2022 European trip – A “tour de France”

[frenchgixxer]

Couple of things about France - firstly sat navs just don't understand how french roads work (I live here and still google earth a route as well as use a tom tom, and still come a cropper lol) and secondly, you don't really need to chain helmet to bike - its astonishing how, outside of the major cities, there seems to be such trust that long ago vanished elsewhere. Enjoying your travelog

[Kiwifruit]

Great photos and detailed reports, keep em coming Pete. Travel safe

[GSXKING]

Great photos and detailed reports, keep em coming Pete. Travel safe

I agree Col & feel very jealous 😿😿😿

[lil4399]

Great info and pictures.

You've seen more of France than me and I've lived here for 7 years! 

[Rynglieder]

Couple of things about France - firstly sat navs just don't understand how french roads work (I live here and still google earth a route as well as use a tom tom, and still come a cropper lol) and secondly, you don't really need to chain helmet to bike - its astonishing how, outside of the major cities, there seems to be such trust that long ago vanished elsewhere. Enjoying your travelog

To be fair I never saw anything in the natives' behaviour that made me suspicious of them. I think locking the helmet to the bike is partly habit, and partly becuase it was a brand new Shoei NRX
- a 60th birthday gift from my sisters and it was the first trip for it - I'd hate to have to explain its loss to them knowing what they cost. It did very often just sit on the tank when the bike was in my sight.

I'd tried spot checking a number of the roads that I'd plotted into the Zumo by comparing them in Google Streetview to make sure they were "rideable", but with almost 3000 miles you can't go cover everything. Many of the problems start when you miss a turning or come across a road closure and then you are entirely in its hands as it maliciously recalculaes.

[Rynglieder]

Thank you for your comments gents, a lot still to come in between finding time to ride my bike 

[Rynglieder]

Day 6 Around the Lot and Dordogne (c.150 miles)

As I'd hoped the day started with Rocamadour in bright sunshine and I grabbed the camera to take a shot as there was a hot air balloon in front of the cliff-side buildings. As I was having a two night stay a lot of the GTRs load was eased by leaving bags in my room and I was able to make use of the Kevlar lined jeans as it was still hot and there looked no prospect of me getting wet.
The idea today was to head south and join the Lot valley at Carjac. It was to be largely minor roads and I was overdue a kicking from the Zumo. A short distance from Rocamadour I was directed to a left turn and as I entered it I knew I was being stitched up again. It looked more like an access road or driveway and sure enough I eventually emerged in front of a very large country home with a chap on a sit-on mower going about his business in the company of a chocolate Labrador. The was plainly no way through, the Lab seemed pleased to see me, man on the mower perhaps slightly less so. I could only apologise and point to the satnav directing me up his garden path, at least he was decent enough to give me shove to turn the GTR around on the gravel drive. Onward I went, in the direction that struck me as being southward.

I reached the River Lot at Carjac and then followed the river westward. This was the best road of the trip so far, a section of it between St Martin-Labouval and St Gery is a Balcony Road, cut into the cliff face with a few tight spots and tunnels to contend with. There are more spectacular balcony roads in France, but this was certainly worth riding if you are in the area. There was an odd stop for a couple of photos but I was hoping the Innovv camera was catching the rest.

In due course I arrived at Cahors, a small town sitting in a loop in the river. The road I had plotted into the Zumo was closed so I left  it to come up with an alternative – It's a good job I was not in a car or a van, I was taken under the railway line by a tunnel with 1.5m headroom, even on the bike I felt the need to duck.  Eventually I made my way to the medieval "Pont Valente", a fortified bridge of three towers and numerous arches. Inevitably the scaffolding crew had got there first to spoil my photo, but that's pretty routine now.

