Day 28 - Feb 27th - Milan or bust! 134 km

My 'not so rural' emergency campsite in Ovada

In the morning, over unusually lumpy porridge,  I decided that I want to get to Milan today. It was a tall order but my legs seemed to have mostly recovered from 9 hrs of pedalling yesterday. (Note to 'ample' ladies/gentlemen: I burnt 7,300 calories ye sterday. Get on a bike, strap a 50kg bag of cement on the back and pedal it up 1000m....you WILL lose weight.) My antidote to excessive weight-loss is currently 'amoretti's, delicious Italian almond pastries available from all good pasticcerias.

All packed up and ready to go

The sudden transition from the mountains to the flat frosty fields of Alessandria was surprising. Today was head-down and go.......the only climbs were bridges over motorways but on the other hand the scenery was dreary, just heavy sodden clay fields. By lunch-time I knew I was going to make it, albeit another night arrival. The final 20kms were mind-numbing. As dusk fell, I was alongside the Naviglio Grande canal which went straight as an arrow into the city. I was on the wrong (LH) side mixing it (without much of a hard shoulder) with the heavy traffic pouring in and out of Milan. There was a perfectly good cycle track on the other side of the canal but annoyingly not a single bridge to cross over and join it.

It started to rain. Dicing with the city centre traffic in the dark and wet while trying to navigate to your hostel is quite fun if you can forget how dangerous it is. Take your pick; pedestrians with a death wish step out without even looking, buses, trams, and even worse those tricky wet tram rails.All this while trying to jiggle the GPS buttons with gloved fingers. Anyway, I arrived and all I can say is the 'Ostello Bello' must be the best hostel in the world. It was rammed full of friendly people and you received a complimentary beer at reception......I'd arrived!

Day 27 Tue Feb 26th DionoMarina to Ovada

I'd forgotten what a nice run it was up the Ligurian coast. The sun was shining, the sea was turquoise blue and the easterly headwind had moderated.

Heading NE up the Ligurian coastline

Definitely low season though, just the locals out promenading in the afternoon sun. The snow-capped mountains were always in view and I had to turn left and go through them at some point, heading north to Milan. I'd chosen to do this just before Genoa as the climb to the pass was only around 550m.

Around 5pm and I'm about to head into the mountains SW of Genova

I saw my first cycle tourist today, a Chinese gentleman I think. I was just coming out of Savona and the traffic both ways was heavy so we didn't stop for a chat. There was another guy I saw earlier but I would class him as a tourist, more as a hobo with a bike. He had no panniers, everything seemed to be hanging off the bike in bags and he was carrying a spare tyre around his waist like a hula hoop.

My plan was to turn left and do a bit of climbing before camping in the forest. It didn't quite work out though as I couldn't find anywhere to stop. The snow had been heavy here and the snow ploughs had formed impenetrable banks on both sides of the road. So, I just kept going, over the pass and down the other side, eventually stopping in a car park in Ovada around 10pm. I left the satellite tracker on during the night journey.........in case I got buried in an avalanche (joke Maria!)). It was an eerie descent. There was a full moon and clear sky and I could see I was in a river gorge with snow-covered mountains on either side......it would have been nice to see it in daylight.

Uh huh

Going through a deserted town around 9pm. It's very cold and I'm on the lookout for black ice.

I clocked up 134km for the day and burnt 7,300 calories, which is just as well given the amount of focaccia I've eaten today. I don't think I'll be able to make Milan tomorrow as it's still 140km away

Day 26 Mon Feb 25th About turn!

Breil- sur- Roya to DianoMarina  80 km

Last night I was trying to figure out what was wrong with the Col de Tende. My GPS route showed a sharp spike of altitude to 1826m whereas the map showed a fairly straight main road (and a railway) passing over the top. A bit of research on the internet revealed the answer. A 3km tunnel. And guess what. Bicycles not allowed through the tunnel. The old road over the col has 48 hairpins and becomes a dirt track near the top. Not an option in the winter. My intended route to Milan is closed.......I'm going to have to go back down to the coast tomorrow, go along the Via Aurelia (the SS1) and turn inland and head north to Milan just before Genoa. So be it.

I explained my predicament to the patron at the bar over my morning expresso (porridge eaten in my room). As I was just about to pedal off he emerged and told me of an alternative. "Why don't you take the train from here, through the tunnel to Cuneo". I was by now completely focussed on my new coastal route and replied "No, that would be cheating, catching a train". He seemed to understand.

