Bikepacking Ardeche-Gard-Provence

Les Arènes d'Arles

The Arènes d'Arles, a Roman amphitheatre is the most prominent tourist attraction in the city of Arles, which thrived in Roman times. It dates back to the first century BC. The amphitheatre was capable of seating over 20,000 spectators, and was built to provide entertainment in the form of chariot races and bloody hand-to-hand battles.

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Pont d'Avignon

The Avingon bridge's construction was inspired by Saint Bénézet, a local shepherd boy who (according to tradition) was commanded by angels to build a bridge across the river. Although he was ridiculed at first, he dramatically "proved" his divine inspiration by miraculously lifting a huge block of stone. He won support for his project from wealthy sponsors who formed themselves into a Bridge Brotherhood to fund its construction. After his death, he was interred on the bridge itself, in a small chapel standing on one of the bridge's surviving piers on the Avignon side.

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Fondation Calvet

La Fondation Calvet is an art foundation named for Esprit Calvet, who left his collections and library to it in 1810. The foundation maintains a museum and a library, with state support. The original legacies of paintings, archaeological items, coins and medals, and medieval sculpture have been added to by many other legacies, and a significant deposit of works of art from the Louvre. The archaeological collections and medieval sculpture are now housed separately in the "Musée Lapidaire" - once the chapel of the Jesuit College. The main museum is in an 18th century city mansion, to which modern buildings have been added; the Library bequeathed by Calvet, and the important collection of over 12,000 coins and medals, have moved to a different location in the city.

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Eglise Saint-Julien

The church was partly destroyed by bombs in 1944. It was rebuilt just after the war, exactly as before.

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Van Gogh's garden

The garden of van Gogh is named after the famous painter since he painted this garden. You can see a replica of this painting in the garden.

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Maison Carrée

The Maison Carrée is an ancient Roman temple in Nîmes, southern France; it is one of the best preserved Roman temples to survive in the territory of the former Roman Empire.

The Maison Carrée inspired the neoclassical Église de la Madeleine in Paris, St. Marcellinus Church in Rogalin, Poland, and in the United States the Virginia State Capitol, which was designed by Thomas Jefferson, who had a stucco model made of the Maison Carrée while he was minister to France in 1785.

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Arena of Nîmes

The Arena of Nîmes is a Roman amphitheatre, situated in the French city of Nîmes. Built around 70 CE, shortly after the Coliseum of Rome, it is one of the best-preserved Roman amphitheatres in the world. It is 133 meters long and 101 meters wide , with an arena measuring 68 meters by 38 meters . The outer facade is 21 meters high with two stories of 60 arcades. It is among the 20 largest Roman amphitheatres of the 400 in existence. In Roman times, the building could hold 24,000 spectators, who were spread over 34 tiers of terraces divided into four self-contained zones or maeniana. The arena served as a public event theatre built by the Romans as well as a gladiator fighting arena.

Today, the Arena of Nîmes is the site of two annual bullfights during the Feria de Nîmes, and it is also used for other public events like the reenactment about antiquity "The great Roman Games" or concerts.


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Joyeuse

Joyeuse is a commune in the Ardèche department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southern France.
Joyeuse lies in the historic region of Bas-Vivarais, in the valley of the Beaume, a tributary of the Ardèche River.

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Saint-Gilles

The abbey of Saint-Gilles was founded during the seventh century traditionally by the hermit Saint Giles , whose relics the abbey possessed. The commune formed around the nucleus of the abbey, which was the first stopping point for pilgrims bound for Santiago de Compostela in Spain, who were following the via Tolosana that led from Arles to Toulouse and crossed the Pyrenees to join other routes at Puente La Reina, thence to Santiago along the Via Compostelana. The former abbey church was listed in 1998 among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, as part of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France. The abbey church's west portal is among the most beautiful of the great Romanesque portals and a definitive example of the Provençal Romanesque. The church has three naves and a famed spiral staircase of cantilevered stone steps . During the French Wars of Religion the Protestants fortified themselves within the abbey, which was severely damaged.

The shrine of Saint Gilles, located in the crypt of the church, is the subject of pilgrimage in particular by women wishing to become pregnant or dealing with infertility.


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Uzès

It lies about 25 kilometres north-northeast of Nîmes, 40 kilometres west of Avignon, and 32 kilometres south-east of Alès.

Originally Ucetia or Eutica in Latin, Uzès was a small Gallo-Roman oppidum, or administrative settlement. The town lies at the source of the Alzon river, at Fontaine d'Eure, from where a Roman aqueduct was built in the first century BC, to supply water to the local city of Nîmes, 50 kilometres away. The most famous stretch of the aqueduct is the Pont du Gard, now a World Heritage site, which carried fresh water over splendid arches across the river Gardon.


