Stage 11 of 60, Day 13 of 71: 66 km, 1810m, 3:48, 128 shifts, ave speed 17.3, max speed 79.1

I slept really well after yesterday’s big climb, about 9 hours. Breakfast was scheduled for 8:00, unheard of luxury.

We started the ride a little after 9, and rode up to town, then the day’s climb started. It was an unusual day, with only one climb and only 66 km total distance to ride. But I had never before seen such a big single climb on my Garmin.

We headed up and it was pretty consistent. Around 5-7% grade, occasionally a little steeper or less steep. The temperature was cool and nice but the traffic was pretty heavy. Andorra is an interesting country, a tax-free haven, so lots of people go there to buy things. For instance gas is €0.50 cheaper per liter, saving you over $2/gallon. There were construction zones along the way; one time we were forced to stop for 5 minutes which was a welcome chance to eat a bar and drink. It went on and on, counting off the meters of climb and km of distance.

After entering Andorra there was a giant “town”, really just huge parking lots and a bunch of stores and gas stations. The traffic after that was much less. Then I finally came to the top, the “Roof of Paris Dakar” as Rob called it, the highest point of our tour, just over 2400m. I chatted with some cyclists who had their bikes driven up from the other side and were there to do the descent into Andorra. They were impressed at our itinerary and took my photo at the summit.

In the background of the photo you can see Ype’s Bike Dreams lunch van. I was getting hungry so it was a perfect time for lunch. After, I headed down with Wytze, cruising down the top switchbacks, fast and smooth. It was breezy so we didn’t hit really high speeds, but on one of them I just touched over 79 kph before having to slow for a construction zone. It’s nice to break the car speed limit on your bike!

It was something like 30 km and we did it non-stop, blasting through the little towns, like Canillo where I unicycled for four days in 2016. Taking the roundabouts at high speed was really fun. Pretty quickly we arrived at the campsite where the trucks had just arrived. So we did baggage unloading duty, then tent unloading duty, then set up tents. They were still wet from last night so it was good to get set up early, or so we thought.

The showers were great, then I walked over to a bar Andrew and Wytze had found. It was nice to be able to have a basic conversation with the bartender. As soon as I spoke Spanish, she switched from Catalan, the national language. The rain started as we walked back. I hung out in the tent writing for a while, then napping. We had dinner in the rain at 7pm, under some rain tents that worked pretty well. It’s supposed to stop during the night – I hope so!

We had interesting news from Bike Dreams headquarters in Holland today: we are actually going to cycle to Marrakech, but will not have two rest days there and leave by the planned route. Instead we’ll backtrack to avoid the earthquake epicenter area. It will add an extra day of cycling, so we get a little more for our money it sounds like. Bike Dreams is pretty good at adjusting to unforeseen problems.

Stage 10 of 60, Day 12 of 71: 107.9 km, 1932m, 5:09, 211 shifts, ave speed 20.9, max speed 70.

The day started out pretty early. We had our alarms set for 5:45 since Beau had to get to an early bus. He packed up and left about 6:15 – it was so great spending time with him in Carcassonne but I wish it had been longer. Still, I’m super lucky.

I called Katie then headed over to the campsite. It was only 2 km away and it was already a little light just after 7am. We were lucky that breakfast was later again, 7:30. I got quickly back into the “Bike Dreams Bubble” and was soon eating a hearty breakfast. Sadly a number of riders had come down with gastro-intestinal sickness and were feeling bad. Still, this is a tough bunch and most were still riding, even when sick. Ype ended up giving four people a ride to camp.

We left after 8:30, and rolled away on gentle roads. The info for today said 106 km with 2004m climbing, not exactly easy, but at least not too long. The usual suspects had a lovely pastry & drinks stop after about 28 km. Even the Iron man Wytze was affected by the sickness and could only stomach orangina.

We carried on and I have to say, it was really nice riding a little slower, relaxed and easier than usual. The climbs started and we got to lunch at 56 km after having climbed quite a bit. Ype had the full lunch set out – he is such a fantastic and integral part of the staff – he goes the extra mile to make everyone happy.

After lunch, we climbed a lot more, then had a pee stop on top of a climb. Kris rode by laughing, “What are you guys doing?” Andrew answered immediately, “Five shakes is a wank.”

Then we continued and finally stopped for afternoon refreshments at a café at 90 km, before the final climb. We did the tried-and-true “quatre eau minérale et quatre orangina” which worked perfectly as usual.