Back down hill - I finally make it into Italy

I get sucked into a fresh fruit and veg market - lots of goodies I've been missing in here!

Halfway down to the coast at Ventimiglia I thought to myself "How stupid am I? That train idea was really good, I could have been in Milan by Wednesday". Anyway, at least I was now in Italy, the weather was sunny and there was a fantastic fruit and veg market in Ventimiglia where I stocked up on some healthy (but so heavy) goodies.

I hate headwinds!!  This is a kiteboarding day

This route running alongside the Med has some nice stretches of cycle path using a disused railway line. I spent the rest of the day working hard against the blustery cold  ENE wind coming off the sea and finally camped on the beach just beyond Diono Marina. I'm writing this during a bout of insomnia; it's 3am and raining. And I'm as snug as a bug in a rug. I want to get an early start tomorrow and clock up some mileage (weather permitting!)

An early morning view from my beachside campsite

Day 25 l'Escarene to Breil-sur-Roya 50 km 1300m of climb and lots of snow!

What hairpins (lacets) look like on the GPS

I slowly shed layers of clothing as I laboriously climbed up to the Col de Braus, 2 hours to do 10km. The scenery was awesome....majestic. It was trying to snow. Triumphant at the top, I put everything back on, and more, even donning my ski goggles for the first time, for what I knew would be a freezing 20 minute descent into Sospel

The hairpins from hell!

But worth it for the view - awesome!

 After thawing out  with a coffee and pannini in Sospel I set out to repeat it all again on the next col (Col de Brouis). The rain/sleet/snow cycle repeated itself as I climbed, only this time much heavier so that I was wearing full rain kit. Or, in other words, sauna kit.......I could feel my clothes sodden with sweat under the breathable (ha!) rain jacket. Towards the end I was driven on by the fact that I had to get over this col and down to a warmer level before the snow started to settle, or worse, started to freeze. It's been a long time since I cycled in snow and I was thankful for my winter tyres

I didn't hang about up here......if this freezes it will be a skating rink.

Soggy but triumphant!

Both tucked away for the night, me in hot shower, bike blocking hallway.

           I will say 2 words about the descent into Breil-sur- Roya......FREEZING.....SCARY. I didn't put  a change of clothes on at the top as they would have got soaked on the way down. The hydraulic brakes and ceramic rims are fantastic in the dry........in the wet.....about 90% less effective.

At sometime during the descent camping in a sodden tent lost it's appeal. I prised my hands off the brake levers at the first sign of life, a petrol station, and asked the way to the nearest hotel. The miserable woman owner pointed me to a hotel (which was closed) 2 km down the road. She looked at me if I was a lump of dog-shit and even got a mop out and started mopping around me as my collection of snow melted. I gulped my machine-delivered shot of coffee and headed off into town. At one point I was forced to consider that I might actually have to camp until a friendlier restaurant owner pointed me in the direction of La Bonne Auberge. I was the only resident. Bon!

Day 24 Sat 23rd Feb Cannes to l'Escarene 41km

I was writing up the blog in the hotel room this morning when the room phone rang......the madame of Hotel California wanted to know if I was staying another night. "No", I replied, "I'll be checking out in about 30 minutes". She sounded doubtful "It's pouring with rain". Indeed it was, cats and dogs, but clearly she didn't understand the British character. In the foyer I sweated patiently in full cold/wet weather clothing as she checked out her advertising strategy, quizzing me about how cyclists search for accommodation. I think she was asking the wrong person.

The previous night I decided to take a more adventurous high altitude course to Milan, which is about 360 km away. After all, I had already ridden the coastal route, the Via Aurelia, on my way to Rome last April. So, I decided to do a short run today, camp below the snow line and then get through the first of the cols tomorrow. There's a couple at around 1000m and a biggie at 1,870m the Col de Tende after which it seems like a 200km downhill all the way to Milan.

Around lunch-time I thought the weather gods had finally decided to throw me a challenge. There was a stiff NE wind coming off the sea which was just 30m away on the left. The spume from the waves battering the rocks was blowing across the cycle path, mixing it with the rain. I looked up and saw the mountains behind Nice, the tops covered in dark rain cloud, the snow visible some 200m below cloudbase. I laughed to myself, thinking "Bring it on!"

The cycle path goes right through Nice,a distance of some 20km. There are regular ' bike stations' along the route. I thought these bikes must just rust away during the winter months but when I looked closer these were high-spec bikes with shaft drive, shimano hub generator for the lights, hub brakes......impressive!

