September 30, 2018 Strasbourg to Mulhouse

Today was an absolutely stunning day of riding.  Most of it was down tree lined canal paths, some of it down country lanes and some of it down busier roads which had a segregated bike lane beside the road.

The day started with Agnes and I walking over and getting the van from the parking area and driving over to the other apartment.  There we loaded Earnie, Betsy, and Juerg’s luggage.  Off to our apartment where we loaded Ken and Sally’ and Agnes and my luggage.  The whole effort went really smoothly as being a Sunday morning there was almost no traffic on the narrow streets.  Even so from the time Agnes and I left to go get the van until I pushed off it was 75 minutes. 

The four riders started off together but Juerg got out in front as Ken and I were stopping to help Earnie work with his Garmin.  I don’t understand why he has so many problems with it.  Notwithstanding that they are less than intuitive and seem to be very temperamental beasts.  We made a few setting changes and hopefully this will help Earnie work with it.  I also wanted to make sure that Earnie got out of Strasbourg as smoothly as possible as there were a lot of tricky turns. 

By the time we were about 15 kms into the ride we were well into the country and Ken and I dropped Earnie off the back.  From there on it was pretty straight forward just follow the canal.  Or at least that was the way it was for the first 50 kms.  From there we wandered down some country lanes and down a few bike paths.  The sun was out and by 11:00 AM Ken and I stopped to pull off the last of the arm and leg warmers. 

We knew it was going to be hard to find something to eat so we started looking for somewhere to grab some food around 11:30 AM but all the towns seemed closed up.  By 1:00 Pm I was wondering if we would find anything as every shop was closed.  We finally rode through a slightly larger town which was having some sort to agricultural fair.  Not a farmers market but a fair showing off new tractors, feritlizer things and the like.  The food places said we were too late for lunch but we found a concession booth which had ice cream cones.  Ok a triple scoop ice cream for lunch.  I guess it would have to do. 

Ken and I had been trading off pulling most of the day and by now the wind had come up and was straight into our faces again.  However now it is stronger than ever and it is Kens turn.  We make a turn onto a busier road which has no bike lane and no shoulder. It is lined with trees on both sides and absolutely straight for about 8 kms.  The wind is just funnelled straight down the road.  I was right on Ken’s wheel.  He was going too fast for me to do anything but hang on.  When we got to the far end of the straight stretch Ken we needed to make a turn onto a bike path. Ken was out of breath.  I said it then and will say it again. “Great Pull Ken”  

There were a bunch of twists and turns getting into Mulhouse down some bike lanes, across some crazy intersections and narrow streets.  I recognized most of the turns from putting the little Google man down when I was designing the course. 

Garmin says we did 175 meters of climbing and 116 kms of riding.  What a fun day of riding down some of the nicest bike trails I have ever been on.

Terry hot biker

September 29, 2018 Rest day in Strasbourg

Today was a very relaxing day.  We tried our hardest to sleep in but are so use to getting up early that we were awake and rolling around by 8:30 Am.  

For this rest day our little band is staying in two different apartments.  Agnes and I are with Ken and Sally and Earnie and Betsy are with Juerg.   Our apartment is a very nice spacious place  on the fourth floor of a four story building which has a winding staircase up the four stories.  It has been totally renovated and looks out across to the Strasbourg cathedral.  It is a million dollar view.  There are lots of very cute decorating touches.   The other apartment is not as spacious but is on the ground floor and does not have a view but it has a back yard for the bikes. 

Ken and Sally were off to do a walk.  Agnes and I lingered over coffee for a while before we went out to walk through the downtown of Strasbourg.  Agnes had found a place to park the van for free so we walked over to check on the van and then dropped by the other apartment to make sure all was well over there.  They were in the middle of laundry and had stuff hanging everywhere.   Agnes and I continued on into the downtown and wandered through the different squares and admired different things in the shops.  Not much of the stuff which has the Alsace decorations will fit with our place in Kelowna so we left it for other customers.

