Canal du Midi – ‘Petit’ from Carcassonne

Time to get a first taste of the shaded Canal du Midi towpaths on route to Trèbes, cross-point of the River Aude for the old Roman military road from Carcassonne to Narbonne. In the company of the Canal, there’s plenty of magnificent, more modern engineering to wonder at for the rest of the day’s cycling. Count the locks and look out for canal ‘architecture’ created in 1666-1680, including the fine Orbiel aqueduct. There are château-dotted vineyard villages to discover too, like Puichéric and Roquecourbe-Minervois, whose names (and red wines) roll off the tongue.

Your final few kilometres lead to La Redorte, home to the ‘argent double’ system created by Vauban to keep the great Canal clear of flood waters, and along to the Port of Homps, once an important harbour town on the ‘Canal des Deux Mers’.

Overnight in Homps (or La Redorte).

Miles: 26 (23) Kms: 42 (37)

Leaving Homps (or La Redorte), pedal out alongside the Canal du Midi as it runs alongside the River Aude. Pass Argens-Minervois and Ventenac-en-Minervois with its impressive turreted castle and enjoy the cool shade of pines and plane trees as you chase boats and barges all the way to Le Somail. Home to a real slice of canal history, this village boasts storehouses, a chapel, humpback bridge and travellers’ rest all dating back to the time of the canal’s construction.

A short pedal further and the bridge of Argeliers comes into view, before the last few kilometres to Capestang – a charming place for an overnight, dominated by perhaps the Languedoc’s finest example of Gothic architecture, the 14th century Collegiate Church of Saint-Etienne, plus the early medieval castle residence of the archbishops of Narbonne.

Overnight in Capestang.

Miles: 26 (30)  Kms: 42 (48)

Time to head for the Med, taking in some of the Canal du Midi’s finest masterpieces along the way. Canal-hugging cycling leads first to the awesome Malpas Tunnel carved into solid rock, followed by the amazing nine lock wonder known as the Fonseranes Staircase near historic Béziers. From Agde, where the square towers and fortifications of black-lava-built St Etienne cathedral rise above the Hérault river quayside, it’s time to leave the waterways and dip down the delta for your overnight near the Mediterranean Sea and the Cap d’Agde beaches of Rochelongue.

Overnight in Cap d’Agde.

Miles: 31 Kms: 50

Leave Cap d’Agde after breakfast. Transfer by taxi to Agde to enjoy the Mediterranean flavours of this originally Greek city. There are regional trains from Agde to Béziers and back to Carcassonne if you wish.