September 7, 2023
Day 3 - Assyènes to Rivière-sur-Tarn
An unexpectedly long and tough day
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Well, that was a day to remember!
It started shortly after midnight when we woke up to a bat flying around the garret. It was so warm that we had left the windows open for ventilation. And with the French national abhorrence of window screens, a bat in our belfry was a logical result.
It might have taken an hour, but we eventually convinced the poor little guy to exit through probably the window from which he entered. In between was pandemonium as three frightened beings tried to figure out how to restore the proper order . Bats outside, people inside. Once we convinced ourselves that we had herded him outside, we slept soundly.
The 0700 bells in the church next door got us up and moving. Our usual granola bar and coffee breakfast was finished speedily, Rich’s Duolingo streak was extended for another day, and we were off shortly after 0900.
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The first order of business was a screaming descent in the frigid morning air back down to the river.
Today’s ride profile showed all of the climbing at the start, so we worked away at the first 3 climbs. A bit of walking happened when the grade exceeded 10%, but otherwise the cool morning air made for pleasant cycling.
We took our first morning break along the river, enjoying the peace and quiet and watching a solitary swan patrol the riverbank.
A bit further along we came to St Rome de Tarn and its beautiful, if small waterfall.
This is where things started to go haywire. We passed some signs indicating that the road was closed ahead. Assuming we could bypass it on a bicycle, we kept going.
When we got to the closure, it was clear we weren’t going to get past it. An entire hillside had come down and there was a berm of dirt about 15 feet high completely covering the road. Behind it was a large collection of earthmoving equipment and trucks. And all of this wedged between the hillside and some temporary concrete barriers that were keeping the mess off the railroad tracks below.
We looked for ways to bypass the blockage, but nothing looked possible. We didn’t want to walk on the railroad tracks, which appeared to be recently used. And no local roads circumvented the problem. So we turned around and started following the detour signs.
We rode 8km back, took a right turn, and started climbing. The road was actually pretty nice. Not too steep and shaded a lot of the time. But there was no getting around the fact that we were hungry, tired, and low on water.
It wasn’t pretty. This detour added 30km of distance and 500m of climbing to an already long day. We walked a bit due to Rich’s hydration issues. But in the end we got up to the main road on the top of the causse and screamed down into Millau.
Our highest priority was drink, then food. Rich was useless, but Robin did her usual masterful job of fixing everything. After a couple of long stops (drinks, energy shots, pizzas from Marie Blachard), Rich was coherent again and ready to continue. Robin navigated us through Millau and got us hooked back up with our original route.
After crossing back over the river, we had a mostly flat 10km time trial to our hotel, “Le Sahuc”. It seemed to take forever, but we eventually rolled up to our destination. That was tough.
But there’s more! We booked at Le Sahuc because of the food. So after cleaning up and resting a bit, we went downstairs for a fantastic meal on the patio.
We counted 9 courses.
We ate everything! And then waddled off to bed.
That was a day to remember…
Today's ride: 80 km (50 miles)
Total: 170 km (106 miles)
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| Comment on this entry | Comment | 7 |
1 year ago
1 year ago
We need to get together at some point over a beer and compare notes on 'hydration issues' .... and to raise a toast to our partners who seem to keep it together and bail us out! Our day that I'm thinking about is from last May, Saint Amboix to Port de Mont Vert, https://www.cycleblaze.com/journals/gorges/day-20-saint-amboix-to-pont-de-montvert/, (almost the headwaters of the Tarn - coincidence?).
Your evening meal put our's to shame though - it looks exquisite!
We're enjoying your tour ... the Tarn is a magical place.
1 year ago
1 year ago
1 year ago
The problem is pretty obvious at right around km 30. The blockage seemed impassible to us, and I still don't think we could have gotten through on the road. It was the worst blockage I've ever seen on a road. I think there was a landslide onto the road. The detour signs started well before the blockage, so if you don't see any signs before Saint-Hyppolite, it's probably open now.
Later on, though, looking at the RideWithGPS map, it looks like we might have been able to go back to the last road on the right and go down to the river. There appear to be paths along the river that you might be able to use to walk around the blockage.
The ride up the the side of the valley from St Hypollite to Moulibez was actually really beautiful. Fairly shaded and not too bad a grade. If we had been prepared with enough water and snacks, it would have been a pretty nice, if long, ride.
Thanks for telling me I was missing a map! And good luck!!
1 year ago
1 year ago