Le canal des 2 mers à vélo, stage 1: Royan → Blaye
On stage 1 (Royan → Blaye, 102 km) the best month is October: 77% of days were dry with highs of 10–30 °C; the wind barely favours either direction (0.2 km/h on average; ERA5 2006–2025, 9:00–18:00).
← Le canal des 2 mers à vélo (Whole route)
Weather by month
| Month | Good days | Rain days ≥ 1 mm | Rain, mm | Avg high | Days ≥ 30 °C | Days < 10 °C | Daylight, h |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36% | 24% | 80 | 10 °C | 0% | 47% | 9.1 † |
| February | 53% | 22% | 63 | 11 °C | 0% | 30% | 10.3 † |
| March | 68% | 25% | 64 | 14 °C | 0% | 10% | 11.8 |
| April | 74% | 25% | 62 | 18 °C | 0% | 2% | 13.4 |
| May | 73% | 25% | 74 | 21 °C | 2% | 0% | 14.9 |
| June | 69% | 20% | 67 | 24 °C | 11% | 0% | 15.6 |
| July | 71% | 10% | 34 | 26 °C | 20% | 0% | 15.3 |
| August | 69% | 12% | 42 | 26 °C | 20% | 0% | 14.1 |
| September | 74% | 17% | 52 | 24 °C | 9% | 0% | 12.5 |
| October | 77% | 22% | 74 | 20 °C | 1% | 0% | 10.8 † |
| November | 62% | 28% | 84 | 14 °C | 0% | 12% | 9.4 † |
| December | 42% | 24% | 78 | 11 °C | 0% | 37% | 8.7 † |
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 Royan → Blaye, km/h | Headwind > 15 km/h, Royan → Blaye | Headwind > 15 km/h, Blaye → Royan | Better way |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | +0.6 | 5% | 7% | either |
| February | +1.2 | 6% | 10% | either |
| March | +1.9 | 5% | 11% | either |
| April | +2.4 | 4% | 8% | Royan → Blaye |
| May | +4.1 | 2% | 10% | Royan → Blaye |
| June | +3.7 | 1% | 6% | Royan → Blaye |
| July | +5.1 | 1% | 9% | Royan → Blaye |
| August | +4.6 | 0% | 7% | Royan → Blaye |
| September | +2.7 | 1% | 6% | Royan → Blaye |
| October | −0.2 | 6% | 4% | either |
| November | 0.0 | 6% | 8% | either |
| December | −0.7 | 6% | 7% | either |
Along the route (sections of about 25 km)
| km | Heading | Tailwind in October, km/h |
|---|---|---|
| 0–25 | SE | +0.3 |
| 25–51 | SE | −0.3 |
| 51–78 | SE | −0.1 |
| 78–102 | S | −0.7 |
Other stages
- Royan → Blaye 102 km
- Blaye → La Réole 126 km
- La Réole → Moissac 124 km
- Moissac → Villefranche-de-Lauragais 110 km
- Villefranche-de-Lauragais → Capestang 142 km
- Capestang → Sète 73 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.