The cycle path and hire bikes through Nice

In the afternoon the rain petered out and the wind moderated. I stop for the night just before l'Escarene having only reached 200m from sea level. A climbing day tomorrow.

Sheltered from the rain

Day 23 Fri Feb 22 Draguignan to Golfe Juan 77km Total 2,000km!

My day didn't start well. It was a a very steep climb out from my campsite to the main road, maybe 30% or more. Whatever, if you only used the front brake of the bike as a handbrake the bike just slid backwards downhill. It was easier to pedal in bottom gear than to push. I'd already stopped a couple of times for a breather on the way up. Getting going for the third time I wobbled and fell......that bike is so top heavy. No harm done luckily although I ripped a hole in the knee of my Gore rain pants (that hurt!)

The beast is down! No damage done - respect to Ortlieb panniers and Ergon racks.

Corniche de L'Estrellas. Very picturesque but a lot of up hill and down dale pedalling

Munching again. Notice the bike gets the umbrella - not me!

 Things improved after that. I finally found porridge oats in a Dia supermarket, I was starting to think they weren't part of the French diet. Then I clocked 2,000km, and mid-afternoon I joined the coast road at Freijus on the Corniche de L'Esterel. Ahead lies Cannes, Antibes, Nice and Monaco.

As the day wears on I start to become a little anxious about where I am going to spend the night, or rather, how much is it going to cost me. All the hotels are 4/5 star along this stretch and lets face it.......I'm starting to look like a hobo. I have an optimistic outlook which says, don't accept that, there will always be something better around the next corner (even if daylight is running out) and sure enough there was the the lone star Hotel California just waiting for me 7km beyond Cannes. Another night of heat, abundant hot water.....and hand-washing clothes, blog writing, battery charging.  : /

Day 22 Thurs 21 Feb Pertuis to Draguignan - 104 km

It was -2 C in the tent last night. I was fine with just my nose poking out of the sleeping bag. Packing away in the morning in the pre-dawn, it took me about 10 minutes to get the frozen tent pole joints apart. I had to heat each joint on my stove until the ice melted. If that stove packs up.......so do I! I'm running it on petrol hence the two red bottles you may spot hanging off the bike.

Unfreezing the tent pole joints - time consuming!

Keeping everything charged up on the go is another interesting task as I've only got 3 watts available from the hub generator. It can be done if you don't waste any charging time during the day. I can always steal some power from the notepad computer if necessary. The charging priorities are headlamp, gps, phone.

Mid-morning and still wrapped up well

Potable? All the signs say no but that's  H&S because it's not actually tested by the local authority (and never has been). If you ask a local they will tell you it is the tastiest water for miles around! I am sporting  the famous down jacket.

I travelled on relatively quiet roads today and enjoyed the rolling scenery. I know there is no chance of finding camping spots on the Riviera so I want to get as close to the Riviera  today and then try and get through the Riviera and into Italy in one day. So I press on and arrive at dusk as usual and manage to find a spot down a forestry track.

Day 21 Wed 20th Feb Avignon to Pertuis 75km

It was a late start after a very sleepless night. My dorm room which I am sharing with a Japanese guy is next to the central heating room. I don't know what was wrong with the system but there was a noise like a door slamming followed by a whoosh of steam that slowly died away and then repeated itself every 20 secs. At 1am I dug my inflatable mattress out of my pannier, grabbed my sleeping bag and went and lay down in a corridor on the floor above. Peace at last. No, not so. At 3am alarms started to go off in all the rooms along the corridor. and all these kids started to emerge. I have picked a corridor housing a school trip! I just played dead to the world on the floor thinking it would all be over in 30 minutes. No chance; they must have had an early breakfast arranged because it almost went quiet and then they all flooded back and started banging suitcases past me. I expect they thought I was a drunk. It finally went quiet at 5am. If my tent had hot running water I'd sleep in it every time.

So, I felt washed out today but thanks to a fresh tailwind and a clear blue sky I managed a respectable 75km ending up about 50km north of Marseille. I now have a GPS track that works and says I have about 250km to go through Cannes, Nice and Monaco to the Italian border. This will be the same coastal route that I took on my trip to Rome last year. I expect to hit some hills tomorrow so the plan is for an early night and an early start.

Typical lunch spot. Topped up with water from that fountain on the far side. The locals (if you can find any) are not very chatty.

