Tour of Groix Island by bicycle

Mountain bike circular on the island of Groix off the coast of Lorient. This easy ride will allow you to admire high cliffs, beautiful wild headlands, pleasant ports and the only convex beach in Europe.

Details

35695
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  • Mountain biking
    Activity: Mountain biking
  • ↔
    Distance: 26.00 km
  • ◔
    Duration according to the author: 5 hrs 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 131 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 124 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 47 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 4 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Groix (56590)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 47.643926° / W 3.447101°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 0720ET

  • ◶
    Type of surface:
  •  
     
     
     70% Road  15% Byway  15% Path
  • ⇧
    Bike carrying: No
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Not specified
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the route

Go to the Lorient ferry terminal and embark on a 45-minute crossing on the open sea.
Arrive at the small port of Tudy and hire a bike from one of the many stations for a 26-kilometre ride.

(S/E) Head towards Kermario and then Clavezic. Ride along the small lake that follows the village.

(1) Continue on to Quelhuit, a small village with a chapel. Shortly afterwards, you will come to a crossroads leading to the disused fort.

(2) Head to the fort. Return to the crossroads and drive to the Beg Melen semaphore.

(3) Return to the fort and at the next crossroads, head towards the Pen Men lighthouse and arrive at the crossroads of the road that leads to it.

(4) Turn right and continue along the dirt track. The area is beautiful and wild, with large, steep cliffs. In the distance, you can see the previous semaphore and Lorient opposite.

(5) Take the same route back to the previous crossroads.

(4) Continue straight ahead. Pass through Kervedan and Kerdard until you reach the Quéhello crossroads.

(6) Turn right to reach Pointe St-Nicolas.

(7) Set off again for Quéhello.

(6) Continue to the right, crossing Kerigant. Turn 90° to the right to reach a Y-junction.

(8) Turn right to reach Pointe de l'Enfer.

(9) Return to the Y-junction.

(8) Take the straight track on the right that leads to Kerliet. In the village, turn left and continue to the main road (D202).

(10) Turn right immediately. Continue straight on to Kerampoulo and arrive at the port of Locmaria.

(11) Follow the road to the left of the port. Walk alongside the water treatment plant. Turn left onto the path that leads to the Praceline neighbourhood. Turn right, join the Route du Sémaphore and you will come to a T-junction.

(12) Turn right at a 90° angle to reach Pointe des Chats. The lighthouse is located at this beautiful spot.

(13) Retrace your steps to the previous crossroads.

(12) Continue straight on to Kérohet.

(14) Turn left onto the street that leads to the D202 junction.

(10) Follow this road for a few metres and turn right at the first crossroads to reach the port of departure (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 4 m - Port Tudy
  2. 1 : km 2.37 - alt. 26 m - Lake
  3. 2 : km 3.83 - alt. 43 m - Fort du Grognon.
  4. 3 : km 4.93 - alt. 43 m - Beg Melen.
  5. 4 : km 7.55 - alt. 40 m - Pen Men lighthouse crossroads
  6. 5 : km 8.03 - alt. 37 m - Pen Men.
  7. 6 : km 11.82 - alt. 39 m - Quéhello
  8. 7 : km 12.71 - alt. 30 m - Pointe St-Nicolas
  9. 8 : km 15.27 - alt. 36 m - Y-junction
  10. 9 : km 15.71 - alt. 37 m - Pointe de l'Enfer
  11. 10 : km 18.5 - alt. 39 m - D202
  12. 11 : km 20.05 - alt. 6 m - Locmaria
  13. 12 : km 21.44 - alt. 25 m - Carrefour Route du Sémaphore
  14. 13 : km 22.07 - alt. 9 m - Pointe des Chats
  15. 14 : km 23.49 - alt. 35 m - Kerohet
  16. S/E : km 26 - alt. 4 m - Port Tudy

Notes

Book the crossing at least one day in advance.
Hire a bike in Port Tudy or bring your own to the island of Groix by boat.
More information

Worth a visit

Once you have completed the circular, you can visit the village of Groix.

On your return to Lorient, visit Cité Tabarly, the submarine "Flore" and the submarine shelter, as well as the oceanographic vessel "Le Thalassa".
Racing yachts are sometimes moored at the port of Cité Tabarly.

Reviews and comments

4.3 / 5
Based on 11 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.2 / 5
Route interest
4.1 / 5
Fabrice56
Fabrice56

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 03, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : Yes

The electric mountain bike will be more comfortable, so don't hesitate to push a little further and closer to the water's edge above the cliffs, for example on the footpaths used by hikers, to enjoy magnificent panoramic views. Some cycle paths are too far from the edge.

