A sign just outside the hotel said 24km to today’s destination, Sète, I ended up walking 35km.
I slept until 8am, which was somewhat later than normal. At breakfast I had to give emergency help to my wife at home in Denmark, as her mobile payment app no longer worked. So it was 9.30 by the time I left the hotel, and at 10.40 I was back again.
I had walked back towards the round lock where I had ended yesterday’s walk. Today there weren’t any boats in the lock. I continued along the Herault river towards the canal. After about 30 minutes walking, I was surprised that the path stopped. Checking my map, I realised that I was on the wrong side of the river to continue along the Canal du Midi, and the only way to cross the river was to walk back to Agde town centre, where I had started.
By 10.40, I was back in Agde and walking on the “right” side of the Herault river towards the Canal du Midi. I walked along the canal, mostly along dirt paths, passing through through the Bagnas Nature Park, with the lagoon to the north and a marshland to the south. There were many cyclists and a few birds. It seems like most birds have already migrated north.
I arrived at the start of the Thau Lagoon, and needed to decide whether I should walk out to the lighthouse at Les Onglous, that marks the end/start of the of the Canal Midi. It was 2km out and the same 2km back, so after this morning’s extra 5kms, I wasn’t sure what to do. I was in two minds, but finally decided that after walking so far along the canal, I would probably regret if I didn’t walk the last two kilometers to the lighthouse.
Boats need to cross the lagoon to reach Sète and access to the Mediterranean, or continue along the Canal du Rhone, which I will be doing. From the Onglous port, a jetty was built into Thau lagoon to break the waves. To make sure the 15-kilometre crossing across the lagoon was a safe one, the navigation channel was marked out, to assist boats heading to the port of Sète. The lighthouse was built in 1850’s replacing a pyramid of white stones, to make it safe to enter the canal. Canal boat owners were not keen on crossing Thau lagoon. In response to this issue, in 1832, the Compagnie du Canal du Midi decided to provide steam tugboats to make navigation in the lagoon safer. From then on, links between the Canal du Midi and the port began to develop further.
Many cycled down to the lighthouse and some walked, almost all on the opposite side of the canal. There was a group learning to sail in a large sailboat and another group of men learning how to put out a fire. I didn’t really know what to expect, but was even so surprised that the only indication that one was entering the Canal du Midi was a small sign.
I walked back to the road that would take e to Sète. It was already past 12pm and according to my map I should have walked 6km, but had now walked 15km. I took a break and watched the cyclists pass by before reaching the coast after walking through Marseillan, famous for its dry Vermouth, Noilly Pratt, and the oysters which grow in the salty waters of the lagoon, as well as a large boat hotel. The Étang de Thau is one of the largest saltwater lagoons in France and is separated from the Mediterranean by a thin strip of land running from Marseillan to Sète, which I walked along.
I walked along a cycle path on the thin strip of land, with its dunes closest to the Mediterranean to my right, and summer colonies to my left. North of the colonies, there is a single road next to the lagoon. The strip of land stretches ca. 13km, until just before the outskirts of Sète, where there are many holiday apartments.
It was somewhat monotonous, I couldn’t see the Mediterranean because of the dunes, and the summer colonies were rows up rows of similar wooden houses. There were many flowers in bloom, which was nice to see.
There were also many cyclists. France must have a boom in selling electric bicycles as there were 100’s that passed me. Of all the bikes I saw, I would estimate that 90% were electric. All ages cycled on them, but the majority were 60+. Many had rented them, and were clearly not used to cycling.
The dunes disappeared and I walked into what I thought was Sète, but turned out to be the newer outskirts. The old port, also built by Jean-Pierre Riquet, who built the canal, was still 5km away. I continued along the coast, with many other walkers and cyclists, before finally reaching Sète.
I walked through a very lively town, with an active fishing industry, a port for tourist liners, and one was docked, as well as a port for ferries to Corsica and Sardinia and a large container port. On top of that there were 100’s of boats docked along the canal connecting the lagoon (and Canal du Midi) and the Mediterranean. The Royal Canal, as it is called, was lined by restaurants, and by the number of them and the number of tables at each of them, they must be used to many visitors.
I found my Ibis Budget hotel with a view over the container port, before immediately leaving again to find a laundromat to wash my clothes, for the last time on this trip.
I’d walked almost 35kms, thanks to following the wrong path in the morning and deciding to walk to the lighthouse at the entrance to the canal. Sète looked like a great place to explore, but I was shattered following the monotonous walk along the dunes.