Then the final climb up to a new high point over 1400m. We stopped on top for summit photos, then blazed down.

Rob had warned us about lots of tight, steep switchbacks that require much care and he was right, but after some of this the road straightened and the surface was smooth and new, silky. I was riding by myself and kept telling myself to go slow and didn’t look at the speedo. But it turned out I went over 70 and couldn’t help passing a dump truck – on the inside, fast and fun. We rode through Ax-les-Thermes and just out of town found the campground and rode around a while to find the site.

First up for me was food. Lots of salty Japanese crackers, chips, then a big bowl of Greek salad, and some water. Perfect. Then I set up camp and had a nice warm shower and did laundry. Then I wrote this post. I guess it’s just a normal day in this life.

I reported for dinner duty at 6:30 and set up tables and benches, opened eight bottles of wine, set things out, then served dinner and dessert. Dinner was delicious rice noodles with shrimp curry on top, as well as spinach. There was a nice salad and lemon pie for dessert. Unfortunately some people were absent, and others not eating. Rob gave a briefing and Dr. Bill gave a talk about what might be causing all the sickness we are experiencing. Bottom line he doesn’t think it’s our kitchen or that it’s communicable and the #1 thing we can do to reduce it is wash our hands. The crew washed a million dishes, were treated with peanut M&Ms, then it was about 9 and I got ready for bed, for the last time in France on this trip.

September 13, 2023 was our second rest day on this crazy adventure. The thing I was most looking forward to was spending time with Beau. Both of us have wanted to visit Carcassonne for a long time and it’s great we get to do it together.

Ah, a rest day! Not only could we get up at any time, but I was sleeping in a bed. We woke up before 8 and the rain had stopped. We walked down to an amazing bakery for breakfast.

Next up was the walk around the walls of the famous Cité de Carcassonne. We headed up and the line to get tickets was only about 5 minutes. We walked all through marveling at the amazing towers and exhibits. Even though it’s totally tourist oriented, it’s still great.

Afterward, we looked around the Cité and bought a few souvenirs. We were thinking of lunch but decided to put it off. Instead, we went back home and I had a nap while Beau went for a run. He came back happy and sweaty and after a shower it really was time for lunch. We walked downtown, looked at a few places, but not many were open so late (2-3 pm). Finally we found a place called Comptoir Ludique which was rated highly. We stepped in and were shocked: there were hundreds of board games to play (plus a good number for sale). There was no one there, but the owner was friendly and said yes to everything: Yes we can have lunch, Yes we can have wine, then to my most important question, Yes we have the game of Carcassonne! So we really did it: played Carcassonne in Carcassonne!

After a long game (Beau crushed), and dessert, there was over an hour until our dinner reservation. So we walked around and stumbled into an Irish Bar within a block or two. It looked nice and had a dart board so we decided to play. The two guys there playing turned out to be cyclists, German and French. We all decided to have a EU vs US 501 tournament. Watching the German guy warm up was very scary as his form and scoring were both amazing. But the French guy was struggling as much as either of us. We had a great time, sipping IPAs and playing. They won the first game but we somehow came back to win the second and third, and thus became the Carcassonne 501 Darts Champions of September 13, 2023.

They had to leave and we played a couple more games, then headed over to La Table de Marie, where we met Wytze, Andrew and Daniel. We had a lovely dinner with three bottles of delicious wine and dessert to die for. Why can’t there be another rest day?! They are just so good!

Stage 9 of 60, Day 10 of 71: 99.5 km, 1317m, 4:08, 221 shifts, ave speed 24.1, max speed 64.2

Today was the last stage of a block of four rides from Le Puy-en-Velay to Carcassonne. There were a few drops of rain in the night, and it was cooler than we’re used to in the morning. Breakfast was the usual, plus porridge. Rob shared that because of the terrible earthquake in Morocco a few days ago, we would likely be changing the tour route and skipping Marrakech. But he reassured us we would be going to Dakar in the end. As planned, it’s 50 more stages! We headed out at 8:15, down the steep driveway from the campground. On the main road, the first 300m climb started almost right away.

After the inevitable descent (a really great one, 10 km on silky smooth pavement, speed mostly 50-60+ kph), more than half the group stopped for coffee/drinks. The bakery next door was closed but we all had snacks with us.