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Uzès Cathedral

Uzès Cathedral is a former Roman Catholic church located in Uzès, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Theodoritus, and is now a parish church.
The church was formerly the seat of the Bishops of Uzès, until the diocese was abolished under the Concordat of 1801 and its territory passed to the Diocese of Avignon. In 1877 the territory of the former diocese of Uzès was removed from that of Avignon and added to the Diocese of Nîmes, now the Diocese of Nîmes, Uzès and Alès.

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Pont du Gard

The Pont du Gard is an ancient Roman aqueduct bridge built in the first century AD to carry water over 50 km to the Roman colony of Nemausus . It crosses the river Gardon near the town of Vers-Pont-du-Gard in southern France. The Pont du Gard is the highest of all Roman aqueduct bridges, and one of the best preserved. It was added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1985 because of its historical importance.

The bridge has three tiers of arches, stands 48.8 m high, and descends a mere 2.5 centimetres – a gradient of only 1 in 18,241 – while the whole aqueduct descends in height by only 12.6 m over its entire length, indicative of the great precision that Roman engineers were able to achieve using simple technology.


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Goudargues

Goudargues is a commune in the Gard department in southern France. Known locally as the Venise Gardoise, because of the canal that flows through it centre. This is lined with pavement cafés and shaded by a two rows of mature plane trees.
The Romans are known to have been present in the locality. In AD 800, Benedictine monks from Aniane founded an abbey around the lake of Gordanicus. This lake, near the Cèze was fed by natural springs. It was this abbey that is the basis of modern Goudargues- and the settlements name is derived from Gordanicus.

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Labastide-de-Virac

Labastide-de-Virac is a commune in the southern French department of Ardèche. It features a fort dating to the 16th century.


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Musée Réattu

Musée Réattu is an art museum in Arles, housing paintings, including works by Arles-born painter Jacques Réattu, drawings by Picasso, as well as sculptures and a large collection of photographs. It regularly holds exhibitions of contemporary art.
The museum is housed in the former Grand Priory of the Order of Malta , built in the late 15th century. Initially built as the seat of a commandry, it started housing Grand Priors in 1562, and became a Grand Priory in 1615, having jurisdiction over forty-eight commandries. In September 1792, a decree by the newly formed National Convention ordered the confiscation and the sale of all the possessions of the Order of Malta in France, and the Grand Priory was sold in parts in 1793. The building then was acquired in 27 parts between 1796 and 1827 by Jacques Réattu, who lived and worked there. Upon his death in 1833, Réattu's daughter Élisabeth Grange inherited the building and her father's collections. She sold both to the Municipality of Arles in 1867, in exchange of a pension, while retaining the right to live there. Over time, in addition to the museum, the building has housed a mount of piety, a tobacco warehouse and a drawing school. The entire building has undergone a renovation from 1956 to 1964. It has been listed as a monument historique since 1958. In 1991, the architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte led the redesign of the rooms dedicated to Picasso.

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Palais des Papes

The Palais des Papes is a historical palace located in Avignon, southern France. It is one of the largest and most important medieval Gothic buildings in Europe. Once a fortress and palace, the papal residence was the seat of Western Christianity during the 14th century. Six papal conclaves were held in the Palais, leading to the elections of Benedict XII in 1334, Clement VI in 1342, Innocent VI in 1352, Urban V in 1362, Gregory XI in 1370 and Antipope Benedict XIII in 1394.
The Palais is actually two joined buildings: the old palais of Benedict XII, which sits on the impregnable rock of Doms, and the new palais of Clement VI, the most extravagant of the Avignon popes. Together they form the largest Gothic building of the Middle Ages, it is also one of the best examples of the International Gothic architectural style. The construction design was the work of two of France’s best architects, Pierre Peysson and Jean du Louvres and the lavish ornamentation was the work of two of the best students of the School of Siena , Simone Martini and Matteo Giovanetti.

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Avignon

Avignon ; Provençal: Avinhon or Avignoun , IPA: [aviˈɲun]; Latin: Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune had a population of 93,671 as of the census results of 2017, with about 16,000 living in the ancient town centre enclosed by its medieval ramparts.

Between 1309 and 1377, during the Avignon Papacy, seven successive popes resided in Avignon and in 1348 Pope Clement VI bought the town from Joanna I of Naples. Papal control persisted until 1791 when, during the French Revolution, it became part of France. The town is now the capital of the Vaucluse department and one of the few French cities to have preserved its ramparts.


