Monets Garden

Tuesday 18th September

We started off quietly today as yesterday was so busy. After breakfast, and when Heather had completed her diary, we went for an explore around Jardin du Luxembourg. It is a lovely garden that is divided into sections. We wandered past the playground which was 99% quieter than Sunday, past the tennis courts, past people doing tai chi, then into the wide open space that looks out to the palace.


The palace area has lots of flowers, a duck pond where on weekends you can sail model boats, and has garden chairs scattered about to contemplate and watch the world go by. There are wide avenues with large trees and sculptures on large lawn areas. The only thing about the grass is you are not allowed to walk on it which is the same for most Parisian parks and it is heavily patrolled to catch any offenders. After our explore we headed back to our apartment for a quick lunch and I then left Neil and the kids for the afternoon and joined a coach tour to Giverny, home of Claude Monet. It was an hour drive out of Paris where on the way we were given a talk on the history of Monet. On arrival at the gardens and house we were given a quick tour of where everything was then let loose for a couple of hours. It was a stunning garden, with a flower garden and house, then on the other side of a railway line (connected by a post-Monet tunnel) the water/Japanese garden.


It was a very overcast day but the reflections in the pond were fantastic. Also a majority of the water lilies were in flower which added something special. The flower garden was arranged in rows of colours varying in heights and managed to look untidy but orderly at the same time, with a large walkway down the middle who's surface was covered in nasturtiums.





I then wandered through the house which had walls covered in Japanese prints. One room was covered floor to ceiling in Monet's paintings and looked onto the garden on two sides. It was a lovely bright room and you could just imagine him sitting there thinking about what to paint.


The departure time of 5pm loomed so, after another quick trip around the flower garden, and a couple of purchases from the shop, it was back onto the bus. It was a great trip and when I got home the family had just finished dinner and were getting ready for dessert. They had visited the local patisserie on the way home from their afternoon activity (four hours in the Jardin du Luxembourg playground) and had purchased some amazing pastries. Dinner and dessert was served to me once the kids were in bed, a lovely end to a wonderful day.



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Eiffel Tower

Monday 17th September.

Our first full day in Paris. Heather had been dying to see and go to the top of the Eiffel Tower so that was first on our agenda. We headed off as soon as we were ready in the morning to try and beat the queues which can be horrendous for the Eiffel Tower, however getting across Paris is never easy and with two kids it was a little harder so beating the queues was never really going to happen. We took two metro trains that Heather and Callum thought were pretty cool and emerged from the underground a short walk from the monument. When Heather first caught sight of the tower her eyes nearly popped out of her head. All she could say was "wow". The weather forecast had predicted a clear morning perfect for the tower but it was cloudy and foggy. After seeing Heather's excitement and jumping up and down we couldn't postpone it so we joined the shortish queue to catch the lift, first to the second floor then on to the top.


I'd hate to see this monument on a busy day as after queuing for the tickets, then queuing for the lift and having a quick look at the view from the second floor, we then joined another queue for the lift to the top floor.





In my old age I have developed a slight fear for anything that isn't really natural/normal. Like going on gondolas that swing over ridiculously high valleys, and going up a lift in a metal monument that was supposed to be temporary that points 200+ metres in the sky. Bravely for the kids I went up. The views from the top were incredible and we were seriously high on a metal tower that you could feel swaying, but it was an experience we had to have. We had a look at the views then thankfully the queue was small to get back down. After hitting solid ground we had lunch looking at the tower from across the Seine.


We then walked a short distance to the Arc de Triomphe which didn't get the wow factor from the kids.


We then headed off down the Champs Elysee in search of a tourist bureau to plan our next few days. I got booked to go on a tour of Monet's Gardens tomorrow for a relaxing kids-free afternoon, and got the tickets for a surprise for the kids which will be revealed later. It was a lovely day in my favourite city.



