Dhuis & Marne: Ride the Aqueduct
Paris, France · May 19, 2023
A loop east of Paris that splits cleanly into two moods. The northern half traces a 200-year-old aqueduct along a wooded ridge on some of the best split-track gravel around, while the southern half eases back along the Marne River and the Chelles Canal through quiet villages. Two thirds of it runs on dirt, and the whole thing starts and finishes by bike from the city center.
This is the loop to choose for your first taste of dirt near Paris. It heads east out of the city and leans on cycling infrastructure to get you clear of traffic, rolling north to Parc de la Villette and then onto a canal path that carries you out toward the suburb of Le Raincy. The pavement does the work of getting you settled and warmed up, so by the time the gravel starts in earnest you are loose and ready for the ridge.
The northern half is the headline. The route climbs onto the wooded ridge that the 200-year-old Dhuis aqueduct follows, and the surface here is a wide split track that lets you pick your own line through the trees. The gravel is genuinely some of the best around, broken only by a couple of short hike-a-bike pinches. Side trails keep branching off the main line and begging to be chased, so it takes a little discipline to stay on course.
One word of caution up here. Metal drainage gutters cross the trail at intervals, and erosion has left some of them standing proud of the surface where they will pinch flat a tire if you hit one at speed. Bring a pump and a plug kit, because this stretch is remote and help is a long way off.
After the ridge the character changes completely. The route drops to the Marne River and the Chelles Canal and settles into a relaxed waterside cruise, threading through small villages and parks before looping back toward Le Raincy. This is the half to slow down and savor, especially if the morning on the ridge has taken something out of you. This route is one of the picks from Barry Lachapelle's Paris gravel guide.
Two thirds of the ride is unpaved, so a gravel bike on 40 mm tires or wider feels right at home, and nothing is technical enough to rattle a newer rider once the gutters are behind them. Spring through autumn is the window, when the ridge runs dry and fast. There is little out on the aqueduct in the way of services, so carry your own food and water, and if you have left any kit at home the city center has shops like La Chouette to sort you out before you roll. The loop starts and finishes under its own steam from central Paris, with no train required.
