July 26, 2023
Le Buet (FR) to Evionnaz (CH)
Tobias slept in until 8 this morning which was appreciated all round. We had breakfast at the hotel before the mission of packing up and leaving. We actually get away more smoothly now if we are camping. Everything is together and we know where all the stuff goes. Getting out of a hotel can be a bit of a challenge. Especially when its next to a busy road and Tobias decides he wants to carry a plastic table up and down the path.
It was cold descending down towards the Swiss border and there was fresh snow on the mountains. It didn't take too long to warm up and we stopped to remove jackets and add lights just before the tunnel. It was actually not a very long tunnel and you could see the end from tbe start, but I find them quite anxiety inducing, with the echoing roar of cars approaching. Tobias loved it. We stopped not too long after at a small campground for lunch. It was a bit like a doc campsite, so not manned all day. It had a nice big shelter and a playground. While we were getting ready to go 3 couples in "noisy little autos" (Tobias' words) showed up and he was stoked to get to hop in and pretend to drive them.
After lunch we had about 200m to climb to the top of col de la forclaz. We thought this was the highest point of our trip, but it was actually not as high as Vrsnic pass in Slovenia. It was pretty daunting looking up and seeing the road towering above us, but we took one huge long zig zag and the gradient was not so bad. We had a quick stop at the top for more layers and a photo then carried on down. I stopped after 5 minutes and added more clothes. The temperature was hovering around 10°C and we'd climbed for 4 days for this descent so I wanted to enjoy it. It was pretty spectacular, the gradient was good, the road not too bumpy and the corners had a great berm so we didn't need to slow down too much.
Tobias was happy in the trailer so we carried on through Martigny and into the headwind along the Rhône river. We stopped for a quick break to let him out about 7km from our campsite. He was the happiest he's been up front in ages which was kind of surprising given the massive headwind. There were lots of big windmills and he learnt the word "humongous" which made him laugh a lot. The reception at the campsite didn't open till 4pm so we had half an hour to test out the playground.
We had a pitch next to a Swiss family with 6 year old twins and got the tent straight up to try and dry out. The whole place gives us the heebie jeebies, though its hard to pinpoint exactly why. The damp and cold definitely doesn't help, but at least its not raining. Unfortunately Tobias had a few crashes - off the swing, walking on nettle, and then off his bike with another split lip. He was more than ready for bed after dinner. James and I were ready for some more food. We didn't have any bread for lunch (no bakery) and I think skipping carbs for one meal was not a good idea.
Tomorrow we have just a short ride to Aigle and then we take the train up to Leysin to visit some friends of James' Mum for a few days.
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Today's ride: 41 km (25 miles)
Total: 2,456 km (1,525 miles)
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