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Paris

Sunday 16th September

Paris here we come. We estimated another six hour drive and our experience with getting to Provence we left nice and early so were on the road by 7.02am, watching the sun rise over the mountains and the fog in the valleys burn off. A particular part of the drive was stunning. As we were coming up to Geneva we climbed the hill and looked left (just briefly for me as I was driving) across the lake into Switzerland. The road them started going through huge mountains tunnels then over twisting bridges (instead of cutting into the hill side), one bridge over another. It was just beautiful and every time we came across any water in a stream, lake or river there was thick fog at least until 10am (even though we couldn't see the water sometimes, relying on Victoria our sat nav to show the water onscreen). By about 11am we had well and truly left the mountains behind and began driving through farmland. The cool thing about this was there was the odd chateau that was highlighted by a gigantic road sign and an arrow pointing to it if it was visible from the autoroute. The kids lifted their heads briefly from Dora playing on the iPad each time their Mum went "oh that's a lovely one" and also oohed obediently.
We arrived at the Peugeot drop off point at Orly airport after successfully navigating through and around the airport. This was made very critical as when we began to approach Orly our petrol light came on and the situation would have become dire if we had needed to do another lap (the kids would have been pushing as Neil would need to navigate). The lady at Peugeot was lovely and we were amazed at how easy it was to give the car back. She didn't worry about the large dent I had left in the side of the car after hitting a stupid low wall in a car park in Lourdes, or the fact we had left absolutely no petrol in the car at all. Instead she graciously drove us to the airport terminal in her large van so we could catch our cab into Paris. Because we had arrived over an hour early our booked taxi was unable to collect and advised us to get a regular cab instead. Easier said than done with 6 pieces of luggage, a couple of bags of food, a child car seat and four people! After understandably being rejected by a number of cabs, a lovely man came to our rescue with a mini van. The driver helped us with our luggage, took us the most direct route, and charged us about half what our booked cab had estimated the cost would be. What a great start to Paris!

Our apartment is lovely or should I say cute. The kitchen is smaller than my walk in wardrobe at home, the main bedroom is in the lounge room/dinning room, and the kids room is the width and length of two single beds with a walkway down the middle. The apartment is great though as we are only a block away from the Luxembourg Gardens which has a huge playground and numerous leisure activities, close to many cafes , there are about four metro stops within blocks, and we are in the back of the complex on the ground floor so you can't hear the street at all.





As soon as dumping the bags in the apartment we headed out for a quick explore and to let the kids stretch their legs. Of course we went to the playground in the gardens and their eyes nearly popped out of their headset delight.


The only drawback was that as it was Sunday every child in Paris was out and there was a charge to get in (only small so it is well worth it). By the time we dragged the kids out they were exhausted so we had an early dinner. We found a great bistro 5 minutes from home that serves food all day so no waiting until 7 pm as we have had to do in other places. I think I am going to love my 10 days here.

Tomorrow we are fulfilling Heather's wish of going up the Eiffel tower as she's finally stopped calling it the Awful Tower.



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Annecy

Saturday 15th September

Mummy's day today and so we went off to see Annecy. This visit has been postponed last week so Neil could do the Col d'Izeran before a couple of days of bad weather. Today the sun was shining and it was perfect. An hour down the auto route and we arrived and began wandering around the old town with it's canals.





It was a lovely town with lots of old buildings constructed around canals, with cafes and colourful shops dotted around. There were arched tunnels connected by cobblestone walkways, with crystal clear water flowing through the canals with swans swanning around. It was a picture perfect town.


We explored for a few hours before going to a large park overlooking the lake to have our lunch.


There were lots of people out and about enjoying the sun and the gorgeous surroundings, but we had to make our way home to clean the car and do the final pack for our move to Paris in the morning.



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Train from Chamonix

Friday 14th September part 2

With Neil gone all morning I started on the task of packing. It was hard going but I managed to get the bulk of it done. The kids and I had a quick walk into town for our daily baguette then we lounged around the house waiting for Neil to return. On Neil's return from his ride he had a quick shower and change then we drove into Chamonix to return his last rental bike. We hurried because the kids and I planned to catch the train back to Saint Gervais Les Bains and there was only one an hour.


We managed another quick wander around Chamonix, while an encore of the apple strudel ice cream from our last visit didn't happen because that flavour was not on offer. Instead I thought I'd go for something with a local theme so "Mont Blanc" was chosen. It was white chocolate ice cream with swirl of caramel and it was just as delicious. After our ice creams the kids and I caught the 5.11pm train back home and Neil drove the car back to meet us at the station. The kids were so excited about going on a train and it was a perfect time of day to take the journey as the sun was setting and highlighting Mont Blanc.


The train took a route hugging the bottom of the mountain that looked out upon Mont Blanc and was higher than the road so it provided a great view. We also went through three tunnels and over a viaduct that we had driven under before. It was a pretty great trip.
Tomorrow we are off to Annecy to check out the town known as the, "Venice of France".



