At the end of the day though, it was a helluvalotta fun. Thanks to Heds, V, Nick, Deb, Edwin and Po for making it soJ – in pictures:
30.10.08
pilgrimmage
“F**k the pilgrimmage, its sh*t”. This catchy little quote written on the under side of a bunk bed somewhere en route pretty much sums it up. Low lights included: fighting off aging, bed-hungry believers; industrial estates; highways – pedestrian; highways – vehicular. We ended up shifting routes from the Camino Frances (the one everyone does) to the Camino Norte (the one that, at least on the map, looks like it follows the north coast of Spain. In reality it follows the expressway, near the north coast of Spain).
At the end of the day though, it was a helluvalotta fun. Thanks to Heds, V, Nick, Deb, Edwin and Po for making it soJ – in pictures:
At the end of the day though, it was a helluvalotta fun. Thanks to Heds, V, Nick, Deb, Edwin and Po for making it soJ – in pictures:
central massif
We said goodbye to evan in paris and boarded a local express train south to Clermont-Ferrand, the capital of the central massif. It was time (finally!) to put my money where my mouth was (or guidebook where my job was) and do a ride out of LP’s Cycling France. Didn’t actually work on this one, but the important thing is that I know who did, so I knew who to blame for any mistakes…
The 3 day ride through the Parc Naturel Regional des volcans d’Auvergne was awesome. Very different landscape to either the pyrenees or the alps. Very… idyllic farmland surrounded by massive volcanos. Not bad really.
Above is our first nights campsite in a paddock above the village of Le Mont-Dore. Actually I think it was at the Col de la Croix St-Robert. A parapentist kindly wafted his arse above this hill, and our heads, in the evening.
After a day of ambling along pleasant valleys, crossing the odd col and exploring quaint villages in lycra (among them, Besse, big sister of the super.. Super Besse), our final day saw us summount the Pas de Peyrol. The tour might have gone there this year but we havent got around to checking this yet (stages 5 or 6 were near here?). Anyway the climb was pretty rad. Here I am taking a breather at a very convenient mountain-side café, only 100 vertical metres from the col.
The col itself was swarming with tourists/walkers who go there to walk along the stunningly barren ridges and peaks of the volcanic region, the most popular of them is Puy Mary. The rest of the ride was down hill all the way to Aurillac where we caught a train to Toulouse. From there it was a cruisy (but f’n hot) ride to Auch where we are now – kicking it with Heddas Manou and waiting for the rest of l’equipe pilgrimmage to rock up.
The 3 day ride through the Parc Naturel Regional des volcans d’Auvergne was awesome. Very different landscape to either the pyrenees or the alps. Very… idyllic farmland surrounded by massive volcanos. Not bad really.
Above is our first nights campsite in a paddock above the village of Le Mont-Dore. Actually I think it was at the Col de la Croix St-Robert. A parapentist kindly wafted his arse above this hill, and our heads, in the evening.
After a day of ambling along pleasant valleys, crossing the odd col and exploring quaint villages in lycra (among them, Besse, big sister of the super.. Super Besse), our final day saw us summount the Pas de Peyrol. The tour might have gone there this year but we havent got around to checking this yet (stages 5 or 6 were near here?). Anyway the climb was pretty rad. Here I am taking a breather at a very convenient mountain-side café, only 100 vertical metres from the col.
The col itself was swarming with tourists/walkers who go there to walk along the stunningly barren ridges and peaks of the volcanic region, the most popular of them is Puy Mary. The rest of the ride was down hill all the way to Aurillac where we caught a train to Toulouse. From there it was a cruisy (but f’n hot) ride to Auch where we are now – kicking it with Heddas Manou and waiting for the rest of l’equipe pilgrimmage to rock up.
27.10.08
4.10.08
ahem...
hmm, seems like a few things have happened since the last post. lack of a laptop has been the main offender... i thought i'd at least write something to keep the blog alive, and then when we're in our apartment with the 'puter and some internet, well look out, the posts will start firing.
heres the rundown...
last few days of Paris; meeting heds+nick+deb(+edwin+verity) in Auch for the pilgrimage de compostella; said pilgrimage; o'night bus outta Spain; 7 days of luxurious car hire, transporting our skis and bikes etc from Auch to Alps; drop car in Annecy; ride from Annecy to Briançon (via 2650m-ish Col du Glandon) to wwoof; currently wwoofing.
...plus it snowed yesterday:)
heres the rundown...
last few days of Paris; meeting heds+nick+deb(+edwin+verity) in Auch for the pilgrimage de compostella; said pilgrimage; o'night bus outta Spain; 7 days of luxurious car hire, transporting our skis and bikes etc from Auch to Alps; drop car in Annecy; ride from Annecy to Briançon (via 2650m-ish Col du Glandon) to wwoof; currently wwoofing.
...plus it snowed yesterday:)
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