Cycling is just a fun activity and can be incorporated into your life to suit you; racing, off-road, Sunday blast, touring or just going down to the shops. I've enjoyed every day of this tour but this morning leaving Entraygues-sur-Truyere with the cool morning air, a glimpse of the sun poking through the light cloud and a weather forecaster's promise of dry days to come the day felt extraordinarily special and I was unwittingly drawn into that big broad grin that says everything is well in the world.
Today I continue to follow the river Lot upstream and will go through two stunningly beautiful villages; more later I am sure. Within 10 km the sun does break through.
If you are wondering why I am cycling the river Lot but stayed in Entraygues-sur-Truyere last night then it is because Entraygues-sur-Truyere sits on the confluence of the river Lot and the river Truyere. Maybe they honoured the Truyere as it is effectively the terminus for that river; in name at least. The photo above shows the entrance into the Lot Gorge which houses a small hydro-electric power station.
Back in the land of the living when I read my guidebook from the comfort of a sofa I was impressed by the amount of local insight it provided and wondered at the amount of research that went into it. I now know that they did what I usually do and borrow from the many information signs that accompany any tour.
The first village today is Estaing and though I am following the camino the Lot Gorge is steep and treacherous so the pilgrims of old (1,000 years ago) chose a safer route which is still used today. I am heading east, the pilgrims west, so I get a different view entering Estaing. It is a classic setting, so much so that a restaurant in Paris serving the food of the Auvergne has a 1920s style tourist poster of this village; the restaurant is cslled the Ambassade dAuvergne in Le Marais or the 4th arrondissement depending on how you want your Paris districts named. Don't ask.
That was the only photo I took in Estaing as I realised that having had a relaxed morning I risked missing the bike shop in Espalion which closes at noon. I make good progress and arrive 15 minutes before closing to buy a second spare inner tube and a hat to keep the UV off my head and the heat in on Ventoux. They also kindly put some air in my tyres with their track pump; its hard getting the pressure with a hand pump. My puncture had made me nervous, two spare tubes are required because if you puncture once and fail to find the cause you will probably puncture again; if its raining you'll find it hard to do a roadside repair. Despite having a picnic lunch stashed in my panniers I realise I am actually in a town that does Le Menu in the narrow lunchtime window so I enjoy a 14 euro three course extravaganza; OK, Le Menu is modest but you get vegetables, variety and no pasta. The two bridges are called old and new respectively; very imaginative.
In Saint-Come-d'Olt I try to get a good shot of the spire of this 16th century church built in the flamboyant Gothic style; with thanks to a conveniently located information board.
Then after much slow and surpringly comfortable climbing I get a glorious downhill. I have been practicing my downhill in readiness for Ventoux; this mostly takes the form of judging my braking before corners rather than how fast I can take them.
Today's campsite is 4-star which for me means there is a reception that is open and I pay 10 euro extra for that luxury; the earth I sleep on doesn't have a star rating. This was my journey today; top left to bottom right.
