I woke up to a beautifully sunny day, packed the rest of my things and set off down the mountain into Morzine. At the bottom of the road to Les Gets, I caught up another cycle tourer who was on his way to Nice. We had a nice chat all the way up the hill into Les Gets, where he headed off into the town centre and I set off down the 13km descent out of the mountains into Taninges, quickly followed by a small Col before descending down into the large valley and into Cluses. From there I headed west towards Amancy, where I began climbing another Col to cross into another valley on my way to Annecy. After quite a lot more climbing and descending, I dropped down into the centre of Annecy, where I found hundreds of other cyclists, who were gathered for the amateur stage of the Tour de France, where anyone can enter and ride the stage around the mountains that the tour will do. Unsurprisingly, a lot of the campsites were full so I climbed away from the lake and found a little campsite in a village about half and hour away.
Things started well the next morning. I adjusted my gears as they were jumping slightly, which improved them significantly but as I was putting my tent away, one of the poles broke. I made my way to Chambery, where I found an outdoor shop (although it was a few miles outside the centre, up a hill and in the wrong direction) and replaced the pole, also getting a camping stool for 5 euros so I would no longer have to sit on the floor! Just as I as leaving, one of the 2 clips fell off my bar bag and as I just started to descend after climbing another Col to get out of Chambery, I nearly fell off my bike as my shoe got stuck in my pedals. Fortunately, I managed to force the shoe off the pedal - I was sat by the road in my sock - and tighten the cleat back up. After a day of breaking things (I was surprised I didn't get my first puncture!), I arrived in a little village, where I had a couple of beers in a café, whilst watching Chris Froome destroy everyone in Ax 3 Domaines.
Day 43 started with a morning of cruising along the flat before turning off and heading into some more mountains after lunch. No officials Cols were climbed but the road was never flat, seeming to be more uphill than down, especially as it was 40°C! The day after followed a very similar pattern, although I did 10 more miles (71 in total) thanks to racing along at 20mph for a couple of hours. I decided to cut the corner off the valley, instead of going all the way to Avignon, so I ended up climbing for a while before stopping at a campsite with a pool (their sign was right at the top of a hill and the thought of jumping in a pool was far too tempting!)
My pitch was right next to a Belgium caravan and I was just about to jump in the pool after my tent was up, when the owner came out and offered me a bottle of coke - I must've looked quite tired and hot. I declined in the standard British way and he said that if there was anything I needed then just ask! After my swim, I went to wash my biking clothes but, unlike most campsites, there was no powder/tablets and you couldn't buy them either. They very kindly gave me some powder, refusing to accept anything in return and also invited me for tea as they were going to have a barbeque. I cooked my pasta just before and took it over so I had at least something to give them and we (the two of them and their 3 young children) had a lovely evening eating food, chatting and then watching the amazing thunder and lightning storm that was passing across us in the distance!
Fortunately, we barely got any rain and I awoke to another really hot day, which was a lot slower than the previous one. My legs started to weaken up any sort of incline but I still managed 70 miles following the Tour de France's route along the coast and headed straight into the centre of Montpellier. I found a nice campsite just outside the city and had a nice relaxing evening pitched in the picnic area, where the campsite owner had let me stay as it was the only place left that had any shade.
I ignored my alarm to get up for bread the next morning and slept in as I only had 2 gentle days to go until I reached my Gran's house near Perpignan. I had an apple pastry, minus the apple (I was not happy about that at all), in the next village and cruised down the coast towards Bezier. I turned off the route before I got too far into the city, bought some fresh food for lunch and had a nice hour eating and resting by the side of the Canal du Midi in Villeneuve-les-Beziers. After blasting down the large, straight A road to Narbonne, sat in the slipstream of a vineyard tractor, I slowly made my way through the city and followed the coast to a campsite next to the 'Reserve Africano' near Sigean, where I spent an uncomfortable night's sleep lying on a gravel surface. Up quickly the next morning, I turned off into the hills and made my way through 30 miles of up and down through valleys, before I arrived at my Gran's in Cucugnan, just in time for lunch.
