September 8, 1997
To Broquies
A beautiful, peaceful but longer day than planned. Our entire route closely followed the Tarn, crossing back and forth often over the river to follow the most roaute-friendly bank. We saw very little traffic the entire day, with much of the distance as quiet as a dedicated bike route.
The morning was spent deep in the gorge, hemmed in by spectacular gray and beige cliffs. Periodically the natural splendor was accentuated by colorful small towns glued to the wall of the canyon and by chateaux or ruins rising above the ridges. We broke for lunch at an ice cream parlor in Le Rozier, enjoying dessert on a terrae overlooking a lovely neighboring village. It was idyllically serene to sit in the shade of our umbrella, enjoying delicious ice cream creations and admiring the splendid setting.
The remainder of the ride to Millau followed similarly quiet, beautiful roads as the terrain gradually flattened into rolling hills. Pedaling into the small city of Millau was an abrupt return to the noise and stress of urban traffic. Twenty km beyond Millau we arrived at our intended stop for the night - St-Rome-de-Tarn, a small village a few hundred feet above the river. We were more than disappointed after climbing away from the river for a few kilometers to discover that the best hotel was closed for the month, and the other (with the only remaining restaurant in town) was not serving meals that evening.
Fortunately there were still several biking hours remaining in the day - and in fact we had debated whether we wanted to stop so soon anyway - so we freewheeled back to the Tarn and resumed our downstream ride to the next town, 30 km away. Unexpectedly, we soon encountered a long, steep, hot climb over a ridge abutting the river - unmarked on our map, it was nevertheless one of the steepest climbs of the trip. We arrived at our new goal, Broquies, somewhat after 6, and after one last, steep climb away from the river - only to discover that the only hotel in town was 3 km back behind us, on the river and an unmarked side road. For a brief period we panickeed as it appeared that there wasno hotel at all - and Rachael had all the earmarks of having reached her limit for the day.
With great relief we coated back down to the river, all the way apprehensive that it too would be closed - but we were welcomed to a lovely spot and one of the finest nights of the tour. The hotel is right on the river, overlooking a graceful bridge - and our expansive room had a lovely view of the river and valley. After showering and resting up, we descended to the balcony for a delicious meal as we watched the sunset over the river. Several glasses of wine later we were soothed to sleep by the murmer of the Tarn outside our window.
Today's ride: 68 miles (109 km)
Total: 357 miles (575 km)
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