 4 h 47 of riding. On the way it passes Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay, The Climats and back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Corbigny and The Climats
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 328 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 47
- 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.
Scenic road chapters
Corbigny → Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
Speed drops and stays down. Park rather than crawl through. 72 km through ground somebody thought worth listing. The road passes it rather than bypassing it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 64 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Corbigny
Avallon and Clamecy are the towns around, and in between lie meadows full of white Charolais cattle, stone villages with slate-grey roofs and the ruins of a hundred old mills along the streams.
Read the complete Corbigny write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Corbigny is where the day begins. Next is Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay.
2. Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
The Abbey of Fontenay lies in a narrow, wooded valley in northern Burgundy, a few kilometres from the small town of Montbard. It was founded in 1118 by Bernard of Clairvaux's circle and became one of the earliest and best-preserved Cistercian houses in Europe. The Cistercians wanted a life of simplicity, work and silence, and they built accordingly: plain stone, no carvings of saints, no coloured glass, and a site chosen for water and seclusion. The result is a place of extraordinary calm.
Read the complete Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay comes up about 64 km into the recorded legs. Next is The Climats.
3. The Climats
The Climats of Burgundy are, in plain terms, the vineyard plots of the Côte d'Or, each one with its own name and character, worked and described by monks and growers for nearly a thousand years. The word means little parcels of land with a specific soil, slope and exposure, and the idea is that two vines a few metres apart can yield wines that taste different. Near Ladoix-Serrigny and Beaune the slope faces east and south-east, and the great hill of Corton rises above the villages, covered in vines and crowned with woods.
Read the complete The Climats write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 164 km into the recorded legs you reach The Climats. Next is back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay.
4. back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay, late in the day. Next is Corbigny.
5. Corbigny
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Corbigny write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Corbigny. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Corbigny to Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
Corbigny → Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay is 64 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay to The Climats
Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay → The Climats is 100 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
The Climats to back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
The Climats → back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay is 100 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay to Corbigny
back through Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay → Corbigny is 64 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay and The Climats · 367 km
- Vézelay and The Climats · 327 km