geeteetravels

As it turns out cold poireaux et roquefort pizza is not that desirable for breakfast so we headed to the supermarché to buy the usual supplies. Today promised to be an easy day’s ride (no, really) and the sun was shining so we were feeling good. Today’s ride highlight was the small village of Ambialet located at a pinch point of an oxbow on the river Tarn. We approached from the North and high above the river where there was a great view of the area. It is a beautiful spot with a chateau sitting right on the narrowest bit between the two parts of the Tarn, but it is also interesting from an engineer’s point of view. What do you do with 2 big water streams, one perpetually a couple of meters higher than the other? Well, for the last millennia you power a mill, but now you make electricity, a tiny hydro-electric station.
After a casual lunch and café in that spot we drifted down the river into Albi. Our hotel is in a nice spot with our room overlooking one of the main squares. The first thing we saw was a large wedding party having photos taken. After the photos the bride and groom and wedding party went through the large crowd (~100) doing the traditional triple cheek kiss. I noticed it was actually everyone greeting everyone else in the same way. Do the math! How many kisses took place? 🙂 Later we would see the same wedding party in the Cathedral St. Cecile, one of the 2 signature attractions of Albi, the second being the museum and gallery of the native Toulouse Lautrec.
The Cathedral is something to behold, said to be the largest brick cathedral in the world, with a few quirky add-ons as well.
We walked around the medieval old town and soon saw there would be music (again!) from various stages being set up, what luck. There was something more though as a group of men arranged part of a tree and a lot of wood for a bonfire. We managed to chat with a man who  explained in rapid french it was the fête de feu de Saint Jean, and there would be music, dancing, a torch procession with children, and the big bonfire. And so there was!

Descending towards Ambialet and the Tarn river.

Water is generated flowing under the chateau you see.

We had to climb, on foot, to get to this viewpoint.

Us, blocking the view.

You can get a sense of the size of the cathedral.

There will be fire tonight.

A band playing traditional occitan music, with people dancing up front.

Children with open torches; could this happen at home?

And finally the big burn.

We left Millau and began our ascent immediately.  We were able to get a good view of the viaduct once out of the city.  It would have been nice to be a bit closer but it would have taken us a fair way off our route and we had a good distance to go so opted not to.  This initial climb was 300m and we thought that would be most of it in the 63km ride.  But we are finding that it is difficult to find accurate altitude data.  We became concerned when we suddenly descended almost 200m into a village and then were faced with another 450m climb out of there and to the top of a pass.  It was a very green and scenic forested area but it took all our energy.  George joked that we surely wouldn’t have to climb up to where the windmills were, but in fact we did, hence all the windmill photos.  Once up top we did basically drop for the remainder of the ride today, passing through more forests and then farm land.  It reminded me of the terrain in Manitoba.
There is another music festival here, in Réquista tonight, again celebrating the beginning of summer. 
(later) So it turns out the quality of the music in tiny Réquista is much better than in Millau! We listened to a 5 piece jazz group, then a chanteur and violinist. All the while we were sitting outside a pub having drinks to go with our pizza from a food truck (très bien) , the only restaurant option available.

Distant view of the viaduc as we climb out of Millau.

Tara dishes out one of our 2 daily chocolate rations. We can't climb hills without it.

By the end of the day it was windmills, more bloody windmills.

Pizza truck, the only game in town.

These jazz boys were terrific!

A beautiful sunny warm morning for a bike ride today. As is our custom we head to a local grocer to pick up supplies for breakfast and lunch. Typically that is: bananas, apricots, nectarines, yoghurt, and a liter of juice, half going in our water bottles. GG also finds a boulangerie for a croissant now and a baguette to have for lunch. Today the grocer had almost no produce; we suspected all the hikers in town had got there before us and made off with the beautiful French apricots we’d been enjoying so much.
Onwards and back climbing right out of town, as expected, to burn off last night’s smoked salmon/goat cheese pizza. We are really(!) developing a taste for chèvre. We knew it should not be a hard day after the initial climb and for once that is the way it turned out. It was hot and we were tempted to jump in the river we were tracking alongside at one point. Great gorge type scenery again, and for the last day on this trip as we cycled out into the wider valley where Millau sits. Millau was on the agenda because of the viaduc, a new bridge which is the highest in the world from its base in the valley to the top of the pylons. See the wikipedia link for all the stats but it is stunning! Wiki link Pictures tomorrow.
It also turns out that on the first day of summer in France there is a  fête de musique, and Millau is no exception. During the evening we wandered over the old town listening to all kinds of music from local bands and clubs, and every old boys rock and roll garage band for miles around. Great fun!

Wild-flowery field.

Tara's cushy office space.

Cantobre - a tiny village perched on a hill, and a great lunch stop.

The view over Millau after climbing the Tour Rois d'Aragon.

Millau was rockin' with all types of music tonight. Love the whole sheep bagpipes!

The rhythm section.

Every garage band in town was on the street.