Then there was a climb, up over 600m and right at the top Ype was parked with lunch. It was cloudy with rain vaguely threatening. But the few times we had actual rain it was light and didn’t last long. The ride from lunch to Carcassonne was short, only 46 km, and mostly downhill. A bunch of us were cruising together but Wytze put down the hammer about 10 km from town and it was hard to keep up. Daniel flatted and so only three of us arrived together. It was so amazing. I’ve been seeing the photos and wanted to visit for 20 years and LOVED seeing it in person. Even our first view from a few km away was great.

It was raining lightly but camp was not far away. We managed to find it by ignoring the GPS track and lucky guessing. I packed a small backpack with things for a couple of days staying with Beau in an AirBNB. Others were also taking a break from camping. But the campground is pretty nice. Snacks were had, people set up tents, then we discovered that the campground bar was closed until 5:30. I walked my bike with Andrew and Wytze to the Cité de Carcassonne (thanks Wytze for carrying my bike up a ton of stairs). It was relatively crowded but Andrew said there were three times as many people when he was here last.

During this time, Beau had just arrived on the TGV from Paris and was heading over to our AirBNB. I said good-bye and headed down, walking the steep parts from the Cité, then cruising a couple of blocks. As I got to the right number, Beau stepped out, “Hi Dad!” The place is really great and I am so looking forward to spending a couple of relaxing days with him.

After a call from Katie where I got to wish her Happy Birthday on the day, we walked around the modern part of the city, looked at few restaurants and eventually settled on a small but nice looking place called Les Artistes. They had a set menu with two choices for starters and two for the main course. We both had crispy toast with smoked salmon and salad, then I had the vegetarian dinner option, black rice and yummy veggies and Beau had chicken with potatoes. We each had a beer; the choice was blonde or ambre. I went with the ambre and it was a nice but quite sweet fancy French beer. You can see Beau’s “blonde” in the photo. He said his lesson was “If it doesn’t specify exactly which beer you’re getting, order wine.” But beside that, the dinner was just superb and an incredible value. Dessert was a cooked apple each, with cream and sweet sauce. Wow!

Stage 8 of 60, Day 9 of 71: 126.9 km, 2007m, 5:56, 306 shifts, ave speed 21.4, max speed 64.8

The 8th stage was fun, just over the average distance and over double the average climb. But today’s post is about food, not riding. It’s not because the food was amazing or anything, in fact it was quite ordinary for the tour. But I felt like concentrating on something other than riding. Well, first, we did ride under the tallest bridge in the world. So that’s worth mentioning. It was in the morning and it’s technically a viaduct: the Millau Viaduct. Its height is 336m (1104′). It was built from 2001 to 2004, and it’s awesome. It’s so tall that from underneath, you can barely hear the traffic driving above. Under it, we tried to guess the height and my guess was 150m, and no one guessed higher than that.

Ok, back to the food. Breakfast was a little unusual: for the first time on a Bike Dreams trip the optional dish was eggs with smoked salmon. There was also smoked mackerel, lightly cooked cherry tomatoes (also both firsts), plus all the normal stuff. This was all so good that I skipped the muesli. In France, instead of one or two types of cheese, there are typically four or more. And three or more kinds of bread or pastries.

Bike Dreams is based in Holland and they do a ton of shopping for the trips at Jumbo (maybe roughly equivalent to Costco for Americans, also it’s pronounced Yuumbo).

After breakfast, we rode and stopped in a small town at a café. Most people get coffee but I always get Orangina. Orangina goes well with the two main Bike Dreams snacks: Maxim energy bars and Sultana brand Fruit Biscuits. Also we sometimes eat our bananas at the first café stop.

Then we rode a bunch more and at about 70 km it was time for lunch. Ype always delivers; it is SO nice to be able to count on a great lunch halfway through the ride. Today’s lunch selection was pretty normal although the chocolate cookies are rare. Sometimes there are dinner leftovers but not today. In France there always seem to be more than three kinds of cheese.

After lunch, no surprise, we rode more. After some time we descended into a town and looked for a café. It wasn’t easy to find an open one but of course we did. In the afternoons, our drinks have stabilized to one Perrier and one Orangina per person, plus a beer on exceptionally tough stages.

Then we rode to camp. In camp, you first have snacks and soup. If you get there too early, it’s not ready and you have to pay the penalty of unloading the trucks. But if you screw around at cafés enough, you can just start eating right away on arrival.

Then, there’s a break in eating for a few hours while you set up your tent, take a shower, wash laundry, but 7pm comes pretty soon and we’re back at it.

