La Cal'Lys

La Cal'Lys is a gravel day run by the Lys Calais Triathlon club, and it is deliberately not a race: no clock, no ranking, just a GPX trace that the club says it has ridden and checked end to end. The organisers keep it simple, with a coffee at the start, a hot meal at the finish and a cheerful promise of no trinkets.

From Sangatte, between Calais and Cap Blanc-Nez, the routes head into the Caps et Marais d'Opale country, where chalk downs, farm tracks and coastal paths look out across the Channel. The club describes the riding as mostly dirt tracks stitched together by short stretches of quiet road, and points riders to the Deux Caps, one of France's Grands Sites.

The longest route sets off on the Friday evening and rides through the night, while the shorter loops leave on Saturday morning, so riders with very different ambitions finish on the same day. Those coming from further afield can sleep at the start base, which keeps the weekend relaxed.