We started the day with a 6km, 450m climb to the causse Mejean, the plateau at the top of the gorge.  It was a steep hill with many switchbacks and it took about 75 min. to do.  I think it even surprised George how hard it was. He said it wouldn’t be too bad before we started, I was a bit worried by the look of it.  He always says if the map and the terrain differ, believe the terrain.  I have my own version: if what George says and the terrain differ believe the terrain. However
climbing up always gives you marvelous vistas and we were not disappointed.  We rode across the top and then down the other side, again a spectacular view of the Gorge du Tarn below.  While on top we passed an aerodrome where gliders were being launched, quite fascinating to see.  Coming down these steep switchback roads is tricky on this long and heavily laden bike.  We have to use the extra drum brake on the back wheel or the brake pads on the wheels could potentially heat up the tires and cause a blowout.  I also feel a bit uneasy as I have no controls and must trust my captain, which I do mostly. 
After descending from the causse we rode along the bottom of the gorge enjoying the beauty of the mountains, river, cornices and the  pinnacle rock formations. We passed an area where vultures nest in the cliffs.  There were many circling around overhead; maybe they thought we weren’t going to make it.
We were supposed to continue in this fashion until reaching our destination for the evening but once again George and the terrain differed and we had to do some more climbing at the end of the day after already riding 60kms.  We were très fatigué when we finally arrived, 78 kms and a total ascent of 970 m. 
We had a well deserved cold drink as soon as possible once in Meyrueis, although George had difficulty communicating that he wanted a grande biere and got a petite.  We do struggle with French.
For supper we  had pizza with smoked salmon and goat cheese, a big salad, and a chocolate and coconut crepe for dessert.  Yum!

About half way up the 6km climb out of Florac.

Nearly back on top; breakfast calories totally blown already.

Up on the causse where we watched gliders getting towed up into the thermals. At the same time we could see the real master gliders - many eagles.

Switchbacking our way down off the causse.

Gorgeous (pun alert) little town of Maléne on the floor of the gorge.

It was a relaxed start since we were only doing a bit more than 30km after yesterday’s hard slog into the hills. But then as I was pushing a little more air into the back tire with my new pump, pffftttt. No problem, dig out the spare made in France Michelin tube, and away we go … up. Up and up, for the first 13km and 600m vertical. The weather was overcast and rainy in spots so decidedly a change but not really a bother when you’re climbing and sweating anyway. Beautiful mountain (low mountains anyway, still only the altitude of Calgary) country with grazing cattle and goats alongside. All that cheese has to come from somewhere. After the big drop from the top I upshifted and lost the chain. Unfortunately it also got twisted in the jam so it was jumping gears. We made it to our hotel in Florac mostly drifting anyway. Our hotelier did not know of any bike shops and I thought we would need a new chain – ouch! Luckily I found it was only 1 link damaged and I had a spare so un bien réparer et un autre problème résolu.
Florac is a lovely mountain town with a lot of hikers evident. We are in the Cévennes national park so a lot of trails and organization for the tourists.
We took a walk around town but had to duck into a café for an aperitif due to the occasional shower. We also found a very small but well equipped bike shop so I restocked a second spare tube. I could have bought a chain too but declined since we are fixed.
We went for the restaurant in the hotel with good success for dinner. We need high quality fuel to climb up the ridge dominating the town, first thing in the a.m.

You will notice how we are nearly the highest thing around.

Today we looked for a bit of protection from the rain during our lunch stop.

And more rain protection when we were wandering around Florac.

Florac is at the bottom; guess where we go tomorrow.

The spring which is the basis for the town being here historically.

Today was a day of monter, monter, monter as we have now entered the Cevennes mountains.  We climbed about 1000 meters, rode over two passes, and enjoyed beautiful mountainous terrain.  There were also moutaintop villages and villas to take in but unfortunately no bars or cafes to get our daily quotient of café, bierre and vin.  It seems that Sundays and Mondays are the days of rest in this area.  Luckily we found groceries this morning and there is one restaurant in this village that was open for supper.  However there was only us and one other couple eating so the service was good.  It is always an adventure in these places with our limited French.  Tonight we got a bit of help from the waiter who could speak a little English.  I had a goat cheese and tomato terrine then a chicken and mushroom dish while George had a scallop and leek entree and then cod with a mustard sauce.  We had creme brulee for dessert.
Tomorrow we climb some more but not as much on our way to Florac.

A lovely country house with a great terraced garden including a LOT of potatoes.

Nearly all buildings here are constructed of local stone; some get plastered over, some not.

Many small breaks today. Here we are a few kms short of the first summit.

This spot ranks as one of the most picturesque for a picnique.

At our stop for the night in St. André-de-Valborgne.