After leaving Cahors a very satisfactory series of country roads lead me northward for around 30 miles to the hilltop town of Domme. Climbing the hill and passing through the archway of the town wall I was struck how much the architecture and the colour of the stone reminded me of an English Cotswold village. The GTR ended up with a good tour of the town as the car park I was headed for was full and I had to complete a couple of circuits before settling on a spot where I was happy to leave it. I spent a good hour walking around Domme, a balustraded area on the edge of town gives good views over the Dordogne river below and is a nice place to take 10 minutes with a drink. With the bike being relatively unladen today it was possible to stuff the jacket in an empty pannier which made for a more comfortable walk. It probably deserved a little more time but I had another two stops in mind of this day's ride.

I wasted a frustrating 5 minutes trying to find my way out from the environs of Domme.  Zumo lead me straight to a dead end car park and kept trying to take me back, but by my own means I found my way down to the banks of the Dordogne at Beynac-et-Cazenac. I'd intended stopping here but there was no chance of parking, even for a motorcycle, instead I rode a like further east along the river to La Roque-Gageac where I was able to pull up for a short while. This is yet another beautiful town that begs exploring further, there are dwellings or fortifications cut into the cliff face that runs above the string of riverside houses and shops, the place was heaving from day trippers taking river excursions from a number of operators, I sure a full day could be made of it.
My ride concluded with a cross country trip on minor roads, sometimes in farmland, often in woods, regularly through ancient quiet villages and finally becoming more rugged as I reached Rocamadour again.

There was yet another shower and change of clothing before walking to a convenience store in the village for something to eat, I'd used the hotel restaurant the night before but didn't fancy it again. Having eaten I found myself looking down on the town and regretting that although I was booked here for two nights I had not found time to visit it – it looked a long way from the hotel as you can see from the photos. After feeling sorry for myself for about the length of a cigarette I caught sight of the pedestrian sign suggesting it was 10 minutes walk from the path running alongside my hotel, I was not entirely convinced but decided that having travelled all this way I should give it a go. To be fair it was an easy 10 minutes, going downhill is always less challenging at my age and I found myself passing through one of the arches in the wall and onto what was pretty much a single street that runs through. It was early evening and the hordes has gone so the place was nice and quiet even though a lot of the businesses and attractions were closed for the day. I found a hotel where I could sit outside with a drink or two as the shadows descended on across the valley and all that remained to be done was climb that hill back up to my bed.

[Rynglieder]

A few more images from Day 6...

[Rynglieder]

Day 7 Rocamadour > Mayrueis (c. 151 miles)

After discharging my obligations at the breakfast buffet I resolved to carry out an urgent, thorough and in-depth review of my trousering. Given the past few days and the forecast ahead I concluded that the Kevlar lined jeans were the way of the future.

Only just of a 150 miles to cover on this day, but of course there were stops planned and I knew I would be wanting to absorb the scenery I was to ride through. The whole idea of this trip was to effectively string together 16 days of "Sunday Rides" and the previous day had been spot-on. Some of the day's ride would take me back over roads that I had travelled to the southwest of France and the Pyrenees some years ago, I held fond memories of that section of the run and was looking forward to doing it again. It was time to release the GTR into the wild...

To start with the route lead through Causses du Quercy Natural Regional Park, sometimes it was possible to get a bit of speed up but more often than not it was 30-40mph riding on minor country roads. Eventually I once again reached the River Lot and had the pleasure of following its course on to Entraygues-sur-Truyère. At this point the Zumo wanted me to turn right and cross over the historic bridge, but I was immediately confronted by a set of bollards; it looked as if this had been closed to vehicles for a while. Being as I was stationary and the nose of the bike was able to go no further it seemed a good time to hop off and take a photo.

After buying another couple of drinks from a fridge in town (one for now, one for later) I pushed on to Estaing. I loved this road, it was just as I remembered, a steady 50-60 mph following the valley in gentle curves. I pulled up at the viewpoint on the edge of town which now had a proper surface and had generally been tarted up since my visit of eight years ago. I was also delighted to see that they had finally got round to scaffolding the chateau tower, it had to happen sooner or later.

