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Cyclist’s 780-Mile Ride for a Croissant Is Both Epic and Slightly Anticlimactic

The heart wants what it wants – and in this cyclist’s case, it wanted the world’s most famous lavender croissant. Luckily, this cyclist wasn’t afraid of a good ol’-fashioned physical challenge, just so he could have a taste of that croissant.
Albert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissants 7 photos
Photo: Twitter / Frederic Le Roy
Albert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissantsAlbert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissantsAlbert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissantsAlbert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissantsAlbert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissantsAlbert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissants
This is the rather strange but still inspiring story of passionate traveler, passionate cyclist and retired transportation specialist Albert Van Limbergen, who lives outside Liege, in Belgium. He tells CNN Travel that perhaps the other thing he loves more than traveling is lavender, regardless of how it presents itself to him. So, when he heard of a baker that was making the world’s most famous lavender croissant, he knew he had to find a way to get a taste.

Albert says that he first heard the story of Frederic Roy of Boulangerie Roy Le Capitole from Nice, France, on the news on television. Frederic’s lavender croissants are famous in the south of France because he uses lavender water as he kneads the dough, which gives them a delicate but very firm lavender flavor. Albert was hooked.

That was 2021 and despite the traveling restrictions, within minutes, he had formed a plan in his mind to get there by bike. You see, as much as Albert loves traveling and biking, he can hardly do either if he doesn’t have a purpose or an end goal for it. As he puts it, he had finally found the reason to bike his way into France.

Albert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissants
Photo: Twitter / Frederic Le Roy
Initial arrangements included sharing his plans with his friends, one of whom wrote a letter to Frederic, informing him of a possible impending visit. Then, another friend of Albert’s actually went to the bakery while visiting France, and left Albert’s phone number with Frederic. The two chatted by phone and, as the summer of 2021 rolled in, they had settled on meeting soon.

Man and his plans, God’s never-ending source of amusement, as one saying goes. Further travel restrictions prevented Albert from setting out then, but he and Frederic kept in contact for the remainder of the year. On June 28, Albert left Belgium and, sticking to a carefully drawn-out route, he biked into France and right at Frederic’s doorstep two weeks later, on July 12.

His ride was over 1,400 km (780 miles) and was a physical feat that Albert took great pleasure in: his bike is of the traditional kind, with just pedal power, and no electric assistance. He had his location turned on and was always in contact with Frederic, who, in turn, would post photos and updates to his social media. With him, he carried just a sleeping bag, a change of clothes, and a jug of 7 liters (1.8 U.S. gallons) of water in his pannier bags – and, of course, a bike repair tool kit. He would ride an average of 12 hours a day and cover some 100 km (62 miles), and he was lucky that he only got a few hours of bad weather during the entire journey.

“I carefully planned a route along smaller rural roads to avoid motorways, busy regional roads and cars as much as possible,” Albert tells the media outlet. “I'd stop for a plat du jour (daily special) for lunch and at night, I'd pitch up in a campsite.”

Albert Van Limbergen biked 780 miles to get a taste of Frederic Le Roy's lavender croissants
Photo: Twitter / Frederic Le Roy
When Albert arrived at Frederic’s bakery, he got a hero’s welcome, with balloons in the color of the Belgian flag, Belgian beer and, naturally, a tray of freshly baked croissants. Hugs were exchanged, photos were snapped, and friendly chats were had. Albert did some sightseeing for the next couple of days, and then biked 70 kilometers (43 miles) to a nearby village, where a friend came to pick him up, bike and all, for the drive back home.

It was an epic adventure, one that Albert will certainly remember for the rest of his life, but there was a slightly bittersweet aftertaste to it. Asked by CNN how he liked the world-famous lavender croissant that he’d biked such a great distance for, Albert’s reply was that it “could be improved even more,” like by adding pastry cream like they do in Belgium. Ouch!





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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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