The plan is to arrive at CDG on September 6 in the early afternoon, assemble our bikes, and ride to nearby Arnouville to shack up for two nights in order to sleep off jet lag.

From there, you can follow the map. Versailles first, then off to explore Brittany, the Loire River Valley, the Rhône River, a bit of the Mediterranean coast, and finally the Midi and Garonne canals. At Bordeaux, we will take the TGV back to Paris to look for bike boxes, get our COVID tests, and all that fun end-of-tour stuff. The return flight is October 29.

Will we get bogged down by rain? (probably) Will we eat enough croissants to fuel our adventures? (yes) Will we be charmed so much by every chateau and medieval town that our progress slows to a crawl? (maybe) Will we complete the route in record time and be able to cycle back to Paris? (highly unlikely)