We wandered into the huge Strasbourg Cathedral.  It is a magnificent place.  The stone work is beyond belief in the detail and is in unbelievably good condition. There is so much that it is hard to believe that it has been all restored.  The original cathedral was built at this location in the 7^th century with various different cathedrals being built at various times.  The current cathedral was started in 1180 and finished in 1439.  It was the tallest monument to Christianity for over two centuries. The sun was out and was illuminating the huge stained glass windows.  I took a lot of pictures none of which do justice to the magnificent structure.

After the Cathedral we wandered through the downtown squares and found out way back to the apartment.  Along the way we picked up a baguette and some cheese and had a late French lunch.

The afternoon was spent just relaxing and doing a little catching up on e-mails and doing some tour accounting.  A tour director’s work is never done.

Terry

September 28, 2018 Sarrebourg (Saint Ultrich) to Strasbourg

This morning everyone was feeling a lot better about things and that the troubles with the van were over.  We had all appreciated the quiet of the convent and the simple yet comfortable nature of the convent. 

After breakfast and loading luggage in the van Ken, Juerg and I headed up the hill towards Sarrebourg.  It was a short climb and soon we were on the main road into town.  As we approached Sarrebourg there was a long and steep downhill. There was a fair amount of traffic with parked cars along the right hand side and I was keeping an eye out for the cars while watching my speed on the steep hill.  In all of this I missed seeing one of the memorials I had earlier identified as one which I wanted to see.  It contained the remains of 20,000 French soldiers who had died after being captured.  They were buried were they died and then their remains had been repatriated back to this cemetery after the war. 

There were a few lefts and a few rights and before we knew it we were through Saarrebourg and back on a little country road.  We passed over a bridge which had row upon row of flowers planted in flower boxes along the hand rail.  The bridge was over a rail yard which had a bewildering array of overhead wires and rails. It was quite a sight so I stopped and took a picture. 

A few kms down the road and we got to the point where we joined the canal path.  For the first 8 kms along the canal path the grade was quite steep and the canal had been abandon.  There was a lock every 50-100 meters of so and it was probably too expensive to keep operational.  Once on the main canal the water way was anywhere from 30 meters to a 100 meters wide.   It was unbelievably beautiful along the canal.  The sun was reflecting off the water and the odd boat was motoring along.  The canal had a paved bike trail on one side or the other but the Garmin kept us on the paved side so all the work I had put in to make sure we were on paved path way paid off. 

About the 67 kms mark we came to a little town and although it was only a few kms in to Strasbourg we decided to have lunch.   We went into a little store and I grabbed a baguette, a package of ham and a pear.   We then rode back and sat on a bench in the sun beside the canal to eat.  Wow this was a little piece of heaven. 

Rolling into Strasbourg was not very easy as a lot of turns and my Garmin gave up on giving navigation so I had to follow the blue line.  Once into the center of the city it was hectic as there were thousands of people walking and riding in every which direction, however we worked our way through and arrived at our Airbnb.  We are staying with the Coburns while the Williamsons are staying with Juerg for our rest day.  Our condo is on the fourth floor with a large circular stair case.  It overlooks the huge cathedral on downtown.  What an amazing place. 

It was a very pleasant day in the sun gliding down the bike path.  With only 81 kms and 238 meters of climb it was an easy day. 

Terry  

September 27, 2018 Metz to Sarrebourg (Saint Ulrich)

Today the ride was 90.5 kms with 918 m climb.  Ken, Juerg, and I set off together.  There were a lot of twists and turns getting out of Metz.  The first part of the route took us past some 17^th - 18th century fortifications which had been built along a gorge. They now had a bike path built along them and while it was very interesting there were a lot of twists and turns and following the route was a huge challenge.  

After we passed the ancient fortifications we rode down a lot of busy streets which fortunately all had bike lanes.  However there were still a lot of turns and traffic circles to contend with.

When we finally cleared the city it was into the hills and while none of them were over 6% there were a lot of 5-10 km climbs that really got your attention.  Fortunately the wind was not a factor and the morning was cool so the climbs went pretty well. The roads were all through large fields with almost zero traffic.   We were motoring along and before we knew it, it was lunch time so we found a grocery store and pulled in for a sandwich.  We hadn’t been there more than 20 minutes and Earnie rode past.  We called to him but he never stopped. 

