I have a soft spot for old industrial towns, so I really like St Étienne. The middle is all olde-worlde charm but the town expanded (now it’s a similar size to Oxford). The industry has changed, but it still has a museum dedicated to the mining boom, as well as a Le Corbusier suburb (Firminy) with a modernist church and museum. It’s a real mix of old and new.

 

That’s the story with this route, as well. I’ve had half of it kicking around for ages – indeed, I use part of it in one of my off-the-peg tours; another bit is the road the first lured me to St Étienne all those years ago. I know those are great rides. I just hadn’t managed to link them up to produce a circular ride I was happy with… until now. My recent trip to Corsica let me trial some fresh roads that glue the rest of it together perfectly.

 

My friends Jack and Alice live not too far from St Étienne and they’ve tested the route, giving it their seal of approval – and recommending a better lunch stop than the one I’d used when passing through. So here it is, a Velay good day out.