Day 20 - Tue 19th Montpelier to Avignon 87km

Last night was a still, frosty half-moon night and the sky was clear and starry. My entrecote steak was just about to be flipped in the pan when I must have spotted by the landowner (it's that searchlight-like headlamp I have......I've stuck 5 layers of Steristrip bandage over it but it is still bright). He paid me a visit with his 4 x 4 and a very large dog which was slavering over my steak. I explained I was English (it always works!) and had arrived in the dark (both true) and he was OK about it......said fine as long as you leave as you find; which I always do. Good.....I could relax for the rest of the evening.

I feel I've been really lucky with the weather so far. The morning is spoilt by the traffic though, I'd hoped to find the 'B' roads quieter but the roads are really busy and the hard shoulder is intermittent and where it exists it is puncture-territory.......broken bottles, the remnants of accidents and a surprising number of wheel studs, nails and bolts. I wear my HI-VIZ jacket and helmet and if I'm holding up a HGV that wants to pass for more than half a minute I pull off onto the grass. It takes a lot of concentration to ride on that white line at the edge of the road as you are buffeted about. I vow to get a small scale map and follow some country lanes.

The 11th Century castle in Beaucaire - a pretty town

A well-earned but pricey hot chocolate in Beaucaire

The afternoon is better, I pick up the D32 out of Beaucaire (lovely town) which is traffic free and newly tarmac-ed......heaven! I bowl along watching the farmers spraying their apple trees, listening to Queen. 'It's a Kind of Magic' is my perfect 'get a move on' music, just the right cadence (bpm), 20km/hr in 11th gear......Freddie - what a talent!
PS All you boy racers - 20km/hr is 'getting a move on' for me : )

I finally get my photo of a TGV train, they're so fast by the time you've got your camera out - whoosh - they've gone. Hopeless for trainspotting. I only got this one because it was just leaving Avignon station.

OK...I admit it......I'm a train-spotter

At last! Sur le ponte d'Avignon...da de dada....da de dada. Not quite 'sur le pont', I wasn't in the mood to carry 'Big Bertha' up the steps! Now where's that hostel?

Day 19 - Mon 18th Beziers to Montpellier 104km

 

It's the Mediterranean - and it's bloody freezing!

A road-worker told me about this cycle route running along the coast north of Agde - I had it completely to myself. The holiday chalet sites were an eyesore

I pack up in the dark and am on the road before 7.30am. I want to leave myself an easy run to Avignon tomorrow where I'm planning to stay in a hostel. It's a slog against a cold easterly wind but I get the distance in.

Day 18 Perpignan to Béziers 94km

A late start today, not helped by the cold damp morning and grey skies. The spell of fine weather was coming to an end. As I packed I promoted my wet-weather gear to the top of of the pannier, I hadn't seen rain since I left Portugal.
Again, although this is obviously a summer holiday area, the scenery is nothing special. I was surprised by the number of prostitutes at the roadside, at least one every mile, sometimes in pairs. They are hard-looking women and I feel sorry for them. They look absolutely freezing in their short skirts. A few do what they probably consider to be a sexy dance, but in a lay-by in the middle of nowhere it looks incongruous..... I keep pedalling.
I'd hoped to get through Béziers and camp the other side in daylight but it was dark by the time I got through. On the way out I hit a kerb and fell off my bike for the first time. It sounds funny but my heel was clipping my baguette as I pedalled and I turned round to move it, the next thing I know I'm on the pavement. Fortunately no damage done to me or bike although I was glad I was wearing gloves. No photos today.

Day 17 La Belle France!

Girona to Perpignan 99 km

Just keeping up with traditions!

Fancy a date?

Girona is a nice town, worth a return 'weekend away' visit. As I was leaving the hostel, the ever-cheerful woman on the front desk gave me directions to the 'ugly lion' and insisted that I go and kiss it. Legend has it that if you (in her words) 'kiss the arse of the ugly lion' then you will one day return to Girona. She must have given it a good long kiss because she came back and is still here 5 years later.
Crossing the Pyrenees into France was a non-event on the N11, hardly any climbing at all. The steepest bit was going up the main street of the border town of Perthus. The town was packed, bus loads of visitors, all there for what seemed to be duty -free shopping. I don't understand how you can have a duty free zone between two European countries??
The rest of the day was uneventful, nothing worth getting the camera out for.
I camped in the dark very near the TGV (or AVE as they are called in Spain). Actually, I'd been told quite firmly several times in Girona that I'm not in Spain, I'm in Catalunya. The desire for independence here seems even stronger than in Galicia.

Day 16 - Friday 15th Feb 'Rest day' in Girona

OK, I'm tired. I've been cycling for 2 weeks now so why do I feel a bit guilty about a lazy day off? I've covered 1,400 km, mostly in the direction I planned to go, albeit without having to deal with any nasty headwinds. Out of interest I've checked the Google maps distance for my approximate track and it gives 1,170 km (with that very important caveat 'This route may have road closures'). So I've been bimbling about on mountainous back road diversions for an extra 230km  - ouch! That's 2 days riding.  The problem is, and it's caught me out 3 times now, is that new autovia's have been built over the original road and the car is king.....bicycles and tractors shall take to the hills. It really messes up your day.

What! No bikes!

I've re-sewn the catch on my trousers, done all my laundry and later this afternoon I'm going to go out on the bike (unladen!) and take a look around Girona. There is a Decathlon store not far away as I need a new water bag ( the original came off the bike over a speed bump and skittered along the tarmac just long enough to wear a hole in the corner) and a thermal sleeping bag liner. I've been checking out the night temperatures in the Balkans and I need a bit more insulation at night. My current silk liner is light and compact but doesn't add much insulation. 

My hostel room in Girona

Tomorrow I'll be in France, I'll aim to pull up somewhere south of Perpignan but will do some detailed route planning this evening.

Day 10 - Feb 09 The fantastic Gorge

This mornings' ride was a downhill through the beautiful  gorge of the Valle de Mesa. I took so many photos but have just included a couple.
I've run out of time to finish this so there will be a gap for a few days.... going to jump to Girona now

Day 9 - 08 Feb Diversion through the Valle de Mesa! 111km

Dropping down into Algar de Mesa at dusk

 After a nippy start I slowly climbed up to a plateau at 1060m and then followed a long but chilly 20km descent. I was annoyed to discover that my planned route to Calatayud was buried under the new A2 autovia so had to head south into the hills to find a way round. I ran out of daylight and energy around 7pm, back up around 1000m where the temperature really plummets once the sun goes down. I stopped in a cafe in a remote mountain village (Algar de Mesa) to ask how far it was to Calatayud. As soon as I found out that it was a another 60km I gave up. Yes, the cafe owner had an apartment I could use just down the street, reduced to 20 euro from 30 because it had no heating (clearly a summer letting only www.la-encina.com). Yes, I could join the family for supper at 9.30pm. So began an epic night. I drank brandy until dinnertime in front of a big open log fire. The table in the bar was set for nine, other guests joined us from the village and we ate barbecued lamb chops with a delicious red wine. Guitars came out and it all turned into a pleasant musical alcoholic haze.  The only downside was when I finally got away to my freezing apartment there was no hot water as promised. Arghh! I was so looking forward to a piping hot shower. Instead I heated saucepans of water on the cooker to have a strip down wash.......not the same thing at all, especially when standing on icy floor tiles!

I don't know why he wanted to shoot me - maybe it was the conversation about the  ownership of Gibralter 

It's fuzzy but that's me with the gun!

Leaving my apartment the following morning

Day 8 - 07 Feb La Horra to Quintanas de Gormaz 102km

It started to snow as I was having breakfast this morning and ended up rushing around like crazy to get the tent down and everything packed away before it got covered......cold porridge anyone?
Spotted an Auchan hypermarket this morning.......so many goodies! I came out with 2 bags full of treats, looked at my bike and thought where am I going to stash all this?

Topping up with goodies in Auchan hypermarket. Where am I going to put it all?

If I'm passing through a village around 5pm I'll find (often the only) cafe/bar and order a coffee and brandy to pep me up. The brandy comes in a very large glass and all for around 2.50 euro. I'm tempted to have another but I'd never get going again.
I think I eat well when camping, Tonight was pasta with garlic, fresh mushrooms and diced smoked ham dressed with fresh watercress (which I'd spotted in a chalk stream and stuffed my flask full). Yum!

A cheese and watercress butty and a nice cup of tea

I love pasta!

Myfirst and probably last campfire - smoke and ash everywhere!

 My favourite camp spots are normally in pine forest, sheltered and a carpet of pine needles. I lit my first log fire to sit around but it was a bit of a failure as the wind kept blowing smoke and ash into my tent and cooking stuff. It snowed overnight - definitely into winter operations now!

The cover always manages to blow off during the night

This taught me to put all my stuff away at night - almost!