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The final mountain ride

Friday 14th September

I realise that for the last eight weeks I have bored you silly with superlatives on how great the scenery and riding in the mountains is so I am going to simply say that today's ride over the Col des Saisies then up to the Cormet de Roselend was equally as good as any of the others that have come before it.

Being the last mountain ride of the trip I planned a long and tough ride for today. I got up just before dawn and drove to the village of Flumet not far from here. According to the car's thermometer it was about 2C when I got started so I was rugged up in my winter cycling gear (it seems an eon ago when I was struggling up the Col du Portillon on a 30C+ summer's day in the Pyrenees).

At 15km long the first climb was a fairly challenging ride up the Col des Saisies and I got there a little after 8am. At the top I stopped for a photo when a guy in a small white van pulled over and asked me if I wanted him to take a picture of me at the top. I declined but his real motive became clear when started talking about bikes and where I was riding. We compared the relative merits of Cannondales versus Lapierres (the bike brand equivalent of US versus France). I advised that I was heading for the Cormet de Roselend another 35km away, then would be returning the same way. After he looked at me in disbelief he quickly warmed to the idea but suggested a more scenic route for my second (return) ascent of the Col des Saisies. On my map he showed me a small road going up the other side of the valley. I had spent months looking over maps and never spotted it, let alone contemplated riding it. It was great fun even though I only understood about half of what he was saying.

After a frigidly cold descent down the Col des Saisies and through the town of Beaufort, I started on the 20km climb up to the Cormet de Roselend. The magic number on this climb was 8, that is 8%, which was the gradient on most of the kilometre markers along the road. The consistent gradient was excellent as I could get into a climbing rhythm, only interrupted to let a herd of cows go by, and a flattish 2km section when the road reached and went around a reservoir about 2/3rd of the way from the top. At the top the views were (insert your favourite superlative), however it was still pretty cold so I did not hang around long and quickly returned back down the mountain.













At the foot of the descent I found the alternative option that my French friend had shared with me earlier that day and the route proved to be exactly as promised. It was a single lane road through some villages that tourists simply bypass and the views across the valley to the road I had ridden down that morning were beautiful. My legs were getting pretty sore by now so the ascent was slower this time, however when I got to the top I had a big grin as I was simply loving and making the most of this final ride. It was all smiles down the last descent back down the 15km to the car in Flumet.

Today's ride was a great way to end my Tour de France climbs pilgrimage. While it was sad this was the last ride, at the same time there was a strong sense of accomplishment and happiness that I had completed all the rides that I had set out to do. All of the rides have been fun, and sometimes exhilarating and inspiring. I also leave the mountains with a deep appreciation of what the Tour riders go through, and knowledge of each of the major climbs that will ensure I enjoy watching the Tour each year even more.

Thanks for following my riding blog and sharing the adventure with me.



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Les Contamines and town explore

Thursday 13th September

The day broke and the weather was 50/50. Down the valley was sunshine (mainly because we were higher than the clouds) and up the valley the clouds were covering the mountain to the valley floor. The scene down the valley was lovely with all the mountains having a light dusting of snow and as the sun got higher and hotter the clouds were moving all around.


We ate breakfast, which on these colder days has started to include a rather large mug of hot chocolate, and headed into town to check out the markets. It's been over a week since my last market so was chomping at the bit. I must say though leaving our extremely well insulated chalet was a bit of a shock as it was freezing outside. It's hard to believe that 2 days ago we were wearing shorts and t-shirts and now have several layers on. With an incentive for the kids of playground after the markets we made it to town in good time and warmed up a little. The market wasn't huge but big enough to have a bit of everything and allow me to soak in the atmosphere till my next fix. Next stop playground for the kids fix, then home with our goodies for our baguette and Brie lunch.


After lunch we headed up the valley to Les Contamines which is the end of the road. If you are a walker it is full of excellent trails that have been recommended by us by many.


We drove to the start of a gorge and parked the car, with the kids not being the keenest of hikers we did the shortest. It took us to the most delightful church snuggled into the side of the hill above a river. It was tiny and built of stone with a slate roof.





