Bollène to Valence

May 31, 2019

A Popular Route

We had a wonderful day of bike touring today. It was an unexpected day too, because we weren’t expecting spectacular scenery and we got it in spades. This portion of the EV 17 is wonderful.

Our hotel this morning had a reasonably good breakfast, which was a pleasant surprise as well. We were anticipating a longer day and took full advantage. The coffee was especially good.

The only disappointment was the Mistral. It wasn’t finished with us yet. It was diminished, probably blowing at 75% of yesterday’s strength. That is the CN’s estimate. Still pretty strong though. It didn’t seem to gust to the same extent as yesterday, and that was a great help. I have done some research, and it is common for it to blow for 96 hours straight, and it certainly has, so hopefully that is it. I skimmed over the part in the Wikipedia article that says sometimes it blows for weeks. No need for me to know that!

First up was some fuel for the road. When you approach the bakery and see this happening through the window you know it will be good.

It has the right look too. Nothing mass produced here.

Yellow poppies...but what we really think this picture does is illustrate the wind.

The route is well signed and we saw many, many bike tourers. I tried to count, but when I got to over 85 I lost track and gave up. We generally only see people going the other way of course, so they all had one heck of a tailwind.

Swans look so funny when their heads are under water.

Then we had a fascinating experience. There were trucks on the bike path and they had just unloaded sheep and goats to graze in the valley. It was an amazing sight. According to one fellow, it is how they keep the weeds down. It was so interesting to watch.

This border collie knows a dog lover when he sees one. Who wants to herd sheep when you can get a scratch behind the ears? There were actually two border collies working the sheep and the other was very serious about it. This guy was just a puppy.

Then came the most amazing suspension bridge. Keith rode across, but I walked. I tried to ride, but it was my dislike of heights that did me in. There were so many cycle tourists, and it was a single lane bridge so everyone had to wait their turn.

The family that bike tours together has a great time together. Their youngest daughter (on the right in the background) absolutely lit up when I mentioned my dislike of heights. She is the same, and I could see how much better she felt to know she is not the only one to feel that way.

How do you like that foundation? This was the view from the bridge and from our picnic lunch in Rochemaure.

It was part of a larger complex. However did they get all those rocks up there back in the day??

Then we just rolled, with me usually tucked neatly behind the Chief Windbreak. It astonishes me how much difference that makes, and how strong Keith is to just keep pulling me along. The interesting scenery continued for the entire ride.

It isn’t all random old stuff. We practically could touch these four nuclear reactors. It felt very Homer Simpson. It was as close as we ever want to be. Keith took this picture from a ways back. Trust me, we were much closer later on. These things are HUGE.

Here is a picture I took as we got closer. At the bottom the ones with steam coming from the top had water (I think) running down the open area, the two not in use did not. They are impressive and had a huge conventional looking building attached.

The incredibly charming Damien, who has excellent English, and asked to borrow a phone to call his Mom. They got separated on the bike path. We obliged and she arrived. Such a great young man.

We were having such a great day, that after a park bench conference we decided to carry on to Valence. We popped the music on and spun the pedals. I experienced that pure joy I often get when bike touring. That wonderful feeling of gratitude that we are so fortunate to be able to do this. Everything was going so smoothly until...

Well, that wreaks havoc with the navigation. However, in France these things are often suggestions, especially after working hours, so...

We set off to see if there was a way through.

A little walking to a tunnel ahead on the right and we were back on track.

The CN lead us to the hotel, taking the scenic route through the park. We are very comfortable in the Hotel Atrium, and it is time for bed.

This graph is a little deceiving as it was a gradual climb over a long distance. Clearly though, there is a reason smart people were going the other way as they had a gradual downhill and with the wind.

https://www.relive.cc/view/2412241135

Today's ride: 113 km (70 miles)
Total: 1,563 km (971 miles)

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James Fitch"We have seen this a number of times but we don't know what it is" looks very much like grape varietals being cloned. You take a cutting from the plant you want to reproduce, soak the base end in rooting hormone and stick it in the ground and take care of it. That way you get exact copies of the varietal instead of taking your chances with seedlings. It's sort of like grafting, but without the separate root stock to graft to. I don't see any obvious grafts, but it's at least conceivable that these are desirable shoots grafted onto bits of superior root stock. In either case, they are young grapevines being cultivated for subsequent distribution and planting.
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4 years ago

Kathleen ClassenThat is absolutely fascinating. Now that we know we wonder why we couldn’t see it. I knew those leaves looked familiar! We were focusing on the red stalks. Thanks so much for letting us know.
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4 years ago