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jefplus
jefplus

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 18, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

An electric bike is necessary (mountain bikes are recommended as some paths are rocky and steep, but my wife had an electric hybrid bike and was able to ride the entire 27 km route) in order to see everything in 5 hours without spending too much time on your lunch break. Alternatively, take the 8 a.m. boat from the pier in Lorient so you can take your time and leave Tudy at 5.30 p.m. on the boat.
Don't forget to pick up a map at reception when you buy your tickets, or bring a GPS device and download the GPX file from visorando.com.
There are some beautiful little harbours and beaches to see.
Don't miss the Plage des Sables Rouges and the Plage des Grands Sables.
Feel free to park your bikes at the start of the coastal paths that are closed to bikes, as you will only have to walk a few hundred metres to reach the beaches and coves.
If you want to walk the coastal paths that are closed to bikes, allow two days to cover the 40 km.

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Dominique West
Dominique West

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 04, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful route that allows you to explore the island in a day. When renting bikes, remember to ask for a map of the island, which shows these routes with easy landmarks.

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Aldeberg35
Aldeberg35

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 16, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

We had already been hiking on Groix, but on foot. By bike, we discovered another side to the island.
The weather was on our side, which made it even more enjoyable.

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JeanDominique
JeanDominique

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 05, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

The proposed route could be improved.
- From marker 3, you can go directly to marker 4 without returning to marker 2.
- From marker 5, take a circular path: follow the coastal path to Trou du Tonnerre and return via the Pen Men lighthouse.
- After Trou de l'Enfer, leave the route to reach Locmaria via Locqueltas, Kermarec and Kersauze. Then take the coastal path to Pointe des Chats.
- Before marker 12, take the coastal road on the right to Port Melite to enjoy the three beaches.

Supplies are available at Bourg Intermarché and Carrefour. There is also a small restaurant in Locmaria.

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Foxargente
Foxargente

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 05, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

The trail is no longer relevant. It also follows the path that is closed today.
Fortunately, with the map from the tourist office, we were able to improve all that.😝
Good route for a quicker approach to the sites. (Especially for a day trip to the island)

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mhasse
mhasse

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

The route is good, but you do miss out on some of the views. We combined it with a well-marked route that goes around the island, which is more suited to mountain bikes as it takes you along small paths, but it worked out fine on hybrid bikes!

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golden14
golden14

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 05, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A lovely 26 km route, done in good weather so very pleasant, with magnificent views. I rented a mountain bike and my friends rented hybrid bikes. I had no difficulties, but there were two minor falls with the hybrid bikes on the sunken paths. I used the GPS track and it was perfect. THANK YOU.

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grandemange hubert
grandemange hubert

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 24, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Hello
Just a slight problem at the start finding the path, but after that it's fine, despite the markers sometimes being quite far apart, but there's no risk of getting lost.

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

I understand, thank you. I asked you the question because we are always looking to improve our descriptions to satisfy as many hikers as possible.

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VELOPROMENADE
VELOPROMENADE

I suggest an alternative route as the proposed route omits some interesting places.
Kind regards
Vélopromenade

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Good evening, VELOPROMENADE, and thank you.
So ultimately, you don't have any particular complaints about the route? You're just suggesting some alternatives. Is that right?

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VELOPROMENADE
VELOPROMENADE
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 22, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average

Here are a few suggestions that could enhance this route: From Port Tudy then Le Gripp, you can head towards the small port of Port Lay. At Port Lay, you can take a path to join the Stanviec path. Going up towards Kermario, you can turn right towards the dam and go up towards Clavezic. At Kerlivio, take a path towards Quelhuit at the old farm.From Pointe de l'Enfer, return towards Locmaria and pass through Locqueltas and Kermarrec, with superb views of the port of Locmaria and Pointe des Chats. From Locmaria, head towards Pointe des Chats along the path near the coast. From Pointe des Chats, walk along the seashore (red sands) then Les Grands Sables. Pass Fort Surville and take the Kerohet path towards Port Mélite. From Port Mélite, head to Port Tudy via the path near the youth hostel.

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dg68
dg68
• Edited:

Hello,

Yes, that's right. Since I had no way of recording the route, I tried to transcribe it from memory, and since I did it almost a year ago... What's more, since I didn't know Visorando yet, I didn't think I would ever post this trip, so I didn't take many landmarks. I'll see if I can improve it or if you yourself have any details to provide, which would be most welcome. Otherwise, it's always a delight to discover such landscapes, especially when you come from a region far from the sea, as is my case .

Best regards

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picpic56
picpic56
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 21, 2013
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

It's a shame that the paths are poorly marked along the route, otherwise it's well worth it.

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