Linking the Mediterranean with the Atlantic over a distance of 310 miles (500km) between Sète and Bordeaux, the Canal des Deux Mers (Two Seas canal) – the combined name for the Canal de Garonne and the Canal du Midi – has long been popular with boaters but is fast gaining a name for its gentle cycling, following the installation of a safe, smooth cycle path (vélo voie verte) taking riders from Toulouse to Bordeaux.
A prime spot on this path is the 39-mile (63km) stretch along the well signposted former towpath between Toulouse and Moissac, shaded by magnificent plane trees, dotted by barges and punctuated by locks. Fish, ducks and water voles inhabit the canal, while lizards bask on its banks.
Arriving at Moissac, the canal crosses the river Tarn in spectacular fashion at the beautiful Pont Canal bridge. The conjunction of a canal and a river in Moissac makes the area a hive of water-based activities, including rowing, canoeing and kayaking, waterskiing, surf-biking, pedaloing, electric boating and fishing. In July and August, the banks of the river are transformed into a beach, Moissac Plage, while opposite the Promenade du Tarn lies the natural islet of Beaucaire and its nature reserve; guides can fill you in on local plant and animal life. Another islet, Bidounet, is the idyllic site for the town campsite.
Moissac's other big draw is its Unesco world heritage-listed medieval abbey church of St Pierre, whose hospitality made the town a resting place on one of the pilgrim routes to Santiago de Compostela. Inside it lie two masterpieces of romanesque sculpture: the abbey-church portal, which you may recognise from the film of Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose, and the capitals of the lovely cloister.
The town is also famed for its Chasselas de Moissac AOC grape, grown in the surrounding vineyards, of which some run guided tours, and for its open-air markets on weekend mornings. Lou Grill is the best eating out recommendation in town – unpretentious, with dishes cooked over an oak fire.
If you're turning and heading back to Toulouse along the voie verte, the best overnight stopover choice is Le Moulin de Moissac within one of the handsome mills built on the riverbanks by powerful local families. Guests can ease their weary muscles with a treatment in the spa and hammam within the 15th-century brick vaults.
To find out more about this destination, visit gotofrancenow.com/midi-pyrenees-moissac