Wednesday, 17 July 2013
Thursday, 4 July 2013
First leg finished!
Day 28 was the third day in a row that I only managed to ride into the thirties (of miles) as I was taking it nice and steady to avoid having to wait on my own in the chalet in Morzine for too long. I cut across a couple of valleys on small roads from Moudon, then descended off the mountains into Vevey on the shore of Lac Leman. I wandered around the market there and bought a couple of bits to throw in my pasta before following the cycle and footpath right beside the lake into Montreux. I sourced some camping and internet in the TI (tourist info) there - I only checked my emails on the computer as it was stupidly expensive to use - and then got back on the cycle path and followed it past the Chateau de Chillon and into Villeneuve.
I had a small salad and beer in a cafe beside the lake whilst I read my book for a couple of hours to kill some time before I set off for the campsite on the other side of town. I set up camp and just as I was finishing cooking my pasta, the girl from the caravan next to me turned up with a friend and, after seeing me sat on the floor eating my food on my own, asked if I wanted to join them for a drink. I spent an hour chatting to Alexis, whose caravan it was (she was living in it as living in Montreux is very expensive), and through her, Crystal (she didn't speak any English), before they invited me to come along with them to the music festival which was on in town centre. The evening involved me meeting all of their friends, chatting about my trip and other random things, drinking port and dancing to versions of songs like 'Back In The USSR' sung with heavy french accents! We got back to the campsite and carrying on talking round her table before finally going to bed at 2.30am.
I woke before my alarm at 11 and once I had got out of my tent and seen that the weather was grey and overcast, I decided I was going to cycle all the way to the chalet and be warm and dry instead of paying to possibly get wet in a campsite. I followed the lakeside road all the way from Montreux to Thonon-les-Bains, stopping in Evian for a coffee, sandwich and bottle of water. From Thonon, I cycled all the way up the Gorges du Pont du Diable, which wasn't too bad as it was nice and cool (it gently rained on me just as I was entering Evian but had stopped by then) and I had the incentive of a hot shower and a proper bed to sleep in! I made it to the Lac de Montriond for half 5 and because I had no food (small supermarkets are closed on sundays), I had a nice plate of roasted duck in a green peppercorn sauce (surprisingly one of the cheapest on the menu) before jumping back on the bike for the 10 minute pedal up to the chalet, where I crashed out after reading my book in a nice double bed!
The next 4 days were spent chilling out in the chalet and down by the lake, eating a variety of foods that had nothing to do with pasta (homemade burgers with all the trimmings, horse sausages etc...), cycling the 'Col de la Jeux Verte' in both directions, once without any extra weight on my bike at all and wandering around Morzine. On day 34, James/Bob/Tom2 arrived with a pink van load of bikes in the evening and after the morning emptying the van and getting my back wheel (on my road bike) straightened in Morzine, the rest of the Thirsty Knights arrived in the rain and we spent the evening in the chalet being highly entertained by a certain someone and a bottle of gin!
Days 36, 37 and 38 were all spent on the mountain bike on the downhill trails around Les Gets, Morzine, Chatel and Morgins. The weather was brilliant, the biking was even better, nobody came off and badly hurt themselves and only one expensive, carbon bike was snapped in half!
Everybody left to fly back to England on the wednesday, leaving me all on my own and feeling a bit lonely after 5 days of company. I spent a good few hours cleaning and maintaining the bike, ready for the next leg down to Perpignan and the Mediterranean and the rest of the day relaxing, as I have done today. I am now packed and ready to set off, leaving early tomorrow morning and heading towards Annecy and, for the first time since the first post, I am now completely up to date!
Total mileage covered: ~1200 miles.
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| View of Lac Leman from the cafe in Villeneuve |
I had a small salad and beer in a cafe beside the lake whilst I read my book for a couple of hours to kill some time before I set off for the campsite on the other side of town. I set up camp and just as I was finishing cooking my pasta, the girl from the caravan next to me turned up with a friend and, after seeing me sat on the floor eating my food on my own, asked if I wanted to join them for a drink. I spent an hour chatting to Alexis, whose caravan it was (she was living in it as living in Montreux is very expensive), and through her, Crystal (she didn't speak any English), before they invited me to come along with them to the music festival which was on in town centre. The evening involved me meeting all of their friends, chatting about my trip and other random things, drinking port and dancing to versions of songs like 'Back In The USSR' sung with heavy french accents! We got back to the campsite and carrying on talking round her table before finally going to bed at 2.30am.
