September 14, 2023
Summary
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A great ride. 450km of riding and 4500 meters of climbing. Incredible scenery and blue skies on all days except one. A feast for the senses.
The Chinook tandem is amazing. We had no missed shifts from the SRAM electronic shifting, even in difficult situations. No falls, no flat tires, no mechanical issues. We were able climb loaded on grades up to 12 percent, and indefinitely on grades up to 8 percent. The bike tracked true through gravel, dirt, and non-optimal tarmac. Not one minute of uncertainty. We are SO happy with this tandem!
We had some amazing meals, and stayed in some amazing places. For sure, the night in the Chateau de la Caze was a standout. We think our favorite night, though, was at Le Sahuc. The multi-course meal on the deck in the warm evening was something we'll remember forever. And the accommodations were first-rate.
Honorable mention goes to Les Magnolias in Plaisance. The evening we spent in the courtyard eating, drinking, and talking was magical.
But of course there were so many small moments in the trip that we'll treasure. Conversations with people who passed by, the lovely hotel staff that let us check in early and asked questions about our trip...We'll be talking about this trip for a long time.
Our Ortleib bags continue to function perfectly after many years of use. We have more space than we need - we've both considered adding an extra set of biking shorts to reduce the amount of laundry we need to do.
Lessons learned from this trip are pretty modest. About the only thing we discovered was that we should probably take a partial roll of paper towels with us to use as napkins and random cleanup items.
We feel like we've hit our stride on touring at this point. Which probably means that we're due for a "correction" on a future trip.
We thank everyone for reading along with our journey, and we encourage every reader to consider what type of human-powered travel might work for them. We are not super athletes. If we can do it, so can you! Get out there and have some fun!
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Keith
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