May 10, 2025
Gordes to Toulouse
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We both slept badly, thinking about the day’s anticipated transit pressures. This was the day we had to take two trains (to Narbonne and then Toulouse) and SCNF (French rail company) had added to the angst by announcing a train strike this weekend. The details of the strike were so complicated we couldn’t make heads nor tails out of the potential impact so we decided to carry on regardless and hope for the best. When we woke up and talked over the day’s plan we vowed to each other that our mission was to do our best and be nice to each other- however it went!
Everyone in the group had to be up early and every couple had a schedule to keep; Mark and Elizabeth had a flight to Rome, Denise and Robert were taking a train to Paris and Allyson and Jeff were off to Porto. For Dave and me, the plan was to ride 45 km to Avignon and catch a train first to Narbonne and then a second train to Toulouse. Our ultimate goal: arrive in Southern France to ride some of the Camino.
We finished the final tidying up of the house and met our concierge, Olivia, to turn over the keys at 9 am and to confess we broke a wine glass. (We skipped over the part where Dave dropped the wine glass on the coffee table and spilled red wine on the carpet necessitating an impromptu carpet stain removal process by the entire group).
We left at 9:30 am with the mission to arrive at the Avignon train station by 12:30 or so, hoping to catch the 13:34 TER train to Narbonne. One change due to the train strike was that we decided to take an earlier train than the 15:34 train originally contemplated. Ironically, the earlier train was only an option because when I went to make reservations for our velos on the TER train site a few weeks ago (described in agonizing detail in our journal about our visit to Strasbourg), I accidentally reserved two slots on the earlier train as well (give me a break, the site was in French). I couldn’t figure out how to delete that reservation without deleting the others, and lo and behold it was useful today because we had a velo reservation for the earlier train.
The ride into Avignon was an A; not a signature ride but a charming easy, varied ride on small country roads seeing lots of agricultural stuff, vineyards and small towns. We rode through L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, a famous Luberon town where we had stayed 4 years ago.
It was busy once we reached the outskirts of Avignon but there was a bike path most of the way so arrival at Avignon Center train station was pain-free. We were very happy when the annunciator did not indicate any cancellations or delays due to the strike-it’s not clear what actually happened. While waiting to see what platform we would leave from we met Duncan and his friend (whose name I have forgotten) from Boulder, CO and Washington, DC. They had rented bikes in Lyon and ridden the Via Rhona to Avignon and were now taking a train back to Lyon to drop their bikes off and spend a few days in Paris. They were super enthusiastic and it was fun to share experiences.
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The platform was announced 15 minutes ahead of departure and we maneuvered the lift without incident. The train ride to Narbonne went smoothly. We had expected a big crowd on the train but it was pretty tame. The six bike slots filled quickly and the conductor came around as we loaded to ask if we had a bike reservation, although he never asked to see our confirmation. A nice man helped Dave load the bikes and the design of the bike space was easy to use. All good.
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We arrived in Narbonne around 4 pm with extra time.
A number of cyclists were disembarking in Narbonne so there was a shuffle among us and we were all concerned about the length of the stop with trains stopping at smaller stations for as little as 1 to 3 minutes - since getting your bikes out can be clunky. We all had a big mutual laugh and sigh of relief as the train conductor announced a 15 minute stop in Narbonne! (Plenty of time).
As mentioned earlier in the journal, (thank you Scott and others with your suggestions) Narbonne train station does not have a lift. We wonder what the deal is with that. We occasionally run into a lift not working - or a big line at the lift- but it seems pretty rare for a larger town not to have one. In any event we got lucky on the disembarkation: we arrived at platform A right next to the station so we could walk out with our bikes without having to deal with stairs.
We had a couple of hours to spare but also had a mission. On the ride to Avignon Dave realized he lost a screw in his cleat. (We always knew he had a screw loose 😉). We recently purchased Pearl Azumi cycling shoes at our REI in Bend and Dave apparently had not tightened one of his screws tight enough so, we were looking for a cycling store in Narbonne for a replacement.
Sometimes things turn out amazingly easy. We googled cycling stores and limited our options to those that were open (about 2 of them) on a Saturday afternoon. It was a 3 km ride and Dave walked in, showed the clerk the offending cleat, did some minor Google translation, and the fellow scooted off to the store room to find a screw. The screw was too long but the fellow filed it to down to fit and voilà, the cleat was complete- plus no charge! Mondovelo Cycles in Narbonne left a very good impression on us.
