Fantastic descent from Roubion! It was steep but not too steep until we crossed the Vionène and then we continued coasting along the gorge. Several tunnels made it easy. We coasted down a “descente sinueuse” into Saint-Sauveur-sur-Tinée—I wish I’d taken a photo of the sign a few km above SST as the descent was sinuous all the way but perhaps more so as we neared the bottom.
We rode easily for another few km before the sharp turn onto M2565, la Route de la Vésubie, leading up up up to Col Saint-Martin and the descent into the valley of the Vésubie.
It looks like this climb was used in Le Tour last year.
As we got closer to Saint-Martin-Vésubie, we saw evidence of massive flooding. Apparently there were deadly floods in fall 2020, again in fall 2023, and just a year ago in June 2024. We stopped for a closer look about a short distance above the town.
We found our hotel when we arrived and a room was ready for us. A quick clean-up and then a formule lunch at Le Rendezvous. A nice way to pass a couple of hours on a hot afternoon.
We forgot to get a photo of our starters, but Al had roasted peppers in olive oil and I had something called “Lou Panisse”. We each chose one of the two options, not having any idea what they might be. Panisse turned out to be a sort of chickpea fried bread served with a tasty dip. Apparently it’s a regional specialty.
Main courses: Al had pork tenderloin and I had pasta with burrata. Both were excellent.
In the evening we went for a walk and to look for a light dinner. The meal we had (at a different restaurant) was mediocre, but the medaieval streets were interesting.
A garguille with glowing water. The town definitely slopes down to the river.
Our hotel. We had our own apéros in the late afternoon on the terrace—bottles of locally-brewed fizzy lemonade and potato chips from the little shop across the street. There was a cool breeze—the hotel isn’t air-conditioned.
