To Aiglun

July 2, 2003 to July 3, 2003

So we’re back in Portland again (in February, 2023), and I’ve retrieved the surviving photographs of this tour from storage and can complete the journal. There weren’t as many as I’d hoped, but enough to jog some memories and generally confirm where we went. The ones that survived were from the slideshow I put together for a lunchtime presentation at our office.

There are about 90 photos from the Provence half of the tour. They’re not at all evenly distributed across the tour, with many of them bunched up in a few key spots - especially the lavender fields, in Roussillon and at our encounter with the Tour de France. There’s a decent set from the first day of the tour though, when we rode from Nice up the Var and along the Esteron to tiny Aiglun, a village just east of the famous Clue d’Aiglun, the narrow canyon the Esteron cuts through a limestone ridge. We went to Aiglun specifically to see this Clue, even though it was a few miles off route. I remember that I had a hard time confirming that there was actually a place to stay in Aiglun, and I think I had to phone the hotel directly to make a reservation, struggling with the few French phrases I had to work with.

Other than that, there’s not much to say other than to present the photos. I remember how surprised I was by the beauty of riding up the Var, and the trip out to the Clue at the end of a long, hot day. And I vaguely remember that the bike ride itself up the Var wasn’t the most pleasant at first, which must mean that the excellent bike path we followed just a few months ago didn’t exist at the time. That’s about it though.

Looking down on the confluence of the Esteron (the smaller river flowing in from the left) and the Var. I recognize this view from our rides around Vence in 2022.

In Le Broc. For a nice change, there’s enough information here to exactly place this shot, at the junction of the road west up the Esteron and dropping down to the Albert Bridge across the Var below Gillette.

West up the Esteron. I think that village across the canyon is Bouyon.

I found it! Maybe at least. I think this must be the footbridge across the Var, just below Roquesteron, at mile 37 on the map. Those must be our bikes on the opposite end of the bridge.

I don’t have any surviving photos of tiny Aiglun itself, but this is the road just west of it where we biked for a look up its famous Clue where the Esteron carves a deep, narrow canyon through the limestone cliffs. That’s the bridge across the Esteron in the shadows on the left, with the Clue branching off to its right. I’m sorry I didn’t retain any photos of the Clue d’Aiglun itself, but late in the day it was probably too dark for anything to come out.

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Today's ride: 26 miles (42 km)
Total: 528 miles (850 km)

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Janice BranhamWhat buried treasure you have here.
Your scrap of memory about calling the hotel sends me down a familiar path. Now and then while reading over an entry I'll replay my poor attempt at French and indulge in a mental do-over.
Looking forward to what else you dig up from your romantic trip.
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1 year ago