Lakes and Forests - Hotels.
A lovely gentle wobble through the Breton countryside. Few hills, short distances, very quiet roads all make it a very easy introduction to cycling in Brittany.
Saturday - arrival and a very gentle ride to Bon Repos - 3kms on the canal towpath...
Day 1 + 2 - ? kms
Sunday morning there's a lovely market at Bon Repos and so today we keep you there for another night, it also allows for plenty of time to explore the canal system, walk in the forest, discover ancient covered tombs and explore the lake at Guerledan. .
Day 2 - 27 kms
The longest day, but it begins with an 8 km wobble along the towpath and then quiet lanes to the large village of Guemene-sur-Scorff. The final 12 kms are pretty much all on a gentle downhill as you follow the Scorff river valley so it's not as hard as it sounds! The hotel is right in the village centre and there are several places to eat including of course the excellent Hotel restaurant.
Day 3 - 14 kms
Today is only really a half-days ride, the reason being that once at the hotel at Meland you can walk the mile or so (it's steep!) to the Medieval Farm reconstruction. A fascinating place and well worth an afternoon wander.Day 4+5 - 27kms
8 kms on the road and you dive down to St Nicolas des Eaux which makes a gorgeous lunch/coffee stop. Then the canal towpath again which will take you meandering (traffic free) another 19 kms right into the centre of Napoleonic town of Pontivy - bustling, huge Chateaux, great centre with bars to sit outside in the sun, wonderful restaurants (a great Vietnamese one!). The hotel Europe is a 3* eastablishment and gorgeous with it. One of it's plusses for us is that it doesn't have an evening restaurant. I know that sounds crazy, but the people who own it are so nice you'd feel bad about not eating there if they had one. It leaves you free to explore the town and huge Castle, and of course sample a couple of the wide range of restaurants in the centre.
Day 6 - 21 kms
It is possible to do most of this route on the canal towpath, but if you do, the various meanderings increases the distance. We take you via small country roads which are quiet and because they track the bottom of the valley - pretty flat. One serious hill takes you up to Mur de Bretagne, and then onto the old railway track and in a moment you'll find yourself at the 'Hotel du Lac' in Caurel overlooking the beautiful Lac de Guerledan, one of the jewels of central Brittany with it's beaches surrounded by forest. The hotel has a restaurant and there's another right opposite so too much choice as usual...
Day 6 - 10 kms
Saturday morning so a short and easy ride down the converted rail-track with views over the 'Lac de Guerledan' then to the canal to bring you back to Gouarec.