Théâtre antique and Pont du Gard

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Théâtre antique

   The Théâtre antique d'Orange is one of the best-preserved Roman theatres anywhere, and the thing that surprises people is the wall. The stage wall at the back, known as the scaenae frons, still stands to its full height of around thirty-six metres, a huge, sun-bleached cliff of stone that Louis XIV is supposed to have called the finest wall in his kingdom. Built in the early first century AD when Orange was the Roman colony of Arausio, the theatre could seat several thousand, and the acoustics are so good that it hosts the Chorégies d'Orange opera festival every summer, as it has for generations.

   Read the complete Théâtre antique write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Théâtre antique is where the day begins. Next is Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace.

2. 2. Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace

   For most of the fourteenth century, the popes lived in Avignon rather than Rome. In 1309, Pope Clement V, a Frenchman, settled here to escape the turmoil of Italian politics, and his successors built a vast palace, the Palais des Papes, the largest Gothic palace in Europe, with massive walls, towers and halls, more fortress than residence. Seven popes reigned here until 1377, when the papacy returned to Rome, and then rival popes continued to rule from Avignon during the Great Schism. The palace, the cathedral, the ramparts and the famous bridge, the Pont Saint-Bénézet, were listed by UNESCO in 1995.

   Read the complete Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace comes up 28 km in. Next is Pont du Gard.

3. 3. Pont du Gard

   Built without mortar, three tiers of arches carry a water channel across the gorge of the Gardon nearly fifty metres above the river, and the stones still fit together as if they had been placed last week. The Pont du Gard was one section of an aqueduct some fifty kilometres long that brought spring water from near Uzès to Roman Nîmes in the first century, with a total drop of only a few metres over the whole distance. It is a masterpiece of surveying as much as building, and it has stood through floods that have destroyed far younger bridges.

   Read the complete Pont du Gard write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   57 km in you reach Pont du Gard. Next is back through Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace.

4. 4. back through Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace, late in the day. Next is Théâtre antique.

5. 5. Théâtre antique

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Théâtre antique write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Théâtre antique. That is the ride.