Our cook is American but lives in northern Italy. She hasn’t repeated herself once so far and the dishes are always varied and tasty. Tonight was an Italian menu, sorry I didn’t take a photo of the fancy chalkboard menu she always makes. Then Rob parades the menu around to each table and very enthusiastically announces each dish. Tonight’s pasta was with cheese and lemon zest, and fresh parmesan on top. Delicious. The meat eaters had giant meatballs but I got zucchini with mushrooms. The salad was great with nuts and citrus and we had Rosé for the first time. I always drink water too. Dessert was tiramisu.

And that was stage 8 through the eyes of a food eater. I think I eat more than double the amount I do at home. If you were wondering, stage 8 was from Le Rozier to La Salvetat-sur-Agout. We stayed at a private campground with no other guests, 1.5 km up a steep little driveway. It was quiet, spacious and has a lake.

Stage 7 of 60, Day 8 of 71: 128.4 km, 1324m, 5:05, 271 shifts, ave speed 25.3, max speed 60.2

It was another civilized breakfast at 7am, already light. I skipped the muesli again for French toast with jam and bread with cheese. We took off at 8 and had a bit of a steep climb out of the campsite to the main road. Then a glorious descent in the crisp, cool morning air. My record of not wearing any clothes with long sleeves or non-shorts since the tour started remains intact. We had mostly downhill for the first 20 km, then the climb of the day. It was starting to get a bit hot and it was a 650m climb over 13 km. At the col, Ype was there dropping off some riders who didn’t want to do the climb.

We cruised down the other side, quite fast and it was shady and cool enough to dry all the sweat. We had a wonderful stop in a scenic little village for drinks, apple pastries and bananas. Then the mostly downhill continued to lunch at 70 km.

There was little shade at lunch, but enough. After the usual delicacies, we said thanks and took off. We were now heading down the Gorges du Tarn, a beautiful and famous valley. There were more nice villages, old stone bridges and we rode through some tunnels and alongside vertical limestone cliffs. It’s a center for hiking, climbing, kayaking and canoeing – quite popular although we’re here after the high season.

We were getting pretty hot so stopped at a fancy restaurant for drinks. We ordered the usual (4 Perriers, 4 Oranginas with lots of ice) and the guy was momentarily confused, “But you are only four, oh I see, you will drink a lot.” From there it was only 22 km and we blazed that last, hot section fast. We pulled into the Municipal Campground of Le Rozier about 3 pm. I still had power in me, but was very glad to stop. Due to the net loss of elevation it was our fastest stage yet, averaging over 25 kph. We’ve now covered 875 km on this crazy adventure.

Camp has lots of trees for shade and we unloaded the trucks, then put up tents. Many snacks were had then it was time to swim. The pool looked ok but the sign frowns on our style of bathing suit. Just a little further is the river and we found Daniel down there. It looked perfect but was surprisingly cold. The kind of cold where you’re not sure if you really want to go in. But if you just dive in and float underwater for a while, you realize that whatever temperature it is, it’s absolutely perfect! I had goosebumps and my body was thoroughly cooled off. Next up was a round of soup, bread and water in camp, then a shower and laundry session, then writing this blog entry, followed by a nap until dinner.

We had another really nice dinner, instead of the Indonesian Beef I had shrimps with the peanut sauce. Quite tasty with mango milkshakes for dessert. It was only 8:30 after dinner but the heat hammered me today so I’m going to bed early.

Stage 6 of 60, Day 7 of 71: 101 km, 1630m, 4:43, 239 shifts, ave speed 21.4, max speed 64.1

It was nice to sleep in until after 6, especially with my new pad. The night was cool and I slept under my sleeping bag for a change. I packed up and breakfast was in the light, at 7am. We headed out in a group at 8 in nice cool weather. Today had about 1600m climbing, but most of it was in the first half. We rode up and down, ever higher, and pulled over after an hour at a café. I am spending a lot on drinks during these rides but that is a great thing.

We did a few more short and medium climbs, then hit our high point so far on the tour, almost 1250m. Soon after, we found Ype and the lunch truck in a typical beautiful and shady spot and enjoyed another great lunch.

After lunch, I headed off in a group of 7, all drafting behind Rob. He was in a fast mood, so even drafting in a pace line required a lot of work. After about 15 km of this, Andrew, Liz and I let ourselves be dropped – better to have fun and relax at 80% effort. We’re in this for the long haul. We did catch up to them again soon, stopped at another café. The owner gave us lots of ice, which was a perfect addition to our water bottles after cooling our drinks. Then it was time to crank out the last 20 km or so. There were a couple of small climbs and lots of nice downhill.

