Annecy, France Yep, it’s true, today counted as an actual “holiday.” No alarm, no schedule to keep, no backpack, no bicycle. Just a leisurely breakfast with three cafe au laits, followed by a leisurely canal walk with a cappuccino stop, followed by a leisurely town walk, followed by a leisurely lunch of pasta and pints, …
Tournon to Annecy, France 36 Miles I’ve hit the wall and by wall I don’t mean the cycling wall but instead a wall of people. There are people everywhere. Everywhere. Pedaling into the town of Annecy on a random Tuesday afternoon, we are hard-pressed to part the sea of bodies spread out before us. No …
Aix Les Bains to Tournon 25 Miles and One Train I’ve no idea what it is but I’m pretty sure Rusty, my canine companion, would LOVE it: It smells like cat food and has the same consistency. I know for a fact that there is absolutely no way I’m going to be able to choke …
Seyssel to Aix la Bains 30 Miles, Ascending 1200 ft, Descending 1100 ft It’s a good thing I’m built more like a Sherpa than Shakira, for today’s bicycle challenge involved getting over this: All stairs, no ramps, and a cycling partner for whom stairs, particularly in a downward direction, are not her strong suit. There …
Geneva, Switzerland to Seyssel, France 42 Miles, Ascending 2600 ft, Descending 3000 ft I’ve been half-stung by a bee and fully-stung by a nettle, went full-rudder on a rocky single-track, pushed up a triple-chevron hill that turned out to be off-route, ate a 7-hours-old bread-meet-cheese sandwich on a bench in the middle of a corn …
Mont Blanc Final Day Chamonix to Geneva 0 Miles It’s another tear-inducing morning as we say goodbye once more to fellow trekkers after morning breakfast. Ian and Carolyn are already off hiking another Chamonix peak and Tour Leader Jen is probably busy trying to get some actual rest now that she is no longer constantly …
Day 10 Off Day Chamonix 0 Miles, Aiguille du Midi Cable Car I’ve traded in my pair of sweaty shins for a pair of sweaty palms. I’m pretty sure my fellow trekking buddy Steve has too, sharing my extreme dislike of these ridiculous cable cars that ascend to places not meant for human exploration. We …
Day 9 Trekking Argentiere to Chamonix 6 Miles, 2300 ft Ascending, 850 ft Descending We are cracking ourselves up as we make the final climb on this final trekking day. And by final climb I mean final – we can see the cable car that will whisk us back down to Chamonix from the top …
Day 8 Trekking Trient to Argentiere 10 Miles, 2000 ft Ascending, 1000 ft Descending “There will be a lovely quiche, a nice patio, and views.” These are the words Tour Leader Jen has just spoken and we are all ears. I’m not sure one needs anything more motivating than that short phrase to bear another …
Day 7 Trekking Champex-Lac to Trient 10 Miles, 2300 ft Ascending, 2500 ft Descending I’ve deduced on this trekking trip around Mont Blanc that “steep” has multiple definitions, most of which are completely disagreeable to the human body. There’s regular steep, which means I will huff and puff and perhaps mutter a bit under my …