I woke before my alarm at 11 and once I had got out of my tent and seen that the weather was grey and overcast, I decided I was going to cycle all the way to the chalet and be warm and dry instead of paying to possibly get wet in a campsite. I followed the lakeside road all the way from Montreux to Thonon-les-Bains, stopping in Evian for a coffee, sandwich and bottle of water. From Thonon, I cycled all the way up the Gorges du Pont du Diable, which wasn't too bad as it was nice and cool (it gently rained on me just as I was entering Evian but had stopped by then) and I had the incentive of a hot shower and a proper bed to sleep in! I made it to the Lac de Montriond for half 5 and because I had no food (small supermarkets are closed on sundays), I had a nice plate of roasted duck in a green peppercorn sauce (surprisingly one of the cheapest on the menu) before jumping back on the bike for the 10 minute pedal up to the chalet, where I crashed out after reading my book in a nice double bed!
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| Arriving at L'Eau Vive in Ardent, nr Morzine (can be hired out - see http://www.familyski.co.uk) |
The next 4 days were spent chilling out in the chalet and down by the lake, eating a variety of foods that had nothing to do with pasta (homemade burgers with all the trimmings, horse sausages etc...), cycling the 'Col de la Jeux Verte' in both directions, once without any extra weight on my bike at all and wandering around Morzine. On day 34, James/Bob/Tom2 arrived with a pink van load of bikes in the evening and after the morning emptying the van and getting my back wheel (on my road bike) straightened in Morzine, the rest of the Thirsty Knights arrived in the rain and we spent the evening in the chalet being highly entertained by a certain someone and a bottle of gin!
Days 36, 37 and 38 were all spent on the mountain bike on the downhill trails around Les Gets, Morzine, Chatel and Morgins. The weather was brilliant, the biking was even better, nobody came off and badly hurt themselves and only one expensive, carbon bike was snapped in half!
Everybody left to fly back to England on the wednesday, leaving me all on my own and feeling a bit lonely after 5 days of company. I spent a good few hours cleaning and maintaining the bike, ready for the next leg down to Perpignan and the Mediterranean and the rest of the day relaxing, as I have done today. I am now packed and ready to set off, leaving early tomorrow morning and heading towards Annecy and, for the first time since the first post, I am now completely up to date!
Total mileage covered: ~1200 miles.
The Storm
The morning's ride out of Basel was a gentle climb through a large valley, all the way to Delemont, where I had a couple of brioche I bought from a petrol station and a coke whilst sat in the nice comfy seats outside a McDonalds. The landscape opened out onto a small plain before I was plunged into a steep gorge that ran from Moutier to Court. I arrived in Court at lunch time so whilst drinking a coffee and eating a bowl of chips from a small cafe, I studied my map and decided to take the mountain road to Grenchen instead of following the valley through a pass all the way to Bienne. I slightly underestimated the climb - it was about 8 miles in total and took me just under 2 hours due to the road being extremely steep, which meant that I could only just crawl up it, standing on my pedals and in my lowest gear! A bit of pushing at the steepest part and a couple of stops were needed but I soon got to the top, covered in sweat thanks to being out in the sun for most of the way up. The climb wasn't too bad overall though and picturesque mountain top scenery made my decision to climb the right one. The meadow that was situated right beside a large cliff had stunning views of the valley below, which had small towns dotted along the river that snaked its way through the middle it and a row of snow covered mountains that rose up on the other side of the valley. I easily decided that I was going to camp on top of the mountain as it was also slightly later than I had planned due to the amount of time it took me to get up there!
