Why this ride
A 312 km round trip from Argeles - roughly 5 h 10 in the saddle. The stops in between: Château d’Aguilar, Château et remparts de Carcassonne and back through Château d’Aguilar. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Massane and Château et remparts de Carcassonne starting at Argeles
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 312 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 10
- 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. Massane
Argelès-sur-Mer is known for its long beach, but the fun is in the hills behind it. The Albères are the eastern end of the Pyrenees, a low, forested range that drops straight into the Mediterranean, and the Massane is its secret. The Forêt de la Massane is a nature reserve of beech trees, some of them centuries old, growing on the cool northern slopes at a height where one would not expect them near the sea. In 2007 it was inscribed by UNESCO as part of the primeval beech forests of Europe, and scientists have studied its dead wood and insects for decades.
Read the complete Massane write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Massane is where the day begins. Next is Château d’Aguilar.
2. Château d’Aguilar
Aguilar is the castle people overlook, and that is its best feature. While coaches crawl up to Peyrepertuse and Quéribus, this one sits quietly on a low hill above vineyards just outside Tuchan, at the eastern edge of the Corbières, with a squat keep inside a hexagonal outer wall studded with small round towers. It is a modest fortress compared with its famous siblings, but you can walk around it in peace and the views over vines towards Mont Tauch are lovely, especially in the evening.
Read the complete Château d’Aguilar write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Château d’Aguilar comes up about 75 km into the recorded legs. Next is Château et remparts de Carcassonne.
3. Château et remparts de Carcassonne
Carcassonne has two faces. Down by the river Aude sits the ordinary lower town, a grid of streets laid out in the thirteenth century around a market square, and on the hill above rises the Cité, a double ring of walls and fifty-odd towers that looks like the illustration to a children's book about knights. The Cité was inscribed by UNESCO in 1997, and it is one of the most visited monuments in France, with the nearest sizeable roads and everything a rider needs just a kilometre away in the modern town.
Read the complete Château et remparts de Carcassonne write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 157 km into the recorded legs you reach Château et remparts de Carcassonne. Next is back through Château d’Aguilar.
4. back through Château d’Aguilar
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Château d’Aguilar write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Château d’Aguilar, late in the day. Next is Massane.
5. Massane
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Massane write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Massane. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Massane to Château d’Aguilar
Massane → Château d’Aguilar is 75 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Château d’Aguilar to Château et remparts de Carcassonne
Château d’Aguilar → Château et remparts de Carcassonne is 82 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Château et remparts de Carcassonne to back through Château d’Aguilar
Château et remparts de Carcassonne → back through Château d’Aguilar is 81 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Château d’Aguilar to Massane
back through Château d’Aguilar → Massane is 74 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.