We made one stop at the Cutting Cemetery which has over 900 soldiers who were killed in one of the first battles of the war.  These men were all killed in Aug 1914 in one day.  An early prelude to the horror of the next four years.

It wasn’t long after that when we got a call that the van had a flat and that Agnes and the ladies were lost.  They had no idea on how to get the spare out from under the van and what should be done.  I said that this is a Eurocar problem we have roadside assistance and call them.  Betsy walked up and knocked on a door of a house and got a local man to come out and help them.  He worked on the tire for over two hours.  Used tools from his garage and by talking to Eurocar on the phone they were able to figure out how to lower the spare from under the van (it is a really complicated winch system hidden under the rear floor mat).  He got the tire changed and the van was back on the road. 

Ken, Juerg and I stopped about 4kms from the convent where we were staying waiting on a call from the van saying they were mobile.  Across the street was a garage and Ken went and talked to the owner and got his card. 

When we got to the convent the van had arrived and everyone was upset and in a state.  I got ken and Juerg to come with me and we went back to the garage which Ken had spotted.  Using Juerg’s French language skills we learned that the tire could not be repaired.  The owner made some calls and told us that a friend of a friend had a pair of new tires for the van and he could put them on in two hours for 301 euros.  As we had been quoted 291 in a Speedy back in Calais for new rear tires this sounded like a deal (The tires on this van are well past the wear bars).  We said yes lets go and he bolted off in his truck and was back in a few minutes with the new tires.  Forty minutes later the problem was solved and we were on the road with new front tires. 

Everyone was happy that the problem was solved.  We were all too exhausted to drive into Sarrebroug for supper but there was a restaurant down the road from the convent so we walked down there for supper.  While a little pricey the food was fabulous and everyone felt a lot better.

The convent where were staying was built in the early 1800’s and was used for many years.  Now it is operated by the church for groups to use a retreat. While the rooms were Spartan it was a very cool place.  It was so quiet and we all needed a little more of that.  I was so exhausted from the big day and the trauma with the van I couldn’t even write the blog. 

Terry

September 26, 2018 Louppy-sur-Loison to Metz

This morning started off with a Garmin mix up.  I had to change accommodations after I had done the routes so I got the ride into Louppy-sur-Loison fixed and mailed out however the ride out of Louppy-sur-Loison I got fixed but not mailed out.  So we are all set to ride off when Juerg says that his Garmin cannot find the route.  I then realized that I had not gotten the route sent out so I had to quickly pull the laptop out of my bag and down load the route into Juerg’s, Ken’s and my Garmin.  I had already down loaded Earnies route as I had fixed all his routes earlier in the tour when it was realized that the Microsoft routes didn’t transfer well to Earnie’s Mac.

Ten minutes later we are off into a bright but chilly morning.  The ride out of Louppy-surLoison was so pretty down quiet country roads.  The fields looked so peaceful and serene, it was hard to imagine that 100 years ago this was a battle field pockmarked with bomb craters and destroyed forests. 

The van passed us about 15 minutes after we left and we caught Earnie who had a 10 minute head start about 15 kms out.  The three of us took turns pulling and we made great time.  I don’t know why we were working so hard as we had only 89 kms to go and a 3:00 pm check in time.

We stopped and took a few pictures and at one little town was a huge cannon which was a navel gun the French had used as a counter barrage to a huge German gun which was shelling Nancy.   The gun was manufactured in France in 1870 and had been used in several battles.  The cannon had a range of something like 10 kms.   As we were looking at the cannon one of the town folk came up and said that for 3 euros you could get shot out of the cannon.  I thought what the heck why not.  I cannot remember the last time I was shot out of a cannon.  Juerg stood at the ready and snapped my picture just as I came flying out.  I didn’t go the 10 kms but my bike shorts did get a little singed.

At the 41 km mark we came to this little town which had a boulangerie right on the corner.  They had a 14inch diameter cheese cake which was easily 3 inched deep cut into 6 pieces.  For 1.8 euros I probably ate a pound of some of the best cheese cake I have ever had.  We were just finishing up when Earnie rolled in. 

