Pont du Gard

Day 381
Bagnols s Ceze to Lunel
Time: 5:04:00
Distance: 89.6 km
Avg Speed: 17.7 kph
Terrain: Flat

We’re back in the swing of things - two days in a row on the road. We also got back to eating our own breakfast rather than the hotel’s. The euro/dollar ratio is getting better but it’s still not in our favor. For the first time in over a week we started under a bluebird sky and warm temperatures.
Our route continued south and the tailwind made the short hills a little easier. We said goodbye to the Rhone River and headed towards the Gard River. Before riding on toward Nimes, we took a detour to another World Heritage site. I don’t know how many of these protected areas we’ve seen on our tour, but I think there has been one in almost every country.
Today we had the opportunity to visit the Pont du Gard. We’ve viewed this impressive structure during the Tour de France on television. It’s even more spectacular in person. The monument is also very beautiful in its simplicity. Part of a 50 kilometer long aqueduct system built by the Romans, the pont (bridge in French) took three years to build and employed 800-1,000 people. Each block of stone was cut to fit perfectly as no mortar was used in the construction. The bridge is three levels high with the top level being the water conduit. Today it is possible to tour this level which measures 6’ high by 4’ wide. The entire system supplied water to the Roman city of Nemausus (now Nimes) at a rate of 5 million gallons per day.
I think it’s good that we visited the site in October. The Pont du Gard is one of France’s top five tourist attractions and sees over 1.4 million visitors a year.
The landscape changed as we left the Gard River area and rode closer to Nimes. The small little villages were there, just overshadowed by urban development. Every once in awhile we would spot a church steeple or a clock tower.
By mid afternoon we were pedaling in shirt sleeves and taking advantage of the tailwind. No reason to stop early if your traveling over 20 kilometers per hour. It’s nice to feel like you’re not pedaling. We almost made 90 km by the time we found a hotel. We can’t seem to break away from the comfort of a bed with an attached bathroom. Maybe we’ll see about a campground tomorrow…maybe.

Happy Friday,
LK

Le Rhone a Velo

Days 373-375
La Frette to Rochemaure
Time: 3:24:00 and 4:36:00
Distance: 60.0 km and 78.5 km
Avg Speed: 17.7 kph and 16.9 kph
Terrain: Flat
Location: N 48.58, E 4.70

We’ve ridden two of the last three days and have made our way back to the Rhone River. The weather has been a little rainy, partly sunny and crisp (more like cold). It’s kind of like New Zealand a year ago. Luckily the wind hasn’t been too much of a problem. I probably shouldn’t have even mentioned that…
Our last couple of days has been pretty mellow – we’ve just been putting our heads down and riding. On the flats we are able to move a pretty good distance in a day. At this point in the year we’re just trying to get south and hope that the weather warms up a bit. Camping is really not a possibility in this area and it hasn’t been too hard to get a room. As we get closer to Spain we might get a chance to have some more time in the tent. I think we’re both pretty indifferent this close to the end. When you get to 100 nights of camping you stop keeping track.
Despite the chill in the air, we’ve been enjoying the landscapes. The countryside has been beautiful throughout Europe and France’s version has its own unique character. The Rhone has become quite wide and placid now since Switzerland. Apparently it has not always been that way and this grand river has been tamed over time. Once filled with obstacles, the character of the Rhone has been altered by humans. Today it is the source of 1/3 of France’s electricity. Before this “control of nature” pre-19th century passengers traveled in vessels pulled by horses, men or sails. They often times carried painted crosses with religious symbols as good omens on their journey. Although we travel on land, I think we can understand the concept of keeping yourself safe on a journey through a wild environment.
We’ll have another rest day tomorrow. Chris has developed a cold and we want to avoid any sort of respiratory infection. Our new digs are pretty comfortable and Chris has been brushing up on his French by watching the dubbed version of Knight Rider.

Here’s to the power of water,
LK

Brave New Wheel

Day 367
Visp to Saillon
Time: 4:36:00
Distance: 75 km
Avg Speed: 16.2 kph
Terrain: Flat to Slightly Downhill
Location: N 46 09’ 33.1”, E 7 10’ 00”


I can’t take credit for the title of today’s blog. It’s actually the name of a bicycle shop in Fort Collins. The shop is run by an awesome bicycle person, Dave Sundby.
I thought the title was fitting for Chris. Today was the first day back on the bike since his scary crash on Sunday. He felt pretty good overall. The road rash is looking better everday and the bruises are starting to fade away. Hopefully the memory of the incident will fade as well. His panniers are a little sad looking with all of the patches and repairs. One pannier is duck taped for the moment. We’ll look for new parts in Geneva.
We are now in the Valais region heading west. We’ll make our way to the very international city of Geneva in a few days. Tomorrow we should hit the shores of Lac Leman (Lake Geneva). Fortunately, we are again following a bicycle route and it makes touring so easy. We now just follow the signs with the number 1. We purchased a book to help us follow the route. Actually, we just look at the maps since the text is written in German. Following a route has not stopped us from getting lost. As we pedaled into Saillon, we missed the sign for the campground and added a few extra kilometers to the ride.
The route was quite beautiful today. We found ourselves along the river for most of the ride. The glacial blue water of the Rhone River was complemented by the surrounding peaks of the Bernese (to the north) and the Pennine (to the south) Alps. The leaves are starting to change and fall on the ground. It doesn’t get much better than this.
Our German lessons have concluded as we are now traveling through the French part of Switzerland. We’ve gone from Svizzer to Suisse. I stayed up last evening reviewing the Western Europe language book. It came in handy today when we arrived at the campground. We’re now booked in for “la petite dejunier” – I hope that’s breakfast tomorrow morning.

Au revoir,
LK