The roof was covered with thick moss with the odd pine tree growing from it. There were a few pews that looked like gnomes used them as they were so small. The church looked like it was visited by regular followers as their were flowers, plaques and offerings left. After our little explorer we headed back home. It was still early afternoon and I'd found a self walking tour of St Gervais Les Bains in our chalet that looked appealing to me. So I got a leave pass and went straight out again. Behind all the quaint buildings and tourist shops the town has quite a history.


The tour took you past an old castle that's nestled down a side street. It has been added onto to be a private residence, but they've done it in a manner that looks like a chalet has been built on top.


Their we're a couple of bridges, a fountain and a tower. It was quite fascinating what lies beneath a town and some of the structures were dating back to the 13th century. It was a lovely walk that I was very pleased I managed to do. With the sun still shining but a cold wind blowing a retreated back to our cosy chalet to make dinner. Tomorrow is Neil's last ride of the holiday. It is a long one to go off with a bang, so another early start.


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Rain, rain, rain and a little snow

Wednesday 12th September

The rain continued all night and all day and was very heavy at times. We needed our lunch baguettes so I headed out for a soggy walk into town (Neil did look at me a little strangely when I said I was going to walk). It was a nice and peaceful walk and I was very grateful for the French drivers that avoided splashing me with the streams of water going down the road so I did not get soaked. With baguettes bought (and a little something yummy for afternoon tea) I headed for home, this time though I had my back to the traffic and there were one or two drivers that were not as courteous about missing the puddles. I arrived home very soggy but was very proud that the baguettes and yummies were dry. The little stream beside our chalet that had once been a babbling brook was now a raging torrent, so with the rain still pouring down we spent the rest of the day cosy in our chalet lazing around and getting up to date with boring housekeeping things. When the clouds eventually started to lift in the late afternoon we were treated to the sight of snow covering all the peaks up and down the valley. Now it is evening the clouds have come down again as the sun sets so we will see what daybreak brings us tomorrow. Even after only one day inside Neil already has cabin fever so we will hopefully all get out tomorrow and go to the weekly markets in town in the morning, then explore the end of the valley up to the village of Les Contamines. We will take whatever the day brings.



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Mini golf

Tuesday 11th September Part 2

Today, with Neil leaving very early and a long day planned, I needed something to keep the kids happy and occupied. Without a car I thought we would check out the mini golf that is just up the road. Once Heather had done her diary we headed out as the wet weather was supposed to arrive later. The golf looked very closed when we arrived but with our experience with all things French if you stand and wait for a moment if it's open someone will appear and, voila, a lovely man came and took our money, gave us some clubs and wished us luck. It was a no fuss course with no animals or such, but was rather tricky. The kids soon worked around the tricky bits by cheating. It was a lot of fun with bridges, ramps, tunnels and twisty bits and I need to brag about my hole in one.





It was not the most gracious hole in one but when the ball bounced off a rock, rebounded off the barrier, and rolled into the hole I was jumping up and down in excitement as the kids stood there stunned. A hole in one is a hole in one after all. After 18 holes of hitting our little coloured balls around the clay course we took the scenic route home. Out the front of our chalet is a public walk way and according to the map was supposed to pass the mini golf so, with adventurous walking shoes on, we headed off into the unknown. It was a lovely walk down a country lane and into a wide paddock that had an amazing view to the distant mountains.


We were home in record time and with big appetites we had to broke with our French lunch tradition and had biscuits and brie (instead of pain and brie) as I couldn't persuade the kids to walk to the boulangerie. It was then a quiet afternoon with Heather catching up on her school work and waiting for Daddy to return from his cycling adventure. During the late afternoon the clouds rolled in as forecast and the rain started.



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Col d'Iseran and Tignes

Tuesday 11th September

What a magnificent day riding in the high Alps!

After the Director Sportif allowed a visit to Annecy to be moved to the weekend (apparently I would just stare at the clouds frowning if it wasn't) the car was packed and I was zooming through the dark French countryside at 5:30am this morning heading towards the Col d'Iseran. With the weather forecast suggesting the window of opportunity would close by mid-afternoon I had plenty of motivation to get out early. An hour and a half later I was arriving at Bourg-St-Maurice just as the sun was rising. Having arrived earlier than expected I decided to do a longer ride directly from Bourg-St-Maurice, rather than drive up the valley to Val-d-Isere as I had planned. I was glad I did as I would have missed a beautiful scenic climb. There was forest, chalets and fine views back down the valley across to the mountains on the other side.









