Bike the Loire Chateaux

By Patricia Ochs

Fit for a king: ideal two-wheeling (Lejeume/French Tourist Office)

Exploring the "Garden of France" couldn't be easier: Just rent a bike. A two-wheeled trip through the Loire Valley takes you past the homes of French Renaissance kings, rivers that meander through verdant vinyards, and colorful farmlands. Pedaling through this flat and sometimes rolling territory is easy, but a day's exertion always makes a tarte tatin or a good bottle of Vouvray just that much more of a delight. Starting with your bike at the train station in Blois, plan on five or six days of riding no more than 35 kilometers a day (and usually only 18 to 25 kilometers).You have ahead of you a fine sampling of French castles and fruits of the vine from the Touraine. And along the way, pop in for a visit to the chateaux of Blois, Amboise, Chenonceaux, Villandry, and Langeais.

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