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Roman Theatre of Orange

The Roman Theatre of Orange is a Roman theatre in Orange, Vaucluse, France. It was built early in the 1st century AD. The structure is owned by the municipality of Orange and is the home of the summer opera festival, the Chorégies d'Orange.
It is one of the best preserved of all Roman theatres, and served the Roman colony of Arausio which was founded in 40 BC. Playing a major role in the life of the citizens, who spent a large part of their free time there, the theatre was seen by the Roman authorities not only as a means of spreading Roman culture to the colonies, but also as a way of distracting them from all political activities.

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Orange

Orange is a commune in the Vaucluse Department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France, about 21 km north of Avignon. It has a primarily agricultural economy.
Roman Orange was founded in 35 BC by veterans of the second legion as Arausio , or Colonia Julia Firma Secundanorum Arausio in full, "the Julian colony of Arausio established by the soldiers of the second legion." The name was originally unrelated to that of the orange fruit, but was later conflated with it ).

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Triumphal Arch of Orange

The Triumphal Arch of Orange is a triumphal arch located in the town of Orange, southeast France. There is debate about when the arch was built, but current research that accepts the inscription as evidence favours a date during the reign of Augustus . It was built on the former via Agrippa to honor the veterans of the Gallic Wars and Legio II Augusta. It was later reconstructed by emperor Tiberius to celebrate the victories of Germanicus over the German tribes in Rhineland. The arch contains an inscription dedicated to emperor Tiberius in AD 27. On the northern facade, the architrave and cornice have been cut back and a bronze inscription inserted, now lost; attempts at reconstructing its text from the placement of cramp holes for the projecting tines of its letters have not been successful. The arch is decorated with various reliefs of military themes, including naval battles, spoils of war and Romans battling Germanics and Gauls. A Roman foot soldier carrying the shield of Legio II Augusta is seen on the north front battle relief.
The arch was built into the town's walling during the Middle Ages to guard the northern entry points of the town. Architect Augustin Caristie studied the arch and carried out restoration work in the 1850s. The arch was originally constructed using large unmortared limestone blocks. It has three arches, the center one being larger than the flanking ones. The entire structure measures 19.57 meters long by 8.40 meters wide, standing to a height of 19.21 meters. Each façade has four semi-engaged Corinthian columns. The arch is the oldest surviving example of a design that was used later in Rome itself, for the Arch of Septimius Severus and the Arch of Constantine. The visible pocks or holes are supposedly left by practicing medieval crossbowmen with little appreciation for art or history.

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Pont-Saint-Esprit

Pont-Saint-Esprit is a commune in the Gard département in southern France. It is situated on the river Rhône and is the site of a historical crossing, hence its name. The Ardèche flows into the Rhône, just to the north of the bridge. The residents are called Spiripontains.

The bridge was observed by the Irish pilgrim Symon Semeonis in 1323 on his way to the Holy Land: "Pont-Saint-Esprit where there is a famous stone bridge over the Rhône, half a mile in length, the height of which and the breadth of its arches are greatly admired by all those who cross over it."

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Raz-de-marée des Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer

The Canton of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer is a French canton located in the Bouches-du-Rhône département of France, in the arrondissement of Arles.

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Arles

Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of Provence.

A large part of the Camargue, the largest wetlands in France, is located on the territory of the commune, making it the largest commune in Metropolitan France in terms of geographic territory. The city has a long history, and was of considerable importance in the Roman province of Gallia Narbonensis. The Roman and Romanesque Monuments of Arles were listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1981.


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Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer

Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer is the capital of the Camargue in the south of France. It is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department by the Mediterranean Sea. Its 2012 population was 2,495, though it can swell to 500,000 during the summer holidays. It covers the second-largest area of all communes in Metropolitan France, smaller only than that of neighbouring Arles.

The town is situated in the Rhône River delta, about 1 km east of the mouth of the Petit Rhône distributary. The commune comprises alluvial land and marshland, and includes the Étang de Vaccarès, a large lagoon. The main industry is tourism. Agriculture is also significant, and ranchers have raised horses and cattle unique to the Camargue; some of the bulls are used for bull-fighting and for the course camarguaise. There is bus service to Arles, 38 km away.


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Rapide du Gue de Guitard

Rapide du Gue de Guitard

One of the many rapids we encounter during the walk through the Ardeche gorge.

The Ardèche (Occitan: Ardecha) is a river in France that has its source in the department of the same name at an altitude of about 1400 meters in the "Forêt de Mazan". At Pont-Saint-Esprit it flows into the Rhône at an altitude of 50 meters.

Part of "Gorges de l'Ardèche - the Grand Canyon of France with many rapids".