As I was riding along Tour de France climb markers appeared, however not for the Col d'Iseran, but for Tignes ski station which has hosted stage finishes. At the Barrage de Tignes this climb went right over the dam and up another valley, while I continued along the side of the reservoir through numerous mountain ski tunnels to get to Val d'Isere. After 32km of riding generally upwards my HC climb of 16km officially started. The scenery immediately changed, from low altitude forest and meadows to sparse alpine vegetation with magnificent high mountains towering over the road. It was (wait for it) awesome and the road was impressive too with lots of hairpins to achieve the elevation gain needed to get up to the Col d'Iseran which at 2,770m is easily the highest pass I will ride. At the top the legs were sore but it was worth it and this ride has easily made it onto my favourites list.



It was a slow descent back down as I was constantly stopping to take photos and after getting back to Val d'Isere then through the tunnels along the side of the lake, curiosity got the better of me and in a blatant col-bagging exercise I decided to finish off the climb up to Tignes. After getting to the top, taking the obligatory photo, I quickly descended and rejoined the road to get back to the car.

The riding today was simply magnificent. Bike riding simply doesn't get any better that this. Tonight the legs are stuffed but it is worth every ache and pain. Tomorrow is a rest day to see if the adverse weather predicted actually eventuates. The next (and last) ride looks like it will be on Friday, but I'll keep staring at the clouds and let you know.

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Col de la Colombiere and Col des Aravis

Monday 11th September

Oops. According to my ride planning I was meant to go over three cols today. Instead I discovered that Le-Grand-Bornand is simply a town you go through as you descent from the Col de la Colombiere. While the Tour has been through and indeed finished in the town it cannot be counted as a col or climb. Therefore, today's two col ride was plenty of fun. The first climb today up the Col de la Colombiere was a category one but offered plenty of steep sections particularly towards the top, and particularly with a dodgy back brake that dragged against the wheel (my laziness yesterday with not bothering to get it fixed was remediated this afternoon with a quick visit to the bike shop in Chamonix). The climb was very scenic and enjoyable with plenty of hills, forest and alpine meadows. The descent down the other side, through Le Grand-Bornand, was very pretty too with chalets dotting the landscape (there must be very strict building codes as there was not a single non-chalet style building anywhere). This made for very pleasant cycling. The climb up the Col des Aravis from the town of La Clusaz was also a lot of fun as it was a category two so I was not bothered by my dodgy brake. The summit was funny though. The views were not particularly special, however the summit was ridiculously busy and over-developed with a couple of restaurants and gift shops. The mystery was solved when I began my descent towards Flumet. This road was very beautiful with classic sets of hairpin bends with sweeping views down the valley, followed further down the valley by an attractive road high along the wall of the Gorge de l'Arondine. It was an excellent way to finish another perfect Alps ride.

The weather forecasts predict poor weather (one even advises snow) for Wednesday and Thursday so tomorrow I am up early and off to do the Col d'Iseran in the valley about 1.5 hours south from here. Should be good.

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Parc de Merlet

Sunday 10th September part 2

With Neil taking the car today, the kids and I explored our new town of St Gervais les Bains and surrounds. On the way through the village yesterday the kids' eagle eyes spotted a playground so a visit there was on the agenda. St Gervais les Bains is a pretty town half way up a hill side looking down to the wide main valley below. We are now in a much more populated area than last week so there is much more choice of shops, restaurants and boulangeries (the playgrounds are bigger too). The downside of course is that there is much more traffic and people. The town is still lively even now that tourist season officially finished last week and the French are back at school and work.


The playground was fantastic and the kids had a ball climbing, sliding and chasing each other. We only left as we were beginning to melt in the midday sun (summer has reappeared).

