June 5, 2018
Day 2 - Lairière to St-Paul-de-Fenouillet
| Heart | 0 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Today was our biggest climbing day, and the weather report was promising rain for 2:00PM at our destination. So we were motivated to get going early. We had a great breakfast on the patio as our host's family got ready for their day, and were on the road by 8:00. That's early for us!
| Heart | 1 | Comment | 0 | Link |
This is a part of France that even French people don't come to very often. The hills are wild and empty, and the views are tremendous.
We wound through several small villages that are too small to have stores or services, and eventually climbed up through the sleepy village of Auriac.
We got to the top of the Col de la Redoulade and didn't have to push! I was very proud of us - we had not done a bunch of training.
Then we were off down the other side in a blur of red and black as we wound our way to the Gorge de Galamus. We entered the gorge and (sorry) gorged ourselves on the views. It was so great to finally feel like I had time to experience it. It is a natural wonder, and the road is a man-made wonder to go along with it.
We could feel rain approaching but were determined to spend enough time in the gorge. Eventually we rode out to the snack bar at the end of the gorge and had a coke. Then we swept down the wide and smooth road into St-Paul-de-Fenouillet. Our hotel, "Château de Peyralade", which also provided dinner, was a few km west of town on a fairly busy road. But the French drivers gave us plenty of room and we rolled in around 2PM. No rain yet.
The Château de Peyralade proved to be a highlight of our trip. The owners were friendly and ate dinner with us! Our French got a good workout, and the hotel is beautiful. We highly recommend it!
Today's ride: 47 km (29 miles)
Total: 77 km (48 miles)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 4 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |