Besancon to Reims across country

Today, after a brief ride to view the  Citadel and river we track North to Reims for the night. This will get us in range for the tunnel crossing early on Sunday. We set the GPS to avoid motorway and had a blast up through some of the finest French countryside consisting of mile after mile of wheat fields and some forested sections. The temperature rose to above 30 degrees so it was good to keep moving but if ever we slowed due to traffic or speed limits in towns it became almost unbearable. 

We stopped a few times and I remembered the McDonalds trick from some years ago. It’s not French cuisine but on hot days like this the Air con and clean washroom facilities of Maccy D’s really helps. In one town in the Champagne region I noticed a covered market square to stop and get out of the sun. 

While we were waiting another biker turned up out of nowhere on a Kawasaki 650 and it turned out to be a lady biker from Paris out for a weekend tour of the region. After a brief chat we said our farewells and made it to the hotel in Reims in good time. 

A nice evening spent viewing the famous cathedral and the rest of the city, a few beers and a meal while people watching in the centre!

The following day we left the hotel at around 7am and travelled the A20 peage back to Calais and made an early tunnel crossing. Usual snarl up on the M25 near Heathrow, but managed to get home by 2.30pm. 

Night stay at:

ibis Styles Reims Centre

21 Boulevard Paul Doumer, Reims, 51100, France

Reasonable quality near the Town centre and Cathedral area. 

Room was a bit tired I suspect because of high turnaround of guests, breakfast was good and very friendly staff. 

Safe gated parking with passcode off road for a fee. Ideal for getting to / from the A20 peage for Calais etc.

The planned route.

YouTube Video Playlist. Select Menu  of rides from top right in player.

Jura wine region to Besancon

Todays ride started from the little town of Saint Jean en Royens in the Vercors as we took in some more of the Vercors spectacular scenery before heading north on the motorway for about 50k to get us into the Wine region in the foothills of the Jura mountain range. 

We visited Baumé les Messiurs and the Abbey and then wound our way up through vineyards to Chateau Chalon near Arbois. Tonight we are staying in the most impressive Besancon full of Roman ruins on an ‘Oxbow loop’ of the river Doubs. Good night in the restaurant district and a few beers too (didn’t try the wine though!).

Night stay at:

Best Western Citadelle

13 Rue General Lecourbe, Besancon, Doubs, 25000 France

Usual Best Western quality, in the city near the river.

Good quality breakfast.

Gated car park, bikes were parked safe and reserved space out of the way but did cost 10 euro each to park.

Ideal for night out on town and sight-seeing.

The planned route.

YouTube Video Playlist. Select Menu  of rides from top right in player.

Route Napoleon and the Vercors

Todays planned route would take us up the Route Napoleon from Grasse to Sisteron before cutting North West across some of the Verdon region before riding the Col de Machine and the famous balcony road .. Combe Laval. First though we took a slight detour and had a good ride around some of the F1 circuit Monoco/Monte Carlo. Chaotic traffic we couldn’t really stop for photos so I grabbed a few low res stills off the GoPro. 

After some toll motorway work around Antibes .. where Mark paid .. I just rode thru ;-) we started a wonderful ride up the Napoleon and it’s fast sweeper bends through amazing countryside not stopping until we reached Castellane for lunch just as the rain started. It soon dried up though, a refreshing down pour to clean the tyres and cool off after the last few days of 30 degree heat. 

As we approached the quiet forested Vercors region with long straight roads leading to the col du rousset mountain pass we had the roads to ourselves. It was quite eery riding alone snaking up the valley to the balcony road at Combe Laval. Mark changed his mind about riding the balcony with 1000ft drop over the side of a small wall, but I figured I couldn’t remember the last time I’d accidentally ridden off the edge of the road recently, it’s all about positioning I guess ! So I went for it. Another fun days ride. 

Night stay at:

Logis Hôtel le Castel Fleuri 16 Place du Champ de Mars.

.26190 ST JEAN EN ROYANS (FRANCE)

Good value Logis with good breakfast.

Ideal for riding Combe Laval in the evening or morning.

Gated car park with passcode.

Book early for evening meal in the nice restaurant overlooking the valley

 ( we arrived too late but they phoned a bistro bar who served us just up the road)

The planned route.

YouTube Video Playlist. Select Menu  of rides from top right in player.

Routes des Grandes Alpes .. part 3

Our final leg of the Routes des Grandes Alpes from Valberg to the official finish in Menton was just shy of 100 miles via some really twisty switchbacks consisting of hairpin after hairpin as we climbed up high with spectacular views below. The other side of Col de Turini was blocked so we had to divert slightly on the way down to Sospel finishing up at our hotel on the sea front in Menton around 3.30pm with a nice cool dip in the Med’ followed by a few beers as reward near the official finish point. 

Todays Mountain passes: 

• Col de Vars
• Col Saint Martin
• Col de Turini
• Col de la Colombiere

Spectacular views but hard going at times because of the switchback hairpins. We stopped at a cafe on the top of Turini where myself and Mark tucked into the obligatory cheese, mushroom and ham omelette with fries. Perfect, not the most expensive in the world either this time. It was afterwards while sat there we realised other bikers were turning around which was odd, only to see a road maintenance crew had blocked the road off just on the other side of the pass so we were forced to take the sign posted diversion.

I have ridden the Stelvio a few times but today was by far harder going on the wrists and concentration in 3 degree heat and a belly full of lunch. In the end I found that countering my weight on the opposite side of the bike, turning my head and looking into the oncoming straight helped a great deal in getting the bike round and staying over away from any on-coming traffic. Good fun though.

The decision to break the RdGA ride up into three days ride instead of two proved correct, especially since we hit that diversion. Today, along with the diversion on the other side of Turini was hard going in the heat of the afternoon. but the hotel Mark found was ideal, right on the sea-front with the beach over the road - perfect.

Night stay at:

Hôtel Vacances Bleues Royal Westminster

28 Avenue Félix Faure, Menton, Alpes- Maritimes, 6500 France

Quality Hotel on the Sea Front with a city view room of Menton. 

Good value though right in the heart of the Riviera.

Bikes parked in Gardens (limited space), but safe. 

The planned route.

YouTube Video Playlist. Select Menu  of rides from top right in player.

Routes des Grandes Alpes .. