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Terra Aventura by bike in Gironde

Walks, Nature, Cycling . Walks. Bike

Terra Aventura: between us my treasure ! I am determined to test this geocaching application which is all the rage in New Aquitaine.

What is it ?  Geocaching is playing hide and seek with the territory: I choose my route and I go with my smartphone, to discover a cache. The latter can contain different types of treasures: Terra Aventura allows you to win and collect Poï'z, your new friends for life!

Our route of the day

– Difficulty: ⅗
– Length of the route: 15 km
– Duration: about 3 hours

In the basket

- gourd 
- picnic 
- Solar cream
– first aid kit (bandages)
- mosquito repellent
– external charger

For this new Terra Aventura geocaching outing, my sister Lucie is on board. 
Sunday morning, 9 am, take off from Bordeaux, direction Lacanau. Slight detail, I have not yet told my sister that we will be cycling. Indeed, we are testing for you, today, the very first Terra Aventura by bike from Gironde.

Did you take any bikes out of the trunk?!

No need, there are bike rental companies close to our starting point. 
For this ride, only one requirement: we need bikes with phone holders, safety first! As for the Terra Aventura pedestrians, we will have to follow a route and coordinates to the treasure: our first Poï'z Ziclou (the pro of the bike).

Moreover, the instructions, before leaving, are clear:
– Fix the phone on the handlebars
– Activate the sound, to not miss any change of direction
– Respect the signs
– Stopping to answer the puzzles, being careful 

Let's go… 

Let's start by observing the city and learning more about Lacanau. Part of our route will follow the old railway lines which, in the XNUMXth century, transported goods such as maritime pine, amazing! 
We leave the city and the seaside little by little, to sink into the vast forest of maritime pines which stretches out in front of us. It's time to stop to solve puzzles, but also to take pictures. Butterflies, dragonflies, flowers, Lucie is enjoying herself!

The puzzles follow one another and we are on the right track, I can feel it! We are so eager to move on to the next stages that the kilometers on the clock are flying by. 
After stage 9, we take a break, in luxury, with a picnic on Moutchic beach, at the edge of the Lacanau lake. Then we set off, motivated as ever, to conquer the cache. 

Once there, the excitement takes over, the first to get their hands on it will undoubtedly have something to brag about all evening. Bim! It passes under my nose within seconds. Lucie proudly spots our treasure: a QR code. We flash it with the application and our Poï'z appears, as well as a “Potted jersey” badge. A great harvest for a great day on the slopes. My sister is conquered, proud and we can even say that she shows off a little.  

Debrief: The course is great, the landscapes are varied: seaside, pines, forest, we even cross 4 or 5 tunnels. The route is easy, on its own site (mainly on the cycle path) and secure. I recommend it to families who would like to take advantage of a good sunny Sunday to discover the Médoc landscapes. The picnic break is really appreciable at the edge of the pond. Bike rental on site for the day or half-day allows you to enjoy serenely. We validate 100%. 

And we are impatiently awaiting the release of the second cycle route in Gironde: on the Roger Lapébie track. (shh it's a secret)

B. Writer