Loire à Vélo, stage 3: Blois → Saumur
On stage 3 (Blois → Saumur, 149 km) the best month is September: 78% of days were dry with highs of 10–30 °C; the wind barely favours either direction (1.5 km/h on average; 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 | 22% | 21% | 63 | 8 °C | 0% | 66% | 8.9 † |
| February | 40% | 21% | 54 | 10 °C | 0% | 47% | 10.2 † |
| March | 58% | 27% | 60 | 13 °C | 0% | 21% | 11.8 |
| April | 76% | 23% | 50 | 17 °C | 0% | 3% | 13.6 |
| May | 72% | 27% | 70 | 20 °C | 1% | 0% | 15.1 |
| June | 69% | 22% | 57 | 24 °C | 9% | 0% | 15.9 |
| July | 69% | 15% | 41 | 26 °C | 18% | 0% | 15.6 |
| August | 69% | 14% | 41 | 26 °C | 18% | 0% | 14.2 |
| September | 78% | 16% | 46 | 23 °C | 6% | 0% | 12.5 |
| October | 76% | 22% | 75 | 18 °C | 0% | 1% | 10.8 † |
| November | 53% | 25% | 66 | 12 °C | 0% | 26% | 9.2 † |
| December | 28% | 22% | 69 | 9 °C | 0% | 58% | 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 Blois → Saumur, km/h | Headwind > 15 km/h, Blois → Saumur | Headwind > 15 km/h, Saumur → Blois | Better way |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −4.5 | 22% | 5% | Saumur → Blois |
| February | −3.9 | 21% | 7% | Saumur → Blois |
| March | −2.3 | 20% | 9% | Saumur → Blois |
| April | 0.0 | 12% | 10% | either |
| May | −2.0 | 16% | 8% | Saumur → Blois |
| June | −2.2 | 13% | 6% | Saumur → Blois |
| July | −5.1 | 19% | 4% | Saumur → Blois |
| August | −4.7 | 15% | 3% | Saumur → Blois |
| September | −1.5 | 13% | 7% | either |
| October | −1.9 | 14% | 6% | either |
| November | −4.2 | 19% | 3% | Saumur → Blois |
| December | −4.9 | 22% | 5% | Saumur → Blois |
Along the route (sections of about 25 km)
| km | Heading | Tailwind in September, km/h |
|---|---|---|
| 240–265 | SW | −1.2 |
| 265–290 | SW | −1.5 |
| 290–315 | W | −1.8 |
| 315–341 | W | −1.5 |
| 341–366 | SW | −1.1 |
| 366–389 | W | −2.0 |
Other stages
- Cuffy → Gien 106 km
- Gien → Blois 134 km
- Blois → Saumur 149 km
- Saumur → Saint-Brevin-les-Pins 200 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.