There was a walking path right along the edge of the cliff where, on a small patch of grass behind a couple of trees, there was a fire pit and the remains of a fire, so I cooked my pasta on a small campfire which I built instead of using my gas cooker. It was easily the best camping spot I'd been in all trip but because of the fire, the steep climb in the sun and the lack of shower, I planned the next day as a small ride into Bienne where I would stop at a campsite beside the lake and wash all of my stuff.
I got up early as it was a bit cold and I was pitched right beside a footpath but that wouldn't have been a problem as the fog had come in and you couldn't see more than 10m right on the very top. I blasted down the mountain, maxing out at 40.1mph and only taking 17 minutes to do 7.5 miles before rolling nicely down the valley and into Bienne, where I stopped and had a couple of croissants and a coffee for breakfast. Because it was only 9.30am by this point, I changed my plan and rode all the way round the lake to Erlach instead, where I pitched the tent in a campsite that was 10 seconds walk from the water's edge. I bought some fresh bread and had a nice couple of sandwiches before I washed my clothes and had a shower just after I had gone for a swim in the lake.
It got to 6 in the evening before the weather turned. Black clouds appeared over the mountains, the wind picked up significantly so I got myself into my tent and packed everything up so it was nice and waterproof inside my panniers. The wind increased again then 5 minutes later, it rained and hailed like I have never seen it before. Within 10 minutes of it starting, I was lifted off the ground inside my tent as the water flooded the campsite and my tent, along with a few others, became absolutely swamped. After 45 minutes of being perched on my sleeping mat, trying not to get wet, it finally stopped so I got out and headed over to the reception. I chatted up the young receptionist, who had registered me and was impressed when she asked about my trip, to see if there was somewhere I could move my tent to that wasn't underwater. She disappeared into the office for about a minute then came out waving a set of keys at me. She said that she didn't want to see my cycling with all my stuff wet through so was letting me sleep in the static caravan that wasn't being rented out as a free upgrade! After moving and unpacking all my stuff, which covered the inside of the caravan, I had a burger from the restaurant as, even though I was still in Switzerland, it was cheap and warm then had another shower and went to sleep in the warm and dry!
I woke up to another beautifully sunny day so I managed to dry my tent inner and outer while I packed up and got ready to leave. A relatively uneventful day's riding later, I arrived in Moudon, where I set up camp in a cheap but nice campsite right beside a small river, another lovely place to camp for the third day in a row (if you ignore the rain).
There was a walking path right along the edge of the cliff where, on a small patch of grass behind a couple of trees, there was a fire pit and the remains of a fire, so I cooked my pasta on a small campfire which I built instead of using my gas cooker. It was easily the best camping spot I'd been in all trip but because of the fire, the steep climb in the sun and the lack of shower, I planned the next day as a small ride into Bienne where I would stop at a campsite beside the lake and wash all of my stuff.
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| View off the top of the mountain (camera doesn't quite do it justice...) |
I got up early as it was a bit cold and I was pitched right beside a footpath but that wouldn't have been a problem as the fog had come in and you couldn't see more than 10m right on the very top. I blasted down the mountain, maxing out at 40.1mph and only taking 17 minutes to do 7.5 miles before rolling nicely down the valley and into Bienne, where I stopped and had a couple of croissants and a coffee for breakfast. Because it was only 9.30am by this point, I changed my plan and rode all the way round the lake to Erlach instead, where I pitched the tent in a campsite that was 10 seconds walk from the water's edge. I bought some fresh bread and had a nice couple of sandwiches before I washed my clothes and had a shower just after I had gone for a swim in the lake.
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| Before the storm |
It got to 6 in the evening before the weather turned. Black clouds appeared over the mountains, the wind picked up significantly so I got myself into my tent and packed everything up so it was nice and waterproof inside my panniers. The wind increased again then 5 minutes later, it rained and hailed like I have never seen it before. Within 10 minutes of it starting, I was lifted off the ground inside my tent as the water flooded the campsite and my tent, along with a few others, became absolutely swamped. After 45 minutes of being perched on my sleeping mat, trying not to get wet, it finally stopped so I got out and headed over to the reception. I chatted up the young receptionist, who had registered me and was impressed when she asked about my trip, to see if there was somewhere I could move my tent to that wasn't underwater. She disappeared into the office for about a minute then came out waving a set of keys at me. She said that she didn't want to see my cycling with all my stuff wet through so was letting me sleep in the static caravan that wasn't being rented out as a free upgrade! After moving and unpacking all my stuff, which covered the inside of the caravan, I had a burger from the restaurant as, even though I was still in Switzerland, it was cheap and warm then had another shower and went to sleep in the warm and dry!
