Up early, breakfast at seven, out the door and on our bikes with all our baggage at nine. Found the car, unpacked, loaded the bikes and drove to Eguisheim to pick up the wine we had bought the day before. That went smoothly, too. This time we got to meet an older member of the Gruss family and had a friendly chat. He is 72 and said in his lifetime he has never eperienced such a long heat wave and acute drought. He also told us about his grandfather, who was a German soldier in World War I, and the ever changing borders, shuffling Alsace back and forth between France and Germany. It was a short but heart warming encounter before we got in our car to drive home. The five-hour drive was uneventful which is the best I can say about any drive in the car. It was great to be back home and sleep in our beds again. It's several degrees cooler here, as well.

I think I have said all there is to be said, but this is what stands out when I review the past two weeks.

• August isn't the best time to tour in France.
• The drought and heatwave were not ideal for a bicycle tour, but we were able to make the best of it since we stayed in three different towns for several nights and weren't committed to long distances and late check-ins.
• We found many wonderful bicycle routes and much to discover with ample photo opportunities. That always keeps us happy.
• No health problems, hurrah!
• Sometimes we missed the rush you get when you set out in the morning to a destination in those distant hills on the horizon. It's nice to return to a familiar hotel every day, but long-distant touring is something else.

I am very excited about one more tour that has been planned for September. Stay tuned!