Canal du Centre – Canal du Centre loop from Fontaines - Mercurey

Bike touring routes & trails

France

Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

Chalon-Sur-Saône

Fontaines

Canal du Centre – Canal du Centre loop from Fontaines - Mercurey

Hard

4.7

(6)

riders

Canal du Centre – Canal du Centre loop from Fontaines - Mercurey

06:44

111km

250m

Cycling

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.

Last updated: August 22, 2026

Waypoints

Start point

Train Station

Get Directions

24.6 km

Saône River

Highlight • River

The banks of the Saône offer a very pleasant setting for cycling. Today, the towpaths are perfectly suited for two-wheelers, as seen here.

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55.2 km

The Canal du Centre was designed to connect the two major rivers, the Loire and the Saône, for commercial purposes. It links Chalon-sur-Saône, a town on the banks of the Saône, to Digoin, on the banks of the Loire. It is 112 kilometers long. This waterway provided Burgundy with an invaluable asset at the time, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. The first stone was laid in 1784. The first barge sailed on the canal in 1791, in the midst of the French Revolution.

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62.0 km

Canal du Centre at Chagny

Highlight • River

Excellent paved flat bike trail along the historic 1793 Canal du Centre, connecting at Chalon-sur-Saône the transeuropean EuroVelo 6 route (coming from the Black Sea) with the ViaRhôna route and leads via Digoin to the Loire Valley trails and Nantes with its intersection of EuroVelo 1 Vélodyssée along the Atlantic coast.
The canal now only serves for recreational boating.

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64.0 km

Canal du Centre

Highlight • River

At the gates of Chagny, the Canal du Center is an ideal place for walks away from road traffic. The setting is superb and shady.

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68.9 km

Canal du Centre

Highlight (Segment) • Cycleway

Quiet flat walk along the canal

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83.0 km

Greenway of the Canal du Centre

Highlight • Cycleway

Very good quality road in the forest, partially shaded, without cars because of the cycle path. In total, the Canal du Center greenway is 129 km long and goes from Chalon to Digoin.

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89.1 km

Saint-Léger-sur-Dheune

Highlight • Settlement

Beautiful little town with a bridge that spans the excellent cycle path and the historic Canal du Centre (1793).

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97.5 km

Canal du Centre Greenway (EuroVelo 6)

Highlight • Cycleway

The Canal du Centre was built between 1783 and 1793 to ensure communication between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. The greenway that runs alongside the canal is part of EuroVelo 6 and skirts southern Burgundy between the Saône and the Loire.

This segment offers beautiful panoramas of the Santenay vineyards.

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111 km

End point

Train Station

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

72.1 km

14.4 km

11.6 km

8.45 km

4.76 km

165 m

Surfaces

80.2 km

18.3 km

11.9 km

679 m

358 m

Elevation

Nothing selected – click and drag below to see the stats for a specific part of the route.

Highest point (250 m)

Lowest point (170 m)

Weather

Monday 12 October

19°C

6°C

-- %

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Comments

August 21, 2024,J 54 - EV 6 - Parnay lès Chalon à Montchanin (bivouac) - 88 kms $

Departure from the dam campsite on the banks of the Saône. We will once again flirt with the Doubs, our companion of the previous days. At Verdun on the Doubs, it disappears into the Saône...
This will be our new friend until Chalons sur Saône. New encounter! This time, the Canal du Centre throws itself under our wheels 😉😉🚴🚴. We …

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