We are back

We arrived in Boston yesterday, almost 11 hours after getting on the plane in Paris. A medical emergency caused the plane to land in Reykjavik, Iceland, which delayed our trip several hours. It was good to be home.

Thanks to all of you who kept up with our adventure. I hope that you had as much fun reading it as I did posting it. I am sure that my desire for completeness, and often for precision, caused many (ok, most) of the posts to be longer than any person might reasonably be expected to read. If you didn't make it through all of them, I completely understand. I wrote them as much for me as I did for anyone else.

Words alone, even as many as I posted over the last week, can't capture how special the trip was. When you can do something that you love (cycle) with a close friend in a spectacularly beautiful place, you can count that as a pretty good week. I feel lucky to have been able to do it, and I hope that my joy came through on these pages.

Au revoir.

P.S. Just wait until next spring - Keith and Andrea's Excellent Japanese Adventure - coming to a web site near you. :-)

The "Best of" Blog

While it is still fresh in my mind, and while sitting in Pau Airport waiting for a flight to Charles de Gaulle, I thought I would attempt to capture all of the "best of" elements of the trip.

Best petit dejeuner - I think the Hotel Roncevaux in Pau. The bread was fresh and crusty, the croissants and pain au chocolat buttery, and the coffee rich and tasty. Plus they had granola and fruit.

Best lunch - We had great ham, cheese and tomato sandwiches in a picnic lunch on the long day from Pau to the Comminges, but the best lunch may still go to the garbure we had at the top of Tourmalet.

Best dinner - This is a really hard category, but a slight edge goes to the second night at the Hotel d'Angleterre in Arreau. Appetizer was grilled eggplant tower layered with cheese and a tomato coulis, lamb chops that were out of this world (I am sure we had seen relatives of our dinner while out riding that day) and cheese with a cherry preserve for dessert. Gordon had the same entree but started with a garbure and finished with an upside down apple pie. Honorable mentions all around for the confit de canard the night before at the Hotel, and also to the fish at La Concha in Pau.

Best hotel - The 7 Molles in Sauveterre de Comminges. The accommodations were quite refined and the setting was splendid. The only downside is that two rounds of beers for the group cost us about 60 Euros.

Best wine - Hard to say. The region, unfortunately, isn't know for its great wine. We had a terrific rose from Corbieres at the 7 Molles, and a Chateau Bouscasse from the Madiran was good. We really didn't drink any bad wine the entire trip, but I don't think we had any wine that was particularly memorable.

Best Col - Another hard category. We liked the Aspin and the Col d'Azet for sheer beauty. Tourmalet, of course, is wonderful because it is legendary. This is like asking which of your children is the best.

Worst Col - Pla d'Adet. It was a long and hot grind to the top, and the top was a ski village that must look a lot better in the winter.

Worst meal - At the Hotel des Cimes in Argeles-Gazost. Other than a few carrots that had been thrown in a pureed soup, the entire meal was beige and barely edible. It is probably fitting, as that Hotel also got the honor of the worst hotel and the worst breakfast. This was the country cousin of the Hotel Paradis.

May think of more, but that's it for the moment.

Day 6 - Argeles-Gazost to Pau

It is hard to believe that we have been here almost a week. And six straight days on a bicycle toughens some parts of the anatomy and chafes others.

Very cloudy when we woke to have breakfast at the Hotel des Cimes, which Gordon commented must be a sister hotel to the Hotel Paradis in Lourdes. We couldn't hit the road soon enough.

Last year we had ridden up to the Col du Soulor, following the main road. Joe suggested an alternative route to the town of Arrens-Marsous, which involved going over the Col des Borderes. We were game, even though no famous people had ever conquered this col and no stage of the Tour had ever passed over it.

It was worth the effort. The road winds through farming villages, along a river that flows swiftly down to the valley. The weather was holding for us, although dark clouds were everywhere. Although it is only a category 3 climb, the latter part had some portions that were 8% and above. We went over the summit and then headed down to Arrens-Marsous, which was a delightful downhill through the forest and into a pretty Pyreneean town. The rain began to spit, but as we climbed out of town on to the route to the Soulor it stopped. For a moment we hoped that it would clear up, as the sun struggled to come out despite the heavy cloud cover.

