October 4, 2018 Dijon to Chaumont

Checking out of our Airbnb was super easy as our host showed up a few minutes before the appointed time and we were off.   I had put together a little Garmin route for Earnie and I to follow over to the other apartment which was under 3 kms and we were over there in no time.  Ken, Sally and Juerg had their luggage down the multitude of steps and were waiting on the street when the van showed up.  Unbelievable there was even a parking spot so we loaded luggage and everyone was off. 

The four of us rode out of town together which is a really good idea and I am so glad that Earnie is at least riding with us to the edge of the city as it gets him past all of the lefts and rights of the downtown city maze.  I have carefully picked the out of the city route so that we are on streets with bike lanes and the least traffic.  Often these are not the most obvious route. 

After we cleared the city Ken, Juerg and I rode on ahead.  There was as usual a nasty head wind so the three of us set up a pace line which really helped.  Ken is such a big guy that following him into the wind is almost like being motor paced. We were traveling through a lot of wide open countryside with very few trees so the wind wasn’t blocked.  This is one thing I have been a little surprised over. I had thought we would be riding through nothing but vineyards but I haven’t seen one.  Miles and miles of corn fields.  Although today we saw a sunflower field which stretch for several kms.

At about the 44 km mark we turned on to a canal path which was absolutely gorgeous. Most of the canals have rows of huge trees lining both sides which are now showing their fall yellows and reds. The sun playing through the trees is so pretty.  We are really late in the season so we have the canal path to ourselves as well.

We stopped at the 66 km mark in a little village and went into a bar for a sandwich.  We had been there about 30 minutes and were just finishing when Earnie showed up.  He rode on as the big climb of the day started at 69 kms and he didn’t want to do the climb on a full stomach.  This wasn’t bad logic as there was bigger town 75 kms.  The route skirted Langres as I had not wanted to ride through a city built in the 15^th century which was a lot of one ways and a total maze. 

We caught Earnie at the top of the big hill. Earnie rode into Langres to find his lunch and Ken, Juerg and I rode along the perimeter of the city walls. One of the city gates had been built in 1420 and the walls added between 1500 and about 1840.    We stopped at a couple of places to marvel at the walls which had to be 40-50 feet high.  We talked about what it would be like to attack the city wall.  I said I didn’t think it would be too hard to climb the walls as there were quite a few nooks and crevices in the rock wall.  Ken and Juerg scoffed at this so a bet was struck and I started up the wall.  Juerg grabbed my camera off my bike a snapped my picture.  It was pretty scary near the top and luckily nobody was at the top pouring boiling oil down on me.     

The downhill from the Langres citadel was spectacular.  It was now kind of busy road but all the traffic is so polite it is really a pleasure.   Big trucks will grind down into the lowest gear until there is ample room to pass. 

At the 88 kms mark we turned off the main road onto a winding road through the forest.  It was nothing more than a single lane road without a center line but the pavement was so smooth.  It was just so pretty riding through the trees.  No wind, sun dappling through the trees, and the temperature has climbed up to around 25 C.   This road took us right to the edge of Chaumont and our hotel is on the south side so we only had a few kms to the hotel.

Le Royal where we are staying is a harming family run hotel.  I think we have the biggest room on the entire tour here.   I went down and had a beer in the bar with Juerg after the ride. It tasted so great.

We covered 114.5  kms and had a total climb of 849 meters.

What a wonderful ride today was. 

Terry hot biker