Neil arrived home in the late morning and after our usual baguette and brie lunch we headed off for our afternoon family activity which was the Animal Parc on a peak near Les Houches, a town between St Gervais and Chamonix. It was an adventure just getting there. Once we turned off the motorway we were directed by Victoria (our sat nav) up a road that literally went up multiple hairpin corners. We finally reached the sign for the Parc and read where all the car parks were. There were 4 car parks ranging from 1km from the entrance to 300m so we kept going knowing that Callum would not walk 1km. This meant that the road thinned dramatically, not helped by the addition of a painted foot path for those that have parked in the lower car parks. We made it to car park 1 which had no spaces but also no turning circle. Above us was a sloping paddock and the sideof the road drop sharply away into forest, so I navigated Neil as close as possible to the vertical drop so he could turn the car around and luckily as we were doing so someone came to their car and left. By now we were all wondering what this park was going to be like perched on a peak. After walking the promised 300m (which was still up and around 3 hairpin corners) we reached the Parc entrance that had a proud sign stating we were at 1,534 metres. On entering we were given a map and let loose in an open space with all the animals as it was a free range park with no cages. There were marked paths that we were to keep to which went in different directions around the park, up more hill (the kids had had enough of climbing by now), along a wide open space which we found out was a disused airstrip, and around a rocky hill.


All the animals in the park were native to the mountains, they kept their distance however were very used to people so were not overly shy. At the end of our circuit we managed to see all the animals on the brochure from mountain goats with huge horns to chamois and marmots. My favourite was the beautiful deer with massive antlers. An added extra about the park was "the view".


We were across the valley from Mont Blanc so we had a breath taking view of the mountain with its numerous glaciers. Being at the altitude that we were, we were a third of the way up Mont Blanc so we were getting a very different view from the valley floor. It was a lovely afternoon and seeing the animals in their natural habitat was great. In the evening we were treated to a mountain electrical storm which was quite spectacular at times. I must remember to bring my tripod into the house to try and get a photo of a lightning bolt as more evening storms are forecast this week. A fun first full day in the northern Alps.



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Accommodation number 4

Saturday 8th September

Today saw us leaving Bourg d'Oisan, head over a couple of mountain ranges, down a stretch of autoroute, turn right at Albertville, then head north and turn right to get to Saint Gervais les Bains. It was bound to be a gorgeous drive as we were going over the Col de la Croix de Fer that Neil rode earlier during our Bourg stay, however when Neil rode it there was very low cloud and it was covered in snow. Today had a very different look as the skies were clear blue. The drive did not disappoint and was stunning, with ever changing scenery with gorges, twisty roads, and open paddocks with grazing cattle. There was even a lake to add to the beauty.



When we were about 30 minutes from our new home in St Gervais les Bains we turned off the main road to cross over valleys. This is when we saw our first sighting of the grandaddy of all the French mountains - Mont Blanc. It was enormous and covered in snow sparkling in the afternoon sun. I instantly thought these mountains are something special. We made it to our accommodation in great time as it was the shortest drive between houses and luckily the chalet was empty the week before so we could get in early. The website for the chalet does not do it justice at all. It is the top floor of a traditional Swiss-style chalet, all wood with huge chunky beams everywhere (the lower ones Neil curses as he keeps bumping his head). It has three huge double bedrooms all with ensuites (Callum thinks it is really cool he has his own shower and toilet). The chalet is in a small hamlet of about 5 chalets just off the road, so very quiet. We look down the valley to the valley below from one balcony, and have views of snow peaked mountains from the other. After a quick debrief from the chalet company representatives, we unloaded our car, had a quick lunch in the chalet, then headed off to Chamonix so Neil could pick up his latest rental bike. Driving through the valley to Chamonix, Mont Blanc dominated the view with it's many glaciers (thank goodness again for the panoramic glass roof on our car). Chamonix is quite a built up little city catering for everything tourists and adventurers need, from skiing to mountain biking to paragliding (it was constantly raining paragliders from the skies above us), and looks like it could become quite lively in the evenings. I have to share that I had the most delicious apple crumple ice cream while taking in the sights of Chamonix and am looking forward to an encore when we go back. Anyway, ice creams eaten and bike collected we headed home to unpack and settle in to our new digs.

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Col de Joux Plane

Sunday 9th September

Arriving after yesterday and picking up my latest hire bike from Chamonix, today I did my first ride in the northern Alps, the HC category climb of Col de Joux Plane.



I stuck to my normal plan of doing a shortish ride on a new bike just in case anything was amiss. Today I discovered a slightly dodgy back brake which drags on the back wheel (I can't fix it but equally can't be bothered returning to the shop either) and a new gearing system to get used to. The gears are SRAM versus the Shimano that I am used to. I used SRAM once before on a mountain bike in Moab and I actually rather like them. While they are different they are very intuitive and have crisp gear changes. I also have one less chain gear on the front, however I still had enough easy gears to get to the top of the Col de Joux Plane which is probably the steepest climbing I will be doing during this leg of the trip.

