Belley / St-Genix-sur-Guiers / Groslée
This ViaRhôna stage meanders through the beautiful Bugey area, between the majestic Rhône and the Lavours Marshes, below the imposing Grand Colombier Mountain. To the south, enjoy the Haut-Rhône plain, the mountains and the vineyards, arriving at the Pays de Lhuis and Izieu through magnificently varied countryside. On this stage, you follow greenways and laid-out roads, except when going through La Balme’s tunnels, where the road is narrow and very busy .
Gradients and elevation
Road types
Surface
The route
Greenways and well-signposted roads lead beside the Rhône. Take care on the very tricky stretch from Virignin to La Balme: there’s a 3km-section that hasn’t been set up for cyclists, with heavy traffic, steep slopes, one tunnel to go through on the west bank and two on the right bank – only for highly experienced cyclists.
The greenways are beautiful between Belley and Virignin and from La Balme to Groslée; these stretches are ideal for family cycling outings.
Links
to Genix-sur-Guiers, signposted and adapted for ViaRhôna users from the Barrage de Brégnier-Cordon, a dam (Gélignieux)
During the summer season, the company Autocars Albanais Voyages is introducing a new transport service that connects Yenne with ViaRhôna, and vice versa.
Bike fare: €3
SNCF (railway station):
Be careful : no trains directly in the path of this step.
The nearest train station : Culoz
- TER line 35 Chambéry > Culoz > Ambérieu-en-Bugey > Lyon
- TER Line 03 : Saint-Gervais > Evian > Genève > Bellegarde > Lyon
Pont de Beauvoisin station : TER line 54 Chambéry- Aiguebelette – Pont de Beauvoisin – Bourgoin Jallieu – Lyon
Tourist Information Centres :
- Belley Tourist Office Ph. 04 79 81 29 06
- Yenne Tourist Office Ph. 04 79 36 71 54
- Pays de Lhuis and Izieu Tourist Office Ph. 04 74 39 80 92
Saint-Genix-sur-Guiers Tourist Office Ph. 04 76 31 63 16
Don't miss :
Saint-Genix-sur-Guiers: beautifully located in the Guiers Valley, at the confluence of Guiers and Rhône. Discover the hide-out of a famous bandit, Mandrin, his connection with the cave system here brought out on a dramatic son-et-lumière tour.
Murs-sur-Gélignieux: for its outdoor sports and recreation centre
Izieu: for its heart-rending Musée Mémorial des Enfants Juifs, telling of Jewish children hidden here in the Second World War
Brégnier-Cordon: Musée Escale Haut Rhône, offering an interactive tour of the natural and manmade riches of the Rhône between Geneva and Lyon, with models of traditional boats that plied the river, plus the dugout unearthed in alluvial deposits at Cordon - Also, along ViaRhôna, look out for old boats caught in the sands, contemporary art installations and the remnants of a chain ferry.
La Balme-les-Grottes: impressive natural caverns you can visit, the play of water and light enhancing the tour.
Glandieu: for its waterfall
Markets :
Saint-Genix-sur-Guiers : wednesday morning
Belley : saturday morning
New cycle path
This cycle path has been upgraded, there are no tunnels and no need to go onto the busy road. Very good cycle tracks, this whole route is very smooth and well signposted.