Cycling in Gruissan

Cycling guide to Gruissan

Gruissan sits on the Languedoc coast, and the riding from it runs almost entirely at sea level. The main outing on the books is a 101.8 km point-to-point to Sète along the Canal du Midi, which strings together the beach settlements east of town: Le Bouis, Les Ayguades, Narbonne-Plage, Saint-Pierre-la-Mer and Les Cabanes de Fleury before Valras-Plage and Sérignan. Beyond Sérignan the route continues through Portiragnes and Portiragnes Plage, Vias, Agde and Marseillan Plage, then turns inland at Marseillan and passes Montpénèbre and Mourre-Blanc. The final third skirts the étang settlements of Mèze, Loupian, La Catonnière and Bouzigues, then Issanka, Balaruc-le-Vieux, La Fiau and Balaruc-les-Bains, finishing by way of La Peyrade. With 150 m of total elevation gain across more than 100 km, this is distance riding rather than climbing, and it links a long chain of neighbouring coastal towns in a single day.

Best time to ride

The recorded riding here is in September, with temperatures around 23°C - warm but not extreme for a long, flat day on the coast.

Terrain

Flat throughout: 150 m of gain over 101.8 km, with a high point of just 14 m. No climbs of note are recorded, so pace and wind matter more than gradient.