Enough bike geek stuff. Today's ride started with a quick drive to the attractive but not especially unique town of Taninges, simply to avoid the rather dreary riding through the fairly functional towns in the large valley below us. The tactic paid off as my ride started instead with a 10km ride through some scenic countryside before reaching the base of today's climb at Samoens. The climb itself was very enjoyable. My research had promised a tough climb and the reality did not disappoint, with the climb staying consistently above and beyond an 8% gradient for the whole of the ascent. The climb was very scenic too going firstly through the village of Samoens, then through farms with pretty chalets everywhere, before the forest started that eventually gave way to open alpine meadows at the top of the pass. I really enjoyed the ride as I got into the climbing rhythm easily on the new bike and got a good workout before the long ride scheduled for tomorrow. I rode back the way I came back to the car at Taninges, with a quick visit to their boulangerie for a post-ride almond and chocolate pain which was excellent although probably twice the calories I had just burnt off. Oh well, I am on holiday after all!

As I write this, there is thunder and lightening (very, very frightening, Galileo, Galileo, Figaro, magnifico ...) around us. Assuming this clears up overnight and we awake to beautiful clear blue skies, then I will be doing a ride that was on the short list from day one of the trip planning. The ride will see me go over the Col de la Colombiere, then on to the Grand-Bornand and then over the Col des Aravis. It should be beautiful however it will be a long one going over three cols. This said none are HC, I have scheduled plenty of time, and I have a rest day planned for Tuesday. Fingers crossed for good weather.


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A very scenic day

Thursday 6th September part 2

A long day but very enjoyable and worth the early morning start. The foggy morning made for a different view of the mountains that I had not experienced before. It was a gorgeous soft light creating silhouettes of the villages and mountain edges as we drove down the valley. After we passed the Col de Lautaret and went past the turn to the Galibier we were in new territory. The road instantly changed from twisting climb to a fairly straight down hill through ski resort after ski resort. Once we finally made Neil's drop off point of Guillestre the kids and I visited the tourist office for maps of Briancon and directions to the boulangerie for our daily baguettes. We had heard the Col d'Izoard was pretty so were going to drive over that then into Briancon to explore the old town and fort while Neil climbed the hill. Well we never made it to Brianscon as to describe the Col d'Izoard as pretty was an understatement as it was absolutely stunning.


We drove it so slowly I was letting camper vans pass me as it would have been a shame to rush and miss the view. We passed Neil a lot further up the hill than I expected then we stopped at a few viewpoints for photos.






By the time we made it to the top the time to meet Neil further down the road was fast approaching so Briancon was definitely off. Instead we walked to a viewpoint up a small hill and took in the amazing 360 degree views of this incredible mountain range.





After soaking in as much scenery as we could we descended to the small gift shop to purchase Heather's diary postcard and who should ride up the summit but Neil. We took the photo to prove he'd done it then descended the other side heading towards Italy for ride two. It was lucky we met at the top because when we drove past the proposed meeting point because: 1. I would have missed the sign as it was so small; and 2. It was a one house town down a small dirt road which are not so good on a road bike. I'm amazed it even made it into the road atlas.


We went down the mountain then up another, this time following Italian semi-trailers twisting up the hairpins and giving any on coming traffic heart attacks. We made it to the ride no. 2 drop off point and farewelled Neil. This time it was a quick 11km drive to the top where I took the first turning into a car park and waited for Neil. It was under a gondola which I noticed was going back and forth. Upon closer inspection I noticed there was a movie or tv show being made at the gondola station. There was a small crowd of onlookers and extras hanging around waiting for their turn along with cameras, lights etc. With the kids playing happily on the iPad in the boot, the time flew by and before we knew it Neil was arriving beside the car. It was quite funny having our afternoon in Italy not being able to understand any of the road signs and not being able to ask for directions or anything. I am very grateful for the French I know as it is quite scary being in a country and not being able to communicate at all. After our typical French lunch in an Italian playground we headed back home dodging the semi-trailers going up the twisty hill.


It was a long day however we were all rewarded with incredible scenery and I was given the night off cooking so headed out to indulge in the French pastime of an aperitif in a small side street cafe then dinner at a lovely restaurant around the corner from home. Tomorrow we are off to the northern Alps area around Chamonix to stay for a week.


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