We were passed on the road to Soulor by three folks from Portland, Oregon - Jim, Ann and David. I promised that I would post their picture from the summit of the Soulor and I have. They were exceptionally nice people and we saw them again when we had lunch at the top of the Col d'Aubisque. But more on that later.

We got to the top of Soulor and the clouds were thick. We decided to make a break for the Aubisque. It is only 300 meters higher, and you climb that distance over almost 7.5 km. We had a smooth and gliding downhill for a brief bit and then we were hit with a cold and steady rain. We donned as much rain gear as we had and pedaled on. After all, we had not traveled all these miles to miss climbing what is really the last of the famous cols in the Pyrenees that we hadn't done. The road was spectacular, built into the side of a cliff looking over a beautiful lush valley. The problem was that we couldn't see a thing, as the fog was so thick and the rain so hard that it was all we could do to see in front of us. But we made it - wet, cold and tired - to the top. It was the stage of the Tour in 2007 that Rasmussen won, finishing at the Aubisque, only to be dismissed from the team that night for failing to disclose his whereabouts during training the weeks before.

Another bowl of garbure at the restaurant at the top of the col hit the spot. We saw our now, new friends from Portland and wished them well on their journey.

We decided to load the bikes in the van and not attempt the descent in the fog and rain. Good call. It was basically tough weather all the way back to Pau. We arrived about 3:30, packed up our bicycles and began the process of thinking about re-entering our regular lives. More on that later.

Dinner tonight was at a Moroccan restaurant. Excellent food and Pau is really a delightful little city. And now it's time to sign off, after posting a few pictures. I will try to wrap this up in the next day or so, but I want to take a little time on the flight home to reflect.

Day 5 - Arreau to Argeles-Gazost

Well, it had to happen. It just can't be the case that you can cycle inFrance for two weeks over two years and never get any rain. And it wasn't. Today we got our share. But more about that later.

The day began in Arreau. We got up early, having the weather forecast in mind, with an idea that we would be off to beat what looked like an afternoon rain. Our other rider Daryl left at 7:30 to get an hour's head start, because the climbs we planned to do were ones on which he just wanted a little extra time. Joe, Gordon and I left at about 8:30. The day was pretty - high clouds and cool temperatures, but nothing too menacing. That would change.

Our first climb began right out of Arreau, up the Col d'Aspin. It is a 12 km climb, with an average grade of 6.5% - a great way to get the legs warmed up. Joe told us that the summit at the Col d'Aspin received three stars as a beautiful place from the Michelin Guide. It is this spot where I first realized how beautiful the Pyrenees are. We made the climb steadily and easily, and the summit was as gorgeous as I remembered. You look down to the towns in the valley on one side and over to the the Pic du Midi Bigorre on the other. There are cows roaming freely at the summit. One came over to inspect (and clean?) Gordon's bike. The weather was still fine and we were optimistic.

The ride down to St. Marie de Campan, where the climb to Tourmalet starts, is an initial steep downhill followed by a sweeping 8 km or so glide down to the town. All was well until I looked back and didn't see Gordon. I turned around, rode up the road a bit, and saw him at the side of the road. He had a flat. Now, you have to understand that a flat for Gordon is a more serious matter than for other riders because he rides with sew-up tires. The whole tire (tire and tube) has to be pulled off the rim and another re-glued to it. I recognized that this would be a major operation, so I headed to town to get some postage stamps for the post cards I had in my jersey pocket. Having achieved my objective, I then rode back up to catch up with Gordon. Joe and Aron had shown up to get him squared away. Off we went.

The Tourmalet is a classic climb. Called Le Geant de la Route, it is frequently on one of the stages in the Tour de France, and it is the highest climb in the Pyrenees. It is a 17 km climb from St.Marie de Campan, and for the last 10 km the average grade is probably 9%+. We got started by almost 11 o'clock and made our way in pretty good time to the summit. As we drew closer, the weather looked more menacing, particularly at the summit, which we could see.

Along the way, we were passed by a Belgian rider, who backed off and rode with us for a bit. We immediately took a dislike to him when, upon passing us, he turned to say "My legs just don't have it today." He was feeling bad about being dropped by all of his buddies, but we thought it didn't give him license to diminish our efforts. More on this later.

