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Published: March 22nd 2018
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With the wet weather now seemingly behind us, today I decided it was time to play photographer and capture some of the scenery we have been riding through. We started with the requisite rush-hour (i.e. diesel-infused) climb out of the city, which soon took us to the intersection where the "nominal" (i.e. shorter) and "alternate" (longer) routes diverged, at which point I and 3 others opted for the latter. Climbing steadily, we left the city behind very quickly and were immediately rewarded with stunning views of whence we had come. Unfortunately, my willingness to pause and take photos did not seem to mesh with the plans of my companions so I let them go on ahead and settled in to enjoy the day and the scenery alone. This being France, massifs loomed everywhere, and the views were majestic as I pressed on towards the Col du Villar, leaving the Alps behind.
Yesterday I tried researching some of today's climbs and had been puzzled by the fact that I had found descriptions of the climb to the Col du Foureyssasse from one side only; today it all made sense: the route we took was so gentle as to not be worth
talking about, but once on the other side it was a dizzying descent (OK, with a few uphill sections to reach some of the villages perches) to Barcillonnette where, strangely, I caught sight of my former companions. I managed to chase them down, which must've been troubling, since they immediately decided to drop the hammer and leave me behind once again. I took advantage of the solitude to pull over for what Tour commentator Phil Leggett politely terms a "natural break", and fortunately noticed this passenger before I got under way again - things would've got messy if he had been left to hit the brakes (literally).
In somewhat of a preview of what is to come next week, I got to ascend the Gorges de la Meouges, which subsequently led to a protracted straight-line ride over rough pavement. Crossing into the Departement de la Drome, the pavement improved somewhat but the wind picked up, and it was a long, dreary slog up past the Col du Macuegne to the Col de l'Homme Mort before descending through Ferrassieres, leading to a view of Mont
Ventoux, before dropping further into Sault.
We are staying at a fancy place on the edge of town that has multiple swimming pools (at different temperatures), soap in the form of cubes, and a resident peacock - so no one opted to eat at the restaurant here ($$$) and most of us headed into town. Unfortunately I forgot to bring my camera to record the wonderful al fresco dinner (wood-fired pizza prepared in a truck!) I had with Werner; we sat on a ledge overlooking the valley and the view was astounding - I hope to be able to capture it for you on my way out of town tomorrow.
Until then, I have much fretting to do about a 21km climb at an average grade of 7.6% - preceded by a 43km warmup and followed by a further 62km (fortunately mostly downhill), at which point I will have earned a day off.
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