While the end of the 10 km limit is announced for the evening of May 2, we set off on a reconnaissance on the Véloscénie between Versailles and Rambouillet, i.e. 50 km by bike through the countryside in the Haute Vallée de Chevreuse.
Fields and forests as far as the eye can see, old rocks, cows that look you straight in the eye… All the ingredients of a country setting that you can imagine far from the Parisian ring road. And yet, this bucolic postcard is not that of a Corrèze or Nivernais landscape. To be sure – and your eyes too – all you have to do is start from Véloscénie from Versailles (Yvelines), just 10 km as the crow flies from Porte de Saint-Cloud (16th). This 450 km cycle route, which links Notre-Dame de Paris (4th) to Mont Saint-Michel (Manche), crosses the Haute Vallée de Chevreuse natural park (Yvelines / Essonne), one of the four natural parks in the Greater Paris.
The landscape only appears after the fourth kilometer, after a long descent that takes you to the RER C station Petit Jouy – Les Loges. Once under the railway bridge and after crossing the Bièvre, you are at the gates of another world, and at the foot of a beautiful coast as well.
A contemplative and gustatory journey
But before embarking on your trip, start by providing yourself with picnic equipment by passing through the Notre-Dame de Versailles market, whose halls are open from Tuesday to Sunday and which hosts an open-air market on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays (if you adopt a different strategy, be aware that you will find shops along the way); take the time to greet the castle.
After that, it’s up to you. Either you content yourself with the teaser for the RER B station in Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse (section 24 km from Versailles), or you make the entire film for the Transilien station in Rambouillet (53 km from Versailles), the Huttopia campsite spot in the Rambouillet forest. Although the route is hilly, it is accessible to cyclists of all levels.
For those who take the whole route, you’ll be rewarded with a taste of France’s masterful macaroons from chefs Mélanie Lessieu and Arnaud Mathez in Cernay-la-Ville and you’ll be offered a local organic beer from Volcelest or La Voisine on the terrace. 4-star farm in Auffargis (when the terraces reopen). As for the selection, it sometimes plays hide and seek, but you can easily find your route using the maps available for free on veloscenie.com. All you have to do is launch your team.
Practical information: “La Véloscenie” cycle route from Versailles to Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse and Rambouillet. More information on veloscenie.com. No supplement for riding a bike on the train or the RER. Access authorized on board from Monday to Friday, before kl. 06:30, between kl. 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. and after kl. 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays without restriction. More info on transilien.com
La Bièvre in Loges-en-Josas / © Steve Stillman to enlarge your Parisian pastures in Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse / © Steve Stillman to enlarge your Paris The (real) Mirage de Buc / © Steve Stillman to enlarge your Paris La Chevreuse -landscape level / © Steve Stillman to enlarge Paris The town of La Ferté / © Steve Stillman to enlarge Paris The panorama of the church of Châteaufort / © Steve Stillman to enlarge Paris Mairie de Toussus-le-Noble / © Steve Stillman to enlarge ParisGates at Châteaufort / © Steve Stillman to enlarge ParisEglise de l’Eglise de Choisel / © Steve Stillman to enlarge Paris
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