Joe heard that Daryl had snapped his rear derailleur, and so he took off to see if he could get it fixed. Gordon and I soldiered on. About 5 km below the summit is La Mongie, a ski resort that is incredibly ugly (I'm sure it looks better in the snow). The course is really steep from this point to the summit and the weather was getting really nasty.

About 1.5 km from the summit it started raining and the wind started howling. It was awful. We decided we would just take off, accelerate our speed and get to the top. We did it and in the process blew by our Belgian friend, leaving him out on the course getting cold and wet, cramping as he came to the summit. We made it to the top and found our group, who had a table at the bar/restaurant at the top. If there was any doubt about the benefit of a supported ride (and we never had any), having a van at the top was worth every penny.

We had a fabulous lunch of garbure, which is the local peasant stew made of duck, ham, cabbage, potatoes, greens, etc. After being exposed to the elements, we thought it tasted out of this world. But the weather outside only got worse. Although the sun made a brief appearance, more clouds rolled in, the winds picked up, and it was like a hurricane. We decided to throw the bikes in the van and ride down to Luz St. Sauveur.

That turned out to be a good choice. Thunder and lightning on the way down convinced us that it would have been awful to have attempted the descent. When we got to the bottom, we decided (at least Gordon, Joe and I) to climb Luz Ardiden. This 12-km climb, which averages almost 8%, is also often on the Tour as a finishing point, because like Hautacam and L'Alpe d'Huez it is a ski station and not a pass across the mountains. Lance won the stage the last time it finished here in 2003.

The weather was dicey, but we decided to give it a try. I took off after several kilometers, getting up ahead of Gordon and Joe. Halfway up I ran into quite a bit of rain and wind, but I kept going, hoping that it would end. It sort of did, although when I got within a few kilometers of the top, the fog was so thick I could barely see 20 yards ahead of me. I literally got to the summit and could barely see the sign. It was cold and wet. I put on my vest and arm warmers and rode back down to find Gordon and Joe. I caught up with them, we turned around and reached the summit, and then quickly went back down the mountain. After reaching the bottom, it was about a 15 km ride to our hotel. We had some wind and rain, although we went along the beautiful Gorge de Luz next to a wildly rushing river. We were quite glad to be to the hotel and get a hot shower.

It is only mild hyperbole to say that the day was epic. Although we only cycled about 60 miles, we made three climbs that prominently figure in the Tour de France.

The hotel is a little downscale. It is filled with quite a number of people who are in the area to participate in the Pope's visit to Lourdes this weekend. We sort of stick out like sore thumbs! The food was mediocre, and we are looking forward to leaving in the morning.

This pictures are from the top of Luz Ardiden and the Col d'Aspin. Tomorrow, Col du Soulor and the Aubisque.

Day 4 - Col d'Azet and Pla d'Adet

Today we kept our home base in Arreau and went out to tackle a couple of challenging climbs not far from here.

The morning was beautiful. Sunny, clear and cool temperatures. The four of us (Gordon and me, Daryl from Australia and Joe) started off from our hotel riding down the Valley of Louron for about 12 km until we reached Genos, the start of the climb for the Col d'Azet. Daryl was not interested in doing two climbs today so he went off on his own to ride around the lake between Genos and Loudenvielle (finish of Stage 15 of the 2007 Tour de France). Joe, Gordon and I began the ascent.

Col d'Azet is not considered an incredibly hard climb. It is only 7.5 km to the top, a gain of 620 m for an average grade of 8.5%. But the climb is difficult in the first 5 kilometers, and it is over 10% for much of the early part of the ride. Here is a plot of the ride for those who might be interested. http://www.climbbybike.com/climb.asp?Col=Col-dAzet&qryMountainID=5836.

The climb was worth it. At the top there is a panoramic view throughout the Pyrenees, down to Spain, across to the Peyresourde (which we had ridden up yesterday) and also across to Pla d'Adet, our destination for the second climb. It was spectacularly clear, and we just drank in the beauty that surrounded us. A swift downhill to St. Lary-Soulan added some exhiliration as well.

The climb up to Pla d'Adet begins in St Lary. Pla d'Adet was the site of the 2005 Tour stage win by George Hincapie, beating out Oscar Pereiro in a sprint at the finish. It was the first stage win for Hincapie, serving as he was as part of Lance's army. The last time the Tour included Pla d'Adet was in 2001 and Armstrong won the stage. For Hincapie, the climb came at the end of a 128 mile stage. Our 25 miles before arriving there was a bit more modest.