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| A little bit of water got into my tent |
Wednesday, 3 July 2013
Into Switzerland
After a pain au chocolat from the campsite's boulangerie van, I set off in the already quite intense sun to Strasbourg. Shortly after leaving, I was caught up by a road cyclist who asked me where I was headed and when he found out I was going to Strasbourg, told me to follow him to the canal, where the best path into the city was. After about 10 miles of towpath, I arrived in Strasbourg at the EU Parliament building, just beside the canal. I meandered through the city for an hour or so in the general direction of Kehl then I crossed the Rhine back into Germany, stopping to have a coffee on the river bank before following the cycle path south along the river.
After swapping back to the road due to the deterioration of the cycling track, which my thin road tyres couldn't manage, I cycled parallel to the river for another 40 or so miles, ending up in Breisach. I found a TI and set off towards a campsite just outside the town but I stopped at an ice-cream cafe on my way as it was hot and still quite early in the afternoon. I had just ordered a couple of scoops of mango ice cream when a middle aged couple came and sat next to me. They noticed my bike, fully loaded up with all my stuff, then the woman asked me where I was headed - I replied with the standard explanation of what I was doing and where I was going which they both found really interesting. We chatted for about an hour about traveling (they had done some together when they were younger), politics (I mentioned than I had just come through Strasbourg) and various other topics and then she said that they only lived 20 minutes away by train and would I like to come for tea and sleep for the night. Unfortunately, it was 20 minutes in the direction I had just come from and I had also just been to a corner shop and bought some cheese and meat for tea, so I declined my first invitation to a bed for the night due to it costing me more in train tickets than if I were to sleep in a B&B and headed off to the campsite.
I arrived, paid and got given directions for my pitch, which happened to be right beside another cycle tourer on one side and a 2cver on the other. They were both German, the tourer was a 60 year old man who was cycling from Munich to Paris and the 2cver was in his early thirties and had just been to a local meeting (although he lived 500 miles away from it) and was heading home. We sat around the tree by the tourer's tent having our tea and had a nice evening talking about bikes and 2cvs, whilst bathed in the evening sunshine.
Up early the next morning, due to the 25°C at 9.30, I waved goodbye to the tourer who was having a day off, had an apple strudel from the Bakery in the village and set off towards Basel and the mountains. Unsurprisingly, it was a slow and small day, only 47 miles covered, due to the unbelievable heat. Still following the Rhine all the way into Basel, I wandered around the city until I eventually found the TI, after getting shouted out in German by an old man who wasn't very happy that I was on my bike! (I have no idea why it was such a bad thing, there were other people cycling around in the same direction I was...?) I did a page of my blog and my emails in an internet cafe, where a Scottish man bought me a drink and paid for my internet usage after he asked me why I was riding my bike in this heat (I must've looked a tad warm when I walked into the cafe). I thanked him for paying for me, to which he replied: "Not all Scots are cheapskate bastards"!
I stayed in a campsite in Reinach, 15 minutes or so bike/tram ride out of the city, and for the second night in a row, I was camped next to another cycle tourer. Filippo, the Italian living in Fribourg, was on his third day of a tour very similar to mine but going anti-clockwise round Europe instead of my clockwise route. Filippo and I spent the whole evening talking and eating (I was blessed with the luxury of olive oil in my pasta) so, after swapping emails, I got to bed much later than planned so I decided to have another rest day, giving me the opportunity to explore Basel and kill some more time so I didn't arrive too early in Morzine.
