Yes! Where is the apple?!

Oh, the colour of that water!

Radiant green, indeed!

Well done, Scott! Thanks for jogging our memory about this climb!

"You have to see it to believe it."

But yesterday, seemingly, you had to believe it to see it.

Folks are looking for such different things when the travel, Carolyn. I don’t think I’d recommend one region over another, other than to note that Germany is further north and weather in September might be chancier. I’m hesitant to make recommendations about where people should go, other than to describe how our experience has been.

Hey Keith - thanks so much for your input! It's great to read your enthusiasm for the area as well. Suggestions are very welcome!

Thanks Scott! And this would be your vote vs the route you took through Germany & Austria last year? We have seen a bit of France (a lot of Provence) but not this area. It looks really beautiful. France always appeals for so many reasons.

No, but the thought is there. We’ve been talking up the idea of getting a long stay visa next year and coming back this way in the early autumn. I’m sure it’s gorgeous, but I know you need some luck with the weather beyond September if you’re going to leave the valley. The closest we came was in 1993, biking back to Paris from Provence. We climbed up the Ardeche Gorge and north up the east side of the Central Massif in early October and it was already getting pretty chilly.

Hi,
Maybe I spoke too soon. Have you been to Annecy in the fall? Between there ans Aix-le-Bains, I would have a hard time choosing routes to ride. Annecy is slightly prettier, though.
Cheers,
Keith

Hi Carolyn,
Frenchman here. I’ll take the liberty of answering for Scott an Rachel, as they have probably not experiences autumn in the alps. Yes, you can ride, but expect freezing nights. A few snowflakes may fall in the higher elevations, but if you dress appropriately, it is usually fine. Morning fog on the shores of lake Annecy are a moving experience.
By the end of September the nights begin to get quite cold, but with climate change there may be fine days ahead. But by November, the snows will start, at least most years, and ski season lasts until late march or early April.
There is no way to describe the beauty of Annecy and its lake. I might have settled there except I’m not a skier, and Susan hates snow. But we do love Annecy.
Cheers,
Keith

Really. There must be 100 units here. No one’s going to top this!

Wow!

Yes, Annecy is the place alright. We’re here for five nights and are starting to miss it already. Maybe we should just cancel our plans for the rest of France and stay here for six weeks until Schengen kicks us out.

I’m glad to hear you’re healing well. It was such a shame about your injury, and just when people were beginning to feel like they could travel safely.

Have you ever been to this part of France? September might be the best month of the year to be here, and you could have a long, reasonably easy and spectacular tour following the Via Rhona top to bottom, with a side trip up to Grenoble and Annecy. One great thing about cycling in France now is that your bike is allowed on any regional train free of charge (and trains go pretty much everywhere in France it seems), so there’s a lot of flexibility. You might start in Lyon and work your way south with the season, maybe touring the Camargue at the end and flying home from Montpellier.