Pla d'Adet is a ski resort and so the climb is not unlike L'Alpe d'Huez, where you finish at the top. It is about 11km from the bottom and, while this doesn't sound like much, it is a grueling climb. Although the temperature probably hadn't risen out of the 70s, the sun beat down along the course and I consumed all the water I had on my bike. You gain about 860 m from the bottom to the top and much of this is in the first half of the climb. Here is the profile: http://www.climbbybike.com/profile.asp?Climbprofile=Le-Plat-dAdet&MountainID=6929. The scenery was beautiful, looking back into the Valley of Soulan, but it was exhausting. We finished at the top, had a picnic lunch and decided we would ride back to the hotel and not tackle yet another climb. Arrived back the the hotel a little after 3 o'clock, enjoyed a swim in the pool and explored the town of Arreau (which we have now seen the greater part of). It is beautiful and in a gorgeous setting.

Tomorrow we will take on Col d'Aspin and Tourmalet, two climbs we did last year, although this year we are traveling the other way over them. It will likely be quite challenging. If there is time (and perhaps, more importantly, energy), we may try to get in Luz Ardiden.

I've posted a couple of photos from the summit at Col'Azet. Gordon is finishing, and you can see a parasailer going down into the valley. The other photo is atop Pla d'Adet.

Day 3 - Sauveterre de Comminges to Arreau

When we awoke today it was cloudy. A real shocker this was, as it was the first cloudy day I have ever experienced in the Pyrenees. But even cloudy days on vacation can be great, and we figured that not having to ride all day in the sun might have its advantages.

Our departure from the Hostellrie des 7 Molles took us over some short climbs through small villages on our way to the first real climb of the day - the Port de Bales. This climb has been relatively recently added to the Tour de France. Two years ago they paved the back side so that it could be used as a col on one of the stages in the Tour. It is a 19 km climb, although it really only starts to get steep at the 12 km mark. It did not disappoint. Coming up through the forest, it was a bit reminiscent of Mont Ventoux (although not as steep). In the latter part of the ride, the grades were 8.5% and more, up to about 10%. But we rode up, slow and steady, and reached the top in fine form. It was cold at the top - and the cloudy skies had turned into a little bit of rain.

The descent was taken very slowly as the rain and wind suggested caution. It was also slowed by a herd of several dozen sheep, which was headed down the road. They didn't immediately make way for cyclists, although as we got up behind them they scooted off down the side of the mountain (probably to the sheep herders chagrin). We had a picnic lunch at the bottom and the rain subsided.

After lunch we headed down the valley to take on the Col de Peyresourde. From the spot that we picked up the ride it was only a 10km climb. The steepest part was at the beginning, and steep it was. It was reminiscent of L'Alpe d'Huez, but again not that steep. Up near the end, although the switchbacks seemed to be way difficult, it was actually a very manageable ride. We finished in fine fashion, and the ride down to Arreau was spectacular.

Arreau is the town where we ended one of last year's rides, and we have a particular fondness for it. It is a small town, at the bottom of a number of mountains, with a clear, swift river running through it. Our hotel, the Hotel D'Angleterre, is quite adequate, right on the main street in town. It must be popular for cyclists, as there is a group of 8 riders from Asheville, NC who have come to ride in the Pyrenees staying here as well.

Dinner was terrific. The main course was confit de canard. Good wine, cheese and dessert as well. We earned it.

Tomorrow, two or three climbs planned with Arreau as the home base.

Day 2 - Pau to Sauveterre de Comminges

The day started early. We left Pau before 9 o'clock. It was a spectacular day. The sky was crystal clear and the weather was in the low 50s, with little or no wind to start out. We wound our way out of Pau, through the morning commuter traffic (it is a city of about 100,000), and made our way quickly into the countryside. Pretty soon we were by ourselves on the road, with the occasional car or truck passing us.

The scenery was out of this world. The towns were quaint and picturesques and the mountains provided an exquisite backdrop. It was everything we thought it would be - exactly as it was last year (which was the reasonwe came back). The air was just incredibly clean and clear.