I woke to the sounds of Filippo packing his tent so I got up, said goodbye to him and went to the toilet/shower block where I found a small bookshelf that had some English books in. I grabbed a couple of books for something to do in the evenings, packed a few things into my bar bag and jumped on the tram into the city. I spent the day wandering about - I went back to the cafe with the computer to buy the Scottish man a drink (I had some Swiss Franks by this point) but unfortunately he wasn't there so instead I sat on a cafe terrace right by the river, had lunch, a coffee and a beer whilst reading my book for a couple of hours in the sun. Back at the campsite, I had a nice tea with bits and pieces I bought from the market, I finished the first book so I didn't have to carry it around then I went to sleep earlier in preparation for riding into the mountains in the morning.
After swapping back to the road due to the deterioration of the cycling track, which my thin road tyres couldn't manage, I cycled parallel to the river for another 40 or so miles, ending up in Breisach. I found a TI and set off towards a campsite just outside the town but I stopped at an ice-cream cafe on my way as it was hot and still quite early in the afternoon. I had just ordered a couple of scoops of mango ice cream when a middle aged couple came and sat next to me. They noticed my bike, fully loaded up with all my stuff, then the woman asked me where I was headed - I replied with the standard explanation of what I was doing and where I was going which they both found really interesting. We chatted for about an hour about traveling (they had done some together when they were younger), politics (I mentioned than I had just come through Strasbourg) and various other topics and then she said that they only lived 20 minutes away by train and would I like to come for tea and sleep for the night. Unfortunately, it was 20 minutes in the direction I had just come from and I had also just been to a corner shop and bought some cheese and meat for tea, so I declined my first invitation to a bed for the night due to it costing me more in train tickets than if I were to sleep in a B&B and headed off to the campsite.
I arrived, paid and got given directions for my pitch, which happened to be right beside another cycle tourer on one side and a 2cver on the other. They were both German, the tourer was a 60 year old man who was cycling from Munich to Paris and the 2cver was in his early thirties and had just been to a local meeting (although he lived 500 miles away from it) and was heading home. We sat around the tree by the tourer's tent having our tea and had a nice evening talking about bikes and 2cvs, whilst bathed in the evening sunshine.
Up early the next morning, due to the 25°C at 9.30, I waved goodbye to the tourer who was having a day off, had an apple strudel from the Bakery in the village and set off towards Basel and the mountains. Unsurprisingly, it was a slow and small day, only 47 miles covered, due to the unbelievable heat. Still following the Rhine all the way into Basel, I wandered around the city until I eventually found the TI, after getting shouted out in German by an old man who wasn't very happy that I was on my bike! (I have no idea why it was such a bad thing, there were other people cycling around in the same direction I was...?) I did a page of my blog and my emails in an internet cafe, where a Scottish man bought me a drink and paid for my internet usage after he asked me why I was riding my bike in this heat (I must've looked a tad warm when I walked into the cafe). I thanked him for paying for me, to which he replied: "Not all Scots are cheapskate bastards"!
I stayed in a campsite in Reinach, 15 minutes or so bike/tram ride out of the city, and for the second night in a row, I was camped next to another cycle tourer. Filippo, the Italian living in Fribourg, was on his third day of a tour very similar to mine but going anti-clockwise round Europe instead of my clockwise route. Filippo and I spent the whole evening talking and eating (I was blessed with the luxury of olive oil in my pasta) so, after swapping emails, I got to bed much later than planned so I decided to have another rest day, giving me the opportunity to explore Basel and kill some more time so I didn't arrive too early in Morzine.
I woke to the sounds of Filippo packing his tent so I got up, said goodbye to him and went to the toilet/shower block where I found a small bookshelf that had some English books in. I grabbed a couple of books for something to do in the evenings, packed a few things into my bar bag and jumped on the tram into the city. I spent the day wandering about - I went back to the cafe with the computer to buy the Scottish man a drink (I had some Swiss Franks by this point) but unfortunately he wasn't there so instead I sat on a cafe terrace right by the river, had lunch, a coffee and a beer whilst reading my book for a couple of hours in the sun. Back at the campsite, I had a nice tea with bits and pieces I bought from the market, I finished the first book so I didn't have to carry it around then I went to sleep earlier in preparation for riding into the mountains in the morning.
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