I left the Lot Valley at Espallion and headed south on a series of fast trunk roads, not so picturesque but I was covering a bit of ground to get me to would I hoped would be another decent lump of scenery later in the day. I had planned very carefully to avoid motorways on this trip, it had been set as an "avoidance" in my route planning on Garmin Basecamp so I found myself wondering a little time later what combination of circumstances had lead me to end up on the A75 motorway and heading steadily toward the Millau viaduct. At least it was not a "payage" so I was able to keep my hand out of my pockets. After about 15 minutes the bike was ejected at Aguessac and I began to see signs for the Tarn Gorge, I was heading the right way and was looking forward to this bit.

During the planning stage I was a bit dis-chuffed that I couldn't find a hotel in the Tarn Gorge that I liked the look of and was within a tolerable budget so I'd had to settle for accommodation a few miles away. I would follow the Tarn Gorge to Le Rozier and then continue west to Meyruies for the night, the idea being that I would then back-tack to Le Rozier the following day to continue the ride up the gorge.

The ride to Le Rozier was everything I'd hoped, a nice flowing road with the walls of the canyon closing in and increasing in height the further I went. I couldn't resist a stop at Le Rozier to pick up another drink and then set about tackling the "dead leg" of the journey to my hotel.

It turned out the road to Meyrueis was an unexpected delight, I was now following the D996 along La Jonte river, set in its own gorge, the road here was perhaps a little bit more twisty and it was a pleasure to be astride one of Kawasaki's finest. There are a couple of tight spots, whereas in Britain we drive on the left and in continental Europe they usually drive on the right, I have learned on this trip that a Frenchman in a white van or motorhome usually drives plumb down the middle – you have to watch out.

I hit the little town of Meyrueis deep in the Cévennes National Park at a respectable hour and managed to berth the GTR in a motorcycle bay just outside Le Grand Hotel de France – at check-in I was offered garaging, which is something to remember for the future, but the bike was already fully locked up and I was disinclined to shift it. There was enough time of the evening left to go for a short walk and find something to eat and drink before bed. Although it had seemed an inconvenience at one point, the ride to and stay in Meyrueis had turned out a bit of a bonus.

[Rynglieder]

Day 8 Meyrueis > Avignon (c. 157 miles)

I left Meyreuis knowing that at least to start with I would be riding some nice roads, the return down the valley of La Jonte was just as enjoyable as the previous day's ride up it and although I was riding in precisely the opposite direction to my next hotel, as intended I re-joined the Tarn Gorge at Le Rozier.

It was only a few miles alongside the Tarn before it was time to heave the bike up the side of the gorge via a series of hairpins so that I could reach Point Sublime – the name's a bit of a give-away really, a popular viewpoint that enables the visitor to take in the gorge cutting through the landscape for some distance. After reaching the top of the gorge there is still a few miles to cover through the farmland on the plateau, in fact I seemed to have been up there so long I was worried I'd missed a sign.  I was only the third vehicle on the car park so I grabbed a few moments at the railings to take some photos unencumbered by other tourists. I hadn't really done enough riding to earn a coffee, but the young lady was just opening up the kiosk, so it seemed rude not to. All in all this little detour had accounted for a fair bit of the day's mileage.

I could have done a bit of a loop around the top, but I like running along valleys so I dropped back down the way I came and continued with the river up through La Malene and just enjoying the road in front of me with its cliffs, tunnels and balconies adding to the pleasure of the gentle curves.
Another short break was taken at Saint Enemie before once again taking a planned detour to the top of the gorge where another viewpoint overlooks the town. Back down in the valley I continued with the Tarn in an easterly direction, beyond Ispagnac the gorge widened and tamed somewhat but the river remained my companion almost all the way to Florac at which point I started out on another road that had attracted my attention in planning.