The track ended at the entrance to the campground at the shore of the large beautiful Lac de Villefort. The only message from the crew gave the WiFi info, so we explored the steep, large and complicated campground. We found lots of lost riders – Rob had no idea and just stopped for a swim. Eventually we passed a bar by the lake and I suggested that someone else should find the camp while we had a beer. Quite a few riders agreed with this idea and we sat on the deck, in a nice breeze, overlooking the scenic lake, swilling large beers. I was just about to finish mine when Jan suggested a second round – he was buying. After that we were in an even better mood and cruised down a dirt trail and eventually found camp.

Our tents were crammed together but it didn’t seem that bad. I had some soup and bread, set up my tent, then went down to the lake for a swim with Wytze. We brought our pads to try and find the leaks in the lake. The swimming was great, but no luck with the leaks. So we used them as floats and paddled around for a while. We stopped at the swimming pool on the way back up and sure enough, the small pool (about 40 cm deep) was perfect. I found my two leaks and he found one. Next up were showers, laundry and relaxing in the shade.

Dinner was a Dutch mashed potato dish, with delicious salad and strawberry pie with cream. I had a nice video call with Katie after dinner, then finished this entry and have plans for a great sleep.

September 8, 2023 was our first rest day after a block of 5 stages from Paris. While I feel good and surprisingly in shape after these long days of cycling, it is really nice to take a day off. We’ve banked an extra 50 km in distance and almost 1900m in climbing above the tour averages, so that feels good.

It was so nice to sleep in, although my leaky pad is kind of a pain. Around 8, I got up and after a while rode down to the local Decathlon store with Andrew and Wytze. We each bought a replacement sleeping pad and a thinner protective pad for underneath. Wytze had a bag of other stuff and it was fun watching him ride through town. There was a slight uphill at one point that I could really feel in my legs.

Next up was breakfast so we headed to the old town on foot and found a nice Salon de The for drinks and food. We walked around the old streets for a while, then up to the cathedral. Le Puy-en-Velay is a major Camino stop, so we had a look at the center which had a great map of all the pilgrimage routes that come from countries all over (Poland, Denmark, Italy and many others) all the way to north-western Spain at the Santiago de Campostela cathedral.

Back in camp, I relaxed, logged my recent rides, and did some nerdy data stuff, setting up my electronic gear shifting system to work “even better” with my bike computer. When Wytze and Andrew came back, they did the same so at least I’m not the only one. I also did my first bike love session, which was just cleaning and lubing the chain as everything else is ok. It is so nice to just relax in the shade in camp. I called Katie who had just done a trail run and sounded happy.

Around 6, Andrew, Wytze and I headed into town and had beers at a nice modern bar, sitting on sofas outside. Wytze had a brain flash and got us a platter of local cheeses and bread and we were living like kings. Our dinner reservation was a few steps away, at a lovely small outdoor restaurant. We started with delicious salad, then I had a fisherman’s stew, mushrooms and fish, tasty! All washed down with a bottle of Viognier, light yet full of taste. We shared dessert then walked home. Can’t wait for the next rest day!

Stage 5 of 60, Day 5 of 71: 110.9 km, 1489m, 4:56, 201 shifts, ave speed 22.5, max speed 65.8

It was another 5:30 alarm, 6-6:30 breakfast, leave just after 7 morning. Rob the guide asked a few of us the night before if it was too early but we said no. Starting in the cool air is just great. It was 17°C down in the village soon after starting. This was the first day I didn’t use sunscreen on my arms – arm protectors all day. Right when we started out there was a little drama. Andrew’s derailleur was not shifting; the battery was dead. Due to various packing errors, none of us were carrying our spares [that will not happen again]. He did the first climb “single speed”, but it’s not really possible to do a whole stage this way. The SRAM system shifts to the middle cog with it’s last gasp of battery power and there you sit until you recharge. Thanks to Kris carrying the charger, he charged for an hour at the first stop and was good for the rest of the day. Meanwhile I rode the first climb with Daniel, the sun came up, the climb was easy and it was beautiful and fun. The descent to the town at 32 km was fast and smooth and the town below had a great bakery. Well, maybe it was only average, who knows? But to an American it was exceptional.

We headed on and made it to lunch pretty easily, just past the top of the day’s first summit, our highest point yet, over 1060m. Ype had a perfect spot, a shaded, grassy pull-out, and served up the standard (excellent) lunch.