We rode through Lourdes, the religious shrine, and saw the hotel we stayed last year. Pau is a far superior place to stay. But coming out of Lourdes was great (aside from riding slowly through the town to avoid the hordes of people wandering through the streets and up to the sanctuary), as we recognized a lot of the places from last year when we took our first ride down to do the Hautacam. We went across the northern part of the Pyrenees, keeping them in our sight, but getting around to a more western side.

There were no cateorized climbs on our ride of 138 km, although that did not mean we didn't see our share of hills. But they were by and large quite manageable. The climb up the Croix Blanche reminded me a lot of riding in California; the climb up to the Chateau Mauvezin was a bit steeper and heart pounding. The sun was quite bright and beat down on us the entire ride, and the headwinds, particularly in the latter part of the ride, were pretty formidable.

I think that there are few places more beautiful to ride, though, then the Pyrenees. The ancient villages, churches, chateaus, etc. are all so other worldly. Imagine what they look like on an early fall day when the sky is clear so and blue.

We arrived at our hotel in Sauveterre de Comminges at about 4:30. The Hostellerie des 7 Molles is nestled in the mountains and really isn't near anything. A local rider with whom we rode for several miles before arriving said that it was the hotel that Lance Armstrong stayed at when he trained in the Pyrenees. We saw no tangible evidence of that, but maybe it was like an Elvis sighting. In any event, it was a wonderful place. The food was superb and our dinner was eggplant pate, sea bream with asparagus and a apple/puff pastry soaked in armagnac. We ate well and we were tired.

The pictures I have posted are from the ride going from Pau to Lourdes and of tGordon coming up the hill in Mauvezin with the Pic du Midi in the background.

Day One - Col de Marie Blanque

The tour begins. We met up with our guides, Joe and Aron, and our fellow cyclist Darryl from Australia to start the trip. Took the van from Pau to Arudy, where we began our ride. The countryside is beautiful - right out of central casting. Beautiful mountains, quaint villages, lush greenery.

The object of today was to climb the Col de Marie Blanque. It is a relatively short climb, only 9 km to the summit, but the last 4 km are 11%, 10%, 13% and 12%. Really a grind. But the climb went well, we were happy to get to the top and everyone felt good about the ride. We had a nice descent, overlooking some gorgeous valleys back to Arudy. A celebratory beer at a local outdoor cafe was in order.

Tomorrow we do a 135 km ride, with no cols of major significance. The scenery should be gorgeous and the weather is forecast to be beautiful.

More later.

We Made It

The flight over was utterly uneventful and as smooth a plane ride as I have ever had. Arrived on time at CDG and also at Pau. It was raining when we arrived, but the weather has since cleared up pretty nicely. Pau is a nice little city on the edge of the Pyrenees, a nice blend of authentic old French small town architecture and modern buildings. We walked around to get our bearings and enjoyed the sights. We will ride tomorrow assuming that the weather cooperates.

Getting Closer

Less than three days to go. The training rides are over. The next time I get on my bicycle will be in France. We have our fingers crossed for good weather.

In setting up this blog, which is a first for me, I was reminded of a column that Dan Henninger published in the Wall Street Journal a couple of years ago. Here is an excerpt from it:

"In our time, it has generally been thought bad and unhealthy to "repress" inhibitions. Spend a few days inside the new world of personal blogs, however, and one might want to revisit the repression issue.

The human species has spent several hundred thousand years sorting through which emotions and marginal neuroses to keep under control and which to release. Now, with a keyboard, people overnight are 'free' to unburden and unhinge themselves continuously and exponentially. One researcher quotes the entry-page of a teenage girl's blog: 'You are now entering my world. My pain. My mind. My thoughts. My emotions. Enter with caution and an open mind.'"

Welcome to my world. I offer no cautionary words, and I'll try to keep my "marginal neuroses" in some sort of check. I hope to just bring you impressions - both word and photo - of what I hope is our excellent adventure.

Getting Ready

A little more than two weeks before we are off to France to return to the Pyrenees, one of the most beautiful regions of France and home to great cycling. It is made even more exciting this year because the Tour came through many areas of the region. Our training is just about done (an 80-mile loop on the Kancamagus Highway in New Hampshire having capped it off this past Sunday) and it's ready or not. Looking forward to it.