It was time to join the D9 Corniche de Cévennes, a 30 mile scenic road that connects Florac with Saint Jean du Grad to the south. There are no high mountain passes, just a broad well surfaced road that snakes from hill to hill with 360 degrees of French landcape to soak in between the bends. It is one to set out on well prepared, there are no major towns or villages so refreshment and fuel options are limited. I had a breather at Col Saint-Pierre before finishing the tourist road at St Jean du Grad.

After the pleasures of the Tarn Gorge and Corniche de Cévennes, the next section of my journey proved less spectacular although this was to be expected, there were still some attractive patches and it was not a bad ride but the bar had been set too high. After a brief stop at a Tabac store in Boucoiran-et-Nozières to top up on cold drinks I continued with a series of trunk roads carried me on toward the Pont du Grad which was the first "monument" box to tick for the day. Sometimes I felt I was on the fringes of urban areas, other times I was in flat countryside with vast fields of sunflowers either side.

I was almost within touching distance of Pont du Grad when I came upon a whole heap of congestion that took me around 15 minutes to edge through. When finally clear of it I found my way onto the barrier controlled car park. This is the moment that you find out that it is going to cost €9 to get out even for a motorcycle, even for a short duration visit. The charge is all well and good for a family of four in a car intending to spend the day on the river banks, but I felt it was a bit of a rip-off for the hour I was going to take. I fixed everything to the bike as best as I could and plodded through the visitor centre, down the nearest river bank to take a picture of this ancient roman aqueduct, back up over the modern bridge and a little higher on the opposite bank for a different view. I confess that this walking around in the continuing heat and the parking fee had left me with a bit of a grump on, at least I got a decent coffee from the visitor centre, but I didn't want to hang around, I needed to push on for a shower and fresh clothes and there was still a city centre to tackle.

Avignon was only about 40 minutes away accounting for the traffic at that time of day and was fairly easy to get around. I found the entrance to the small car park at the back of the Hotel d'Angleterre fairly easily and the lady on reception shot out to open up the garage for me which was unexpected – mind you, I don't think she was expecting the bulk of the GTR, but with a bit of shuffling it was berthed for the night.

The coveted shower and clean shirt was sorted out and it was time to spend an hour or two on Avignon. Due to me being either poor or tight-fisted my hotel was at the opposite end of the city to the main attractions but still within the city walls and only 5-10 minutes walk to the main square outside the Palais des Papes. I was the usual friendly, lively city centre I had grown to expect in France but there was some event going on in the square featuring what seemed to be an 80's cover band which I found offensive to my auditory canal, so I made my way down to the side of the river Rhone so that I could take a look at the famous Pont d'Avigon which seems to strike out into the river but then give up half-way. Back in town I bypassed the dudes knocking out the Phil Collins covers, side-stepped the palace which was covered in an unbelievable amount of scaffold and walked up to the terraced Jardin des Doms.

After walking up the various ramps and steps to the summit of the gardens I found a small lake and to my delight a small bar at its side with some empty tables where I could down two beers and strike up a small cigar. The crowds in town were dispersing as I walked back down to the hotel and I went to bed reflecting on a very decent day on the bike.

[KiwiCol]

Stunning!

[GSXKING]

That viaduct pic is amazing, as are all your pics and info on your travels @Rynglieder.  I feel very lucky that you have taken the time to share this wonderful trip with us 

[Notty]

That viaduct pic is amazing, as are all your pics and info on your travels @Rynglieder.  I feel very lucky that you have taken the time to share this wonderful trip with us 

amazing Roman aquaduct - and near by is the Harabo sweet factory 
@GSXKING

[Rynglieder]

Stunning!

Thank you, loads more to come as time permits.

[Rynglieder]

That viaduct pic is amazing, as are all your pics and info on your travels @Rynglieder.  I feel very lucky that you have taken the time to share this wonderful trip with us 

I still feel a little guilty that it was not done on the GSX when posting on this forum, but it's all about riding a bike, that at least we have in comon!