We stopped at the 63 kms mark for lunch and each had a huge baguette sandwich.  I could not finish mine although I did get 90% down.  It was so good and the bread was so nice and fresh.

After lunch was the big climb of the day which turned out to be kind of a non event as the total climb was only 145 meters over 22 kms and the steepest part was only 2 kms of 2.7%.    Most of it was along this country lane with the valley below.  It was so beautiful in the sun.  We stopped and took some rider photos.  It was a bunch of fun.  About ¾ of the way up the climb Ken spotted a large monument off in a little grove of trees with no signs.  When we got up to it, the monument turned out to be a German monument to soldiers from 1870.  

The downhill into Metz was really fun as it was down this winding tree lined lane.  Earnie complained that you couldn’t let it rip but then that wasn’t the point. The point was what a neat ride down a beautiful lane into Metz.  We followed the river into Metz along a bike path and across a couple of bridges. It was very pretty along the river. 

After we got in and cleaned up Juerg and I walked into the city center and visited the huge cathedral and the city market.  I bought some green and dark blue grapes which we ate while sitting on a bench in the sun in front of the cathedral.  The grapes were so sweet and refreshing. Nothing could have been more perfect.

Terry hot biker

September 25, 2018 Rest day in Louppy-Sur-Loison Tour of Verdun Battle Field

We are staying out of the Verdun battle field area at a small village called Louppy-Sur-Loison.  There is a a big chateau and some castle ruins in the village and not much else.  The chateau looks closed and has seen much better days.

So we were all up early and on the road.  Ken had volunteered to drive and give Agnes a day off which was great.  It was 35 kms down to Verdun visitor’s center and museum.  The museum is an ultra-modern facility which covers the Verdun battle field and life in the trenches.  It is quite dark and emphasises the horror of the war.  We had a lot of things to see and only one day so we had only one hour to see the museum.  I could have spent three or four in the museum.  It was very intense.

From the museum we headed over to Fort Douaumont.  This fort was built in the 1890’s to protect the city of Verdun.  It fell to the Germans without a shot being fired. However once in German hands the French decided it needed to be re-taken.  The fighting continued for three years before it was finally re-taken.  Tens of thousands of lives were lost in the fighting.   To day you can tour the underground galleries and the pop up gun turrets.  Life in the damp and cold of the fort with shortages of food and water in very crowded conditions could hardly have been very much better than the trenches.  Although Juerg thought he would have preferred the trenches.  Either way it could hardly have been very much fun.

From there we toured the Douaumont Ossuary.  This huge monument honors the French soldiers who fell in the battle for Fort Douaumont.   It contains some 16,000 graves plus a further 1,000 unknown soldiers. The monument is an incredible structure which has a central tower which can be climbed. I did not as we were pressed for time.  The film which is shown details the battle of Verdun which raged on for over three years without let up.  The base of the monument has windows which you can look through to see the bones of people killed in the area.  Estimates place this at around 130,000 people. 

From there we headed over to Fort Vaux which was another one of the forts defending a ridge of hills separating Germany from France.  The fighting there was extremely vicious.  After days of bombardment and frontal assaults the French were out of ammunition, water and supplies.  There were several attempts by the French army to rescue the defenders however they all failed and the defenders were forced to surrender.   Naturally the French tried for several years to retake to the fort at the cost of thousands of lives from both sides.

From there we headed into the city of Verdun to see the Verdun Citadel.  This huge underground fort and labyrinth housed command headquarters and was a major supply depot.  The tour was conducted via a robotic tram.  We boarded this robotic tram which took us through the underground passage ways and delivered a pre-recorded audio tour.   It was a very different approach to seeing this sort of thing. 

After the last the visit to the Citadel we toured around the city of Verdun which is set on the River Meuse. It was very beautiful in the afternoon sun with rowers on the river and people sitting enjoying a drink in the sidewalk cafes. 

Finally we headed back to our home in Louppy-Sur-Loison.  What a great day of site seeing. 

Tomorrow is an 88 kms ride down to Metz.  Looks like a very nice ride with temperatures in the 10-16 C range and a potential for a light tail wind. 

Terry