Xavier’s career adventures brought us to the most improbable and the least expected destination in France, which even three weeks before, had been completely out of our travel radar. Ardennes.

Geographically speaking, it’s a natural region of forests in Luxembourg, Belgium, France and a little bit in Germany, while in administrative terms Ardennes is a department of the region of France – Champagne-Ardennes, melted with its neighbours to become a part of Grand Est. No matter how eager the French are to discover their own country, Ardennes stays off the beaten tracks, and even more, the guidebook giants don’t include it in their France guides. Sounds intriguing, doesn’t it?

What we discovered, was a complete surprise, as Ardennes appeared to be a green paradise, a heaven for those, who prefer forest above all other sceneries. Like Lera, in fact. These forests are inhabited by the wild boars who proudly decorate the emblem of the department, even though we’ve seen none of them.

Massively involved in the World War I, Ardennes’ landscape still bears the marks of these dark years, dotted with a great deal of war memorials. The history wasn’t kind to Ardennes, that’s true.

Upon arriving to Givet, our unexpected destination, we discovered a true wonder – a Voie Verte, Green road in French, – a cycling track crossing the whole department, which is called Trans Ardennes. 120 km of a flat road on the former towpath along the river Meuse for cyclists only – this occasion definitely deserved an extra day in the department. There are plenty of gorgeous cycling tracks in France, and so far we’ve tested only Canal de Garonne, so needless to say how excited we were to hit the new road.

 Total distance: 120 km, but the track is still under construction, so soon enough it will make 130 km!

 Max. Altitude: 153 m – it gives an idea of HOW flat it is. :)

 Starting point: Givet

 Finishing point: Remilly-Aillicourt and soon – Mouzon

 Time needed: Two days with visiting or one day of turbo speed mode. We did it in one day, as we visited Charleville-Mézières before and skipped the final twenty kilometers.

The convenience of the track is the proximity of each town on the way, the distance between them is rarely over 10 km. Click on the “full screen” button on the map to display the itinerary, the distances between the towns is indicated in the description.

When approaching Chooz you will have to take a shortcut that bypasses the river, this is due to the power plant situated there (the reason we were there in the first place), but the maps and indicators are extremely well done through the whole way – no chance to be lost.

Just in case, get yourself the map from this site.  More information about the track you’ll find on the official site of Green Routes.

I suppose, that majority of travelers come with their own bikes, but if you were brought to this green cycling paradise by accident, you’ll find a renting point in Givet. Don’t be scared off by the Vespa title! A very friendly and helpful owner will help you to pick the best bike for you. Count 15€ per bike.

Before you hit the road, don’t forget that France is a country where the meal time counts, especially in provincial areas. Think where you plan to have your lunch (strictly between 12:00 and 13:00) and book the table in advance! As we never learn our lessons, here we were, in front of the closed doors of every place susceptible to serve food. Don’t be like us.

Do you have a hay fever? If yes, think twice about the time you choose to cycle in Ardennes, because due to the extraordinary amount of trees (obviously), we were both smashed by the hay fever, no matter which pills we tried against this hell. Forget about May if it’s your trouble as well as ours.

Wake up early, wrap some snacks and fill your bottle with water, and off you go for several hours of beautiful cycling. On your way, you’ll come across: horse farm, picturesque villages with a PERFECT reflection, cows, farms, and a magnificent, truly magic forest. However, the best part of the track was over at Monthermé, everything that followed after was a flat and rather uninteresting valley. But still worth it if you intend to stop in Charleville-Mézières or visit a fortress in Sedan. Let’s take things in order.

The starting point of the Green Route, Givet is a pleasant tiny town, which is a perfect portrait of a profound provincial France. Cozy, empty, calm, we enjoyed our time there, which was almost like in a true village, where you don’t need to close the doors to your house. By the way, even if the Trans-Ardennes track starts in Givet, don’t forget that Ardennes is not only in France, so take a ride in the opposite direction, and here you are – already in Belgium! Looks like there is another trip to plan!

B&B, guided hiking tours, fishing events, equipment rental – we didn’t know about any of services proposed by Château le Risdoux, but we simply stopped on our way to meet the gorgeous horses living there. Unexpectedly, we received a detailed story about these beauties lives, so that half an hour wasn’t spent for nothing.

I can only wonder what a marvellous ecosystem must live in this separate world.

That was our stop for a vain attempt to find a place for lunch. Even though we skipped this part, but in Monthermé starts a beautiful hike to the summit Roc-de-la-Tour (408 m), so if your trip takes longer than a day, definitely do it!

The capital city of Ardennes, Charleville is a green town, which doesn’t seem to keep the time’s pace. Regardless of its size and almost total ignorance from the France visitors, it has some curious points of interest:

The Place Ducale – is an absolute must, especially in the evening with a glass of wine. Source of jealousy and inspiration, the square is beautiful indeed, and is a “sister” of the famous Place de Vosges in Paris.

Basilique Notre-Dame-d’Espérance – even without being a particular amateur of old Gothic cathedrals, we couldn’t help admiring the stained glasses telling the Bible stories. A true masterpiece, it will seem much more comprehensible with a guide provided inside.

Arthur Rimbaud – believe me, you won’t leave Ardennes without learning all about Arthur Rimbaud, one of the most famous French poets. His poetry is touching, penetrating till the most profound depths of our souls, but I couldn’t help feeling somewhat awkward about this veneration. This face will chase you long years coming.

And as usually, take a walk!

The final stop for us personally, as it was rather late to think about the last twenty kilometres. Funny enough, the total distance we covered was exactly 120 km after all. I can’t say that Sedan stole our hearts, however its castle is truly impressive. From the drone. Not in front of its closed doors.

We came back to Givet by train, passing again by this truly magic forest and dropped dead with the cramps in our legs.

By the way, if you are not exactly the bicycle type, you can also enjoy the Green Route of Trans-Ardennes by boat! Even though, by bicycle it was much faster. :)

Have you ever visited Ardennes? Are you into cycling as much as we are?