As indeed did our next stop: Bobarista Poke Bowl cafe. We wouldn’t arrive in Toulouse until almost 21:00 so we decided to get some food in Narbonne. When we started looking it was only 17:00. The usual restaurants weren’t yet open. I found a coffee shop with a poke bowl component and it was prefect. We parked our bikes out front and took our seats at the window which allowed us to keep an eye on things. The owner served us a very nice salmon poke bowl and cafés and let us sit for a hour and use the internet.
When we arrived back at the train station there was a crowd building by the anunciator waiting for the announcement of our platform. We met Liz from South Australia - she and a group from Australia (all women retirees from the Australian military forces) had just completed the Nancy Wake memorial ride in France. Nancy Wake was an Australian woman (born in New Zealand) who in WWII had been in the resistance in France. She famously cycled 500 km in three days to deliver an important message from the Resistance to London when a radio malfunctioned. Known as the White Mouse because of her ability to escape, she was decorated by France, the U.S., New Zealand and Australia for her heroism after the war. Obviously I went and looked her up after I talked to Liz. Liz approached a bike tour organizer who put the ride together for the Australian women and they replicated her famous ride. See link https://www.facebook.com/p/Nancy-Wake-Memorial-Ride-61555790881536/ for more details. Liz was now on her way to meet her brother who lived in Cordoba, Spain.
The train platform was announced 15 minutes ahead and indeed we had to maneuver stairs to track C. We pulled our panniers off and descending the stairs was okay. Jill carried the panniers down and Dave carried the bikes. (There is no way to accomplish this without leaving your gear somewhere - if you are a person that worries about theft this will drive you crazy in a busy train station). The ascent up the stairs was a little different.
Dave carried my bike up and was staggering around mid flight - so I dropped my panniers and grabbed the back end of the bike to assist. Someone else kindly picked up the panniers and carried them up for us. After that, Dave knew he would have to take out the battery; he did so and then carrying the bike was no problem. We got our gear reorganized and stood on the platform waiting for the train and all the cyclists started to chat. I had a long chat with a guy from the Toulouse area.- he said the bike situation on French trains is upsetting and stressful and people just hate it. I was relieved to hear it wasn’t just us!
When the train arrived we loaded up. Again, the bike space was crammed with many more bikes than it was designed for but the cyclists all worked together to get everyone on. The ride was only one hour 40 minutes and we arrived in Toulouse a little before 9 pm. No one checked our tickets or bike reservations.
We had booked into the Hotel d’Orsay, right across from the train station. It was a budget choice —95 euros including breakfast - but we were arriving so late so I figured it was a good night for a budget option. Last year we had stayed at the Ibis just down the street and had the embarrassing encounter with the food lady when we were discreetly (we thought) preparing a small sandwich for the road. We immediately offered to pay for the sandwich and the manager who we approached was mystified as to why we would pay and refused to take our proffered funds. Apologies were made all around and later the same lady that had objected gave us some chocolate croissants hence restoring amicable relations. But, perhaps that episode lingered in my brain when booking a night in Toulouse?
So, Hotel d’Orsay had everything we needed: protected bike parking in a garage (for four eoros), a tub (with shocking yellow tiles) a French breakfast with good bread but grocery-bought croissants, air conditioning that worked, nice linens on the bed, even a tv that Dave could hook up to watch the Giro, and a very nice guy that checked us in. That being said, the place was a dump. It had a carpet that made you wish you had room for your flipflops in your panniers! So, if your budget is only 95 euros per night it would be a fine choice. For us, it stepped over our line of what we can tolerate comfortably.
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When we went to bed I felt like I might be getting sick.
Oh and one more thing: while on the train earlier that day I felt a sting on my back like I was getting bitten. It was under my windbreaker and I squirmed around to find the bug. I lifted my arm and indeed Dave could see the bug bite. Oh well. Why am I telling you this?
Stay tuned.
Today's ride: 45 km (28 miles)
Total: 537 km (333 miles)
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2 months ago
2 months ago
And you're telling us about the bug bite to add suspense, now we're all waiting around to see if you're sick in the morning. Good luck.
2 months ago