Trip Report: 6 Days on La Grande Traversée du Jura (gravel)

This month I spent 6 days riding the full length of the Grande Traversée du Jura – the gravel version. This is originally a hiking and mountain bike route, but there's a gravel version, which swaps out some of the rougher sections to road or gravel. Still, there are some sections that you must hike-a-bike, but what bikepacking adventure would be complete without a bit of that? Maybe for the most daring among us its rideable 😀

Dates: 12 -17 September

Stats:

• 432.21km
• 8,292m of elevation
• 14.77km/h average moving speed
• 29:11 riding time, total time bike computer time of 45:19

Route: GTJ Gravel is around 400km of mixed gravel, paved roads and mountain bike sections. The original GTJ is one of the oldest backpacking routes in France and as such there are ample places to eat, stay and get your gear fixed. You pass through a lot of ski towns and small villages that even in fall had plenty of things open. The gravel version is not sign posted but the MTB version is, so don't follow those signs unless you're ready for it. I started in Montbéliard riding the first 15 or so km to the start, then largely following the route until finishing in Culoz at the southern terminus of the Jura massif.

Why the GTJ? Since I've moved to the Beaujolais region this was immediately on my list as a nearby route to tackle. Getting to the start via train took just a few hours and was minimal hassle. The idea of looking into Switzerland from a ridge line in France was too cool to pass up. There is some notable French food from this area too like Comte cheese and Morteau sausage.

Accommodation: I brought my tent and sleep setup which I used only twice (and the sleeping bag a 3rd time at a gite). I would have used it more, but I did the first two days with a friend who was keen to join despite this being a challenging route and it being his first ever bikepacking trip. He did not have the full gear setup for camping so we stayed in a gite and chambre d'hote (like a nice bed and breakfast) the first two days. It would be entirely possible to do this route going from accommodation to accommodation as there are plenty of options.

Bike Setup:

• Trusty gen 1 Brother's Mehteh steel frame, steel fork
• Blackburn fork cages and bags, Swood cycles twisted-T bag support out front
• 48/31 11-34 GRX 815 11s cable actuated and hydraulic brakes. Able to climb everything except the rockiest of steep sections that were in no way possible even with lower gearing
• Flat pedals (Crankbros danny macaskill edition for extra bike handling stats) and mtb shoes. I pretty much bikepack or tour exclusively with this setup now
• Mixture of bags from Revelate, Wizard Works, Miss Grape and Blackburn
• 650b x 47mm Touareg tires on Mavic MTB rims with Fillmore valves and Stan's sealant

Highlights and Lowlights:

Highlights: Spectacular cycling, which for me is the main attraction as you spend most of your time doing it. Great views and landscapes, particularly in the first half in the department of Doubs where there was a mix of more open fields, rolling hills and valleys. Jura is overall a very beautiful area. Visited an amazing bike shop and café in the middle of nowhere BC where I had a hot drink and cookie on the only misty and cool morning I had during the trip. Extra cozy. I ate lunch at a hotel on the border where you walk in on the French side, but the seating out back is on the Swiss side so you take your lunch in a different country. No border control required.

Lowlights: the only mechanical issue I had, which was a totally new one. The end cap on my rear thru axle came off at some point during the intense descents on day 3. As theres no lateral compression the wheel had far too much play. I was 9km from the next bike shop and they had one with the right length and thread pitch so that was an easy fix. I have tools and spares for all kinds of things but not this. I was not even aware the end cap could even come off, always assuming it was one solid part. It was borderline too cold on my 2nd night in the tent which was at around 1,000m elevation.

Overall, I'd highly recommend this route it's one of the better trips I've done since moving to France 9 years ago.