Away from the coast and back into the hills we headed today. After our experience with entering Montpellier we were wary of getting misguided on the way out but we didn’t have the same trouble. Sundays in Europe can be tricky with store and restaurant closures but we had sussed out a nearby marché which opened just a bit later today. We purchased our customary breakfast items, ate a final time in the place de la comedie, and hit the road. It was to be a hot day, about 30°, and we would be climbing so a bit tough but not real far at 50km. About half way to Ganges there is a mountain called pic saint loup which I thought we were going around but it was more like over. We had an excellent “pause café” in a village which had a morning market and lots of people about. The road we chose was busy with people out to do something on a beautiful day, none of the normal truck traffic. As we got closer to Ganges we went through a small gorge with people swimming and kayaking in the fast creek below. Great idea today. We rolled into Ganges about 3 with the hotel not open until 4. What to do on a hot sunny day with an outdoor shaded brasserie close at hand?
We did find a restaurant open for supper. Nice too, old school husband and wife team and we sat in the back garden. Tara had an entire trout. Later we saw many of its brothers/sisters swimming in the river while we were on an evening stroll. But the best part of the meal was Poire-Belle-Hélene for dessert. Pears, chocolate sauce, ice cream, and whipped cream. Yum. Sorry no picture.

The view into la place de la comedie from our hotel balcony.

Looking back at pic saint loup and the climb mostly done.

Kayaking fun in the Hèrault river (not us).

Today was spent exploring the old city section of  Montpellier.  We found this city’s version of the Arc de Triomph as well as a statue of Louis the XIV.  There is also an aqueduct that looks like Pont du Gard but is smaller.  There’s a school of medicine here that dates from the 12th century.  It has an adjoining botanical garden that was and is still used for the study of medicinal plants.  Apparently in 1181 when the school was opened anyone, regardless of religion or background could teach at the school.  Hopefully their requirements are higher now.
After lunch we visited the Fabre museum.  They have a good collection of art there but I find these smaller galleries less interesting once you have visited those in Paris and London. 
Next we did a little shopping for shorts for George so he has more than one thing to wear other than his bike shorts, swim trunks, or PJ’s when we arrive at our destination.  So much for the ultra light packing method.  We found something suitable at the local Galleries Lafayette.
Now we are off to find supper again.  When traveling like this it is a constant search for food, shelter and WC’s. George found one of his favorites, moule frites.

Bright Saturday morning having our petit déjeuner in the place de la comedie.

Everywhere there were impromptu marchés, sorta' like garage sales 🙂

The sun king needed his statue to be higher than everything else of course.

New shorts. Quel excitement!

Hitting at least some of the food groups with this meal.

We left Sète after 2 good days, but we had to cross 5 bridges within the first 2 km to do it. Why some marketing genius has not “rebranded” Sète as the Venice of Languedoc I don’t know.
Onwards east and north on a beautiful morning with an onshore crosswind which didn’t bother us. We stayed close to the sea and the saltwater lakes just inland. Montpellier is only 10km from the sea and there is a long line of beach apartments and the beachy  accoutrements. Once we had our typical lunch of yogurt, fruit, and sandwich or croissant (GG only) we headed inland. Today we were on bike trails paralleling the road for much of the time and here as well. We passed by a big shopping mall so I went in search of a pressure gauge for the tires which I suspected of being low. I left one at home in the interests of light weight but that was a mistake. I found a small high pressure pump with a built-in gauge and got the tires up to a more reasonable state.
We became thoroughly confused once closer in to town. The roads became a mass of tram lines and pedestrians and clearly the terrain was not matching the map (in these cases always believe the terrain). We later found out that a very large central area has been declared a car free zone! Very nice. Montpellier appears very modern compared to other towns in France, perhaps because it only dates to the middle ages and not Roman times? We took another “petit train” tour to get a quick overview and went in search of supper. New rule; when there are thousands of restaurants only look at a maximum of 4 before choosing!

Early morning crowd at the petit marché on our way out of Sète.

Another day, et la mer encore with a lesser model for the photo.

You meet the nicest people on the place de la comedie in Montpellier.

The beautiful tramway which winds its way into the place de la comedie.

Believe it or not that is not a church in the background.

We started this beautiful morning by climbing up Mont St. Clair.  This gave us a great view of the land and water around Sète.  The city is almost completely surrounded by water: canals, rivers, etang (large pond) and the Mediterranean.  It was a good climb up, so much for our day of rest.  Next we descended the other side to again find la mer et la plage.  It was a nice sunny day, about 25°, but the water was icey, so no swimming, only wading.  Then we walked back into the centre ville area and treated ourselves to an ice cream sundae in a café along the waters edge.  We spent a little time looking for some new shorts for George but weren’t successful.  He is actually getting tired of the one pair of shorts he brought (other than his cycling shorts).  He was bragging about his lightweight pack but now is wishing he had a bit more along. 
There is so much activity along the canals here. Check out the rowboat races we encountered both evenings.

The well earned view looking northeast towards Montpellier, our next destination.

Out behind Tara you can just make out where there is some intensive oyster farming in the Etang.

Looking back west and the beaches we rode beside yesterday.

On one of the many beaches around Sète.

The harbour is truly a busy place, full of fishermen and commercial traffic.

Both evenings we were here saw boat races in the canal close by the hotel. Unfortunately we missed the famous water jousting Sète is famous for.