Balades aux Croissants

When I booked the travel arrangements for this trip, I booked an extra night in the Bédoin hotel to give me the opportunity to tackle Mont Ventoux if the weather and legs cooperated. The weather was perfect with no danger of my ‘large body mass’ (thanks Big Bro!) overheating. I gave the legs a decent warm up and the opportunity to refuse to climb, but they seemed happy enough up the Col de la Madeleine so I pootled up the Mont from Malaucene. The 12% parts were definitely more of a grind than a pootle, but I continued to munch peanut M&Ms all the way up - I have discovered a hamster style store and munch approach which seems to work. The 21km climb took 2.5 hours and was weirdly enjoyable. The sense of satisfaction when I reached the top was definitely worth the effort. The summit was very busy with lots of joyful if wrecked cyclists. It was cold and windy at 1909m so I put my jacket on and started the long descent. I had to stop a couple of times to de-numb my hands but I managed ...

A day to remember! Such gorgeous riding through Provence in the sunshine, this is why I love riding a bike. The first 30km were flat through fruit farms and vineyards, I was in my very happy cycling head wobbling space. Coffee stop was in Gordes, a gorgeous Provençal medieval town, a few too many tourists but still beautiful. Meanwhile in my happy cycling dreamworld, I was plotting a move to Provence where I may have won the lottery… Onwards and upwards, the ride continued to be delightful. Lunch was in Venasque where the lovely Natalie had prepared a picnic with possibly the best view on the planet. It was an amazing ride today, I absolutely loved it. Today is the end of Stage 1 so Dylan and Megan hosted us for dinner at their gorgeous house in Mormoiran, it was a delightful evening and a very special end to this stage of the trip.

This morning was such a contrast to yesterday, I woke up refreshed and raring to go, possibly not all of my body parts agreed but it was a huge improvement. Last night’s hotel was a converted railway station with this poster in the bathroom that reminded me of Katie and Olivier’s engagement! The morning meeting with Guido’s delightful illustrations: I chose not to go to the Pont du Gard as I have been twice before and suspected it would be rather more inundated with tourists than it was in 2020… It was a gorgeous, easy ride with enough undulations to keep it interesting and beautiful countryside. The coffee stop had the best pain aux raisins so far on this trip. It was an early finish so the rooms weren’t ready when we arrived. It wasn’t exactly a hardship to hang out by the pool and cuddle the resident cat. I had a wander around town, bought my boulangerie dinner and essential rehydration.

I woke up knackered which is never a good start to a long cycling day. Even after a yummy breakfast, my legs properly sulked for the 1st 30km and I had to keep reminding myself how fortunate I am to be able to do these trips. Eventually the cycling happy head space arrived, helped by empty and beautiful Languedoc rolling countryside. It was the longest ride of the trip but less climbing than the early days (not surprisingly!) Still nabbing Col photos.. Lunch was at Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert, a beautiful medieval village that not surprisingly, was much quieter in September 2020. The skies were looking ominous as we cycled along the Gorges de Herault but it stayed dry for most of the ride. The speedier riders got caught in a huge storm but us mere mortals just had to ride through huge puddles! My room is on the ground floor with a huge shower room - my body is very happy with this arrangement.

I rode today’s route in September 2020 as part of a very exclusive Hannibal trip - just Neil and I as the two Brits who could travel. I remembered it being a delightful day on the bike and it didn’t disappoint today either. A quick zoom out of touristy Carcassonne and then onto beautifully quiet, rolling countryside. I feel like there has been a shortage of bike modelling pastry photos.. This was followed by a 20km mellow and delightful climb through forest, cycling at its absolute best. Natalie had prepared another delicious picnic, her salad combinations are so yummy. The ride then carried on being generally fabulous, arriving eventually at gorgeous Olargues, a medieval town perched on the side of a hill. I had a little nap (again!) then strolled across the bridge to find a beer with my biking colleagues. The hotel and restaurant are run by a Danish family and dinner was superb. A day to remember.