La Voie Bleue, stage 5: Auxonne → Chalon-sur-Saône
On stage 5 (Auxonne → Chalon-sur-Saône, 99 km) the best month is October: 76% of days were dry with highs of 10–30 °C, and riding Chalon-sur-Saône → Auxonne meant an average tailwind of 2.2 km/h (ERA5 2006–2025, 9:00–18:00).
Weather by month
| Month | Good days | Rain days ≥ 1 mm | Rain, mm | Avg high | Days ≥ 30 °C | Days < 10 °C | Daylight, h |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 14% | 27% | 83 | 6 °C | 0% | 78% | 8.9 † |
| February | 30% | 26% | 68 | 9 °C | 0% | 59% | 10.2 † |
| March | 59% | 25% | 76 | 13 °C | 0% | 26% | 11.8 |
| April | 72% | 25% | 74 | 17 °C | 0% | 6% | 13.5 |
| May | 67% | 31% | 97 | 20 °C | 2% | 1% | 15.0 |
| June | 60% | 27% | 87 | 25 °C | 15% | 0% | 15.9 |
| July | 52% | 22% | 70 | 27 °C | 28% | 0% | 15.5 |
| August | 56% | 20% | 76 | 27 °C | 27% | 0% | 14.2 |
| September | 73% | 20% | 80 | 23 °C | 6% | 0% | 12.5 |
| October | 76% | 21% | 96 | 17 °C | 0% | 4% | 10.8 † |
| November | 41% | 27% | 99 | 11 °C | 0% | 42% | 9.3 † |
| December | 15% | 31% | 100 | 7 °C | 0% | 72% | 8.5 † |
Best months are all months within 3 percentage points of the best one. † less than 11 hours of daylight — long stages get tight.
Wind by month
| Month | Wind Auxonne → Chalon-sur-Saône, km/h | Headwind > 15 km/h, Auxonne → Chalon-sur-Saône | Headwind > 15 km/h, Chalon-sur-Saône → Auxonne | Better way |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −3.0 | 16% | 6% | Chalon-sur-Saône → Auxonne |
| February | −2.3 | 16% | 9% | Chalon-sur-Saône → Auxonne |
| March | −1.0 | 15% | 11% | either |
| April | +1.2 | 8% | 11% | either |
| May | +0.7 | 7% | 11% | either |
| June | +0.9 | 4% | 8% | either |
| July | −0.1 | 5% | 5% | either |
| August | −0.7 | 4% | 3% | either |
| September | +0.1 | 7% | 9% | either |
| October | −2.2 | 12% | 5% | Chalon-sur-Saône → Auxonne |
| November | −3.4 | 15% | 5% | Chalon-sur-Saône → Auxonne |
| December | −4.4 | 18% | 4% | Chalon-sur-Saône → Auxonne |
Along the route (sections of about 25 km)
| km | Heading | Tailwind in October, km/h |
|---|---|---|
| 463–488 | SW | −2.5 |
| 488–513 | SW | −2.2 |
| 513–538 | SW | −2.0 |
| 538–562 | SW | −1.9 |
Other stages
- Hagondange → Metz 90 km
- Metz → Épinal 139 km
- Épinal → Port-sur-Saône 106 km
- Port-sur-Saône → Auxonne 119 km
- Auxonne → Chalon-sur-Saône 99 km
- Chalon-sur-Saône → Lyon 148 km
How to read the numbers
Wind is the 10 m wind of a 25-km grid cell, daytime hours 9:00–18:00 local solar time; at saddle height in a sheltered valley it is weaker, on a coast or ridge stronger. A positive value is a tailwind. ERA5 slightly over-counts days with ≥ 1 mm of rain (by about 5–7 percentage points) and underestimates daily highs by 1–2 °C. Good day = less than 1 mm of rain between 9:00 and 18:00 (riding hours, local solar time) and a high between 10 and 30 °C; rain at night or in the evening does not spoil it.