May 7 – 13, 2023 (France)

Sunday, May 7 (Day 47). We have no right to complain. Rain of any kind has been conspicously absent from our journey. Still, it is disheartening to see the rain icon show up almost every day in the ten day forecast. What to do? In all our months and miles of cycling the last few years, we have not had to confront more than a few wet days at a time. So, this is definitely a new challenge for us.

First solution – travel to a scenic mountain town and throw money at the problem. We arrived in Lourdes just ahead of the rain last night and checked into the Hotel St. Marie. Today we relaxed in our room, guilt free, and watched the clouds empty. It was.. lovely. Most of our “rest” days involve walking for miles to explore whatever town we happen to be in. Thank you rain for giving us permission to be lazy.

During a break in the weather, we did wander out to view the spectacle that is Lourdes. In 1858 a local girl named Bernadette claimed to have seen and spoken to the Virgin Mary. Now, every day thousands, and every year millions flock here hoping that Mary or Bernadette will see fit to heal the many maladies these pilgrims bring to Lourdes.

Monday, May 8 (Day 48). Being supine yesterday was divine. We read books. We watched videos. Sharon did Polarsteps. I worked on the blog, among other chores. Today, however, is the only day without rain in the foreseeable future. Sharon opted for some alone time and more rest. I decided to push farther into the Pyrenees. Without the weight of gear on my bike, the hours of climbing passed quickly. I ended up at the ski village of Gavarnie. C’etait tres beau – it was very beautiful.

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Tuesday, May 9 (Day 49). We fled the Pyrenees under heavy skies and made it as far as Tarbes before the rain gear came out. I should note that riding in the rain is not quite as unpleasant as it sounds or, no doubt, looks to passing motorists. Our tent is adequately waterproof, so sleeping in the rain is not a problem. The problem is setting up the tent in the rain. And cooking in the rain. And in the morning packing a soaked tent…in the rain. And setting up a saturated tent the next night after riding in the rain all day. Faced with those challenges – we threw more money at the foul weather. Welcome to the very nice, but eerily empty, Loft Hotel in Trie-sur-Baises.

Wednesday, May 10 (Day 50). Last summer we met fellow cyclists Ann and Marcellin on the island of Mljet in Croatia. We’ve kept in touch the past year, and they have graciously invited us to stay with them. Last night, our plan was to endure a few more wet days to reach their home in Toulouse. That was the plan last night. Twelve hours later we were heading in the opposite direction. Uphill, against the wind, in pouring rain – the trifecta of enjoyable riding conditions I might add. “Why?” you may ask. Because of this.

Moisture with no end in sight. So we rode south. And at the end of our soggy journey we boarded a magic carpet of sorts. Five hours and 240 miles later, our magic carpet (train) delivered us to the sunny Mediterranean coast, and to the city of Montpellier. A huge thumbs up to yet another country that makes train travel fast, simple, and affordable.

Shortly after arriving in Montpellier we went into a park across from the station to get our bearings. We noticed that there seemed to be an unusually heavy police presence. One friendly and very intimidating officer questioned us about our trip. It seemed simple curiosity…but perhaps it was more? They were checking papers of all the people in our park. Several officers had detained a motorcyclist just outside the park. Neither of us picked up on any danger vibes, but we wondered if we were misreading our surroundings. Welcome to Montpellier.

Thursday, May 11 (Day 51). For a variety of reasons, we chose to stay in town until mid-afternoon. Sharon went sightseeing. I worked on the bikes, watched people and listened to a book on tape. At the appointed afternoon hour, we headed out of town. Beach time on the Med did not disappoint. Then it was dinner in a park off the beach. Then it was off to our carefully researched (thanks Google maps). It was especially gratifying to find a secluded little spot in a very busy touristic area.

 

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Friday, May 12 (Day 52).  We set our sights on Arles today. Mother Nature set her sights on us. Oh, how She toyed with us. A helpful tailwind over flat terrain made us believe all was right with the world.  It even encouraged us to ignore the building clouds and take our time seeing the sights. There was the walled city of Aigues-Mortes (literally dead waters). It was built near the marshes at the mouth of the Rhone Riverby Louis IX in 1240. It was meant to provide a Mediterranean port from which to launch the Crusades.

Even when thunder and lightning started, we thought we would easily make it to Arles before it got bad. We felt comfortable stopping to chat for a while with Laine and Benoit from Montreal. They are touring this part of Europe for a month. They too have made significant changes to their plans because of the weather. We exchanged contact info and made plans to meet up later for drinks and more conversation.

Then, with only a handful of miles left to Arles, all hell broke loose! A light rain suddenly changed into this psychotic Flagstaff gully washer monsoon rain, complete with the electrical sound and light show. Then the waterfall changed to pea and marble sized hail…even better! We were stunned by the ferocity of the storm. We rode furiously for ten minutes without finding any kind of shelter. It was getting a bit desparate when we spied a carport down a side road. Without ever meeting the owners, we huddled there for close to an hour while the barrage continued.  

We had planned to camp in Arles. Big surprise – before leaving the carport we had a room for the night.

Saturday, May 13 (Day 53). Arles has been around since at least the sixth century B.C. Julius Ceasar made it the capital of Roman Provence in the first century AD. The ampitheater and 20,000 seat coliseum, still in use today, date from that time. Although today, the coliseum is no longer used for chariot races or gladiatoral combat.

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Arles was a fascinating mix of modern, old, and really old. Upscale and run down. Touristic, posh, and working class. After wandering, we joined the masses at the Saturday open-air market. You could buy mattresses, squid, dresses, produce and pastry. Having sampled the last two items, we made our way to Avignon. As usual, we enjoyed several stops along the way.

This week ends with us safely in Avignon, another historically important city. While we’ve enjoyed both natural and man made beauty, rain has been and continues to be the big story. It will be interesting to see where we go and how we cope in the coming days. Until then… STC!