We had done 57 km at this point, just over half. Today was a relatively short and easy stage which absolutely no one complained about as we’ve now ridden 650 km and climbed nearly 7000m in 5 days. The temperature and weather have been constant since we left Paris: hot and clear.

After lunch, we had another 30 km to our next stop. I really enjoyed our first “real” descent, twisty, fast, a little bumpy, 10% down for quite a way. It was super fun but I took it easy since crashing is truly not an option. At the coffee shop at the bottom, Wytze went in and ordered immediately: ‘Trois Perriers, trois orangina et un Perrier au citron frais s’il vous plaît.’ The 3 of us like Perrier with orangina and Daniel likes it with fresh lemon. We have it down.

We soaked our heads and arms in the fountain outside, to the amusement of the locals, then headed out, with only 32 km to go. It was hotter down here but still lots of downhill. I struggled slightly on the uphill sections since the guys were starting to put the hammer down. It was almost comical the last 2 km…we were blasting at over 30 slightly uphill, then Wytze briefly bumped it to his true speed. I immediately dropped back as it was impossible, but he noticed and slowed to a semi-sane speed. We made it through town to the campground, arriving sweaty and happy, and it wasn’t even 2pm. A short day in the office, just under 5 hours moving time.

We found nice shady spots for our tents, took showers, shared a washing machine and hung out the laundry. Then a huge amount of soup and snacks were consumed. The afternoon whiled away nicely, and I got a nap in. I got to talk to Katie and she said hi to Jan and Wytze and “met” Andrew over the video. I woke up at 5, with my derailleur batteries charged, then relaxed until dinner at 6. We had a veggie Italian dinner, delicious pasta putanesca, fennel/veggies and panzanella salad. With chilled French wine. Chocolate pudding for dessert, then Daniel pulled out the most amazing chocolate torte he had carried all the way from the bakery at 32 km! We shared it and c’était magnifique.

After dinner, Ype kindly fixed my headset for real, then we had a little treat. There is a light show in town this summer and we could practically see it from the campground. It was fun and there were nice patterns but I think most of us were pretty tired – I didn’t watch until the end.

Stage 4 of 60, Day 4 of 71: 144 km, 1807m, 5:47, 310 shifts, ave speed 22.9, max speed 63.0

I woke up before my alarm at 5:15. We packed up and ate breakfast in the dark at 6. I skipped the muesli maybe for the first time ever due to so many other yummy options. After a tiny headset adjustment we started riding together at 7:10 but after 1 minute everyone turned left whereas Wytze and I took the more direct right turn. The track didn’t start at the camp so there was some confusion.

In a few minutes the sun rose and the two of us were out in the countryside. There was mist and it was quite cool for the first time.

We took it easy and after 20 km when I offered to take the lead, Superman said no worries. We stopped in a gorgeous town just past 50 km and looked for a café. We met some more riders and Daniel spotted a bakery. It was amazing, just perfect. We had all kinds of things, shared, and relaxed.

It was only 25 km more to lunch – Ype had a great spot. It was already warm out so sitting in the shade and eating and drinking lots was great.

After a while, we hit the road. The whole morning was mostly level with a little up. At 90 km the first real climb started, but it wasn’t steep and soon we were on the col (pass), about 850m. We had a good rest, drank, then blasted down the other side. Around 110 km, the second big climb started, a little steeper. As I was cresting the top, about 950m, I could see a big jet of water: Wytze spraying Jan and everyone else. I rode right to him and got soaked instantly.

We headed down another wonderful, fast, shaded descent in a big group. Four of us got ahead and in the town below found a café. Wytze immediately got us an orangina and a Perrier each. We ate some bars then each had a nice Belgian beer on draft.

Finally it was almost 4pm and maybe a degree cooler. So we headed off, up one last climb 165m to our campground. The firetruck had suffered and was not working and it had our tents and pads, as well as all the food and the kitchen. We hung out and soon the luggage truck came with all our gear except the kitchen stuff. Showers were had, some went swimming and we had lots of food. At 6:40, we started walking on the shortcut to town for dinner. It was a 40 min walk down through a farmer’s field, on dirt roads, etc. Soon we were in Olliergues at a nice outdoor restaurant, seemingly the only place in town. We had beers, wine, dinner, dessert, cognac and more dessert. The temp had dropped while we ate so hiking back up in the dark was not so bad. Shirtless was best. Back in camp Rob and the firetruck were there, so all was well. It was almost 11pm when I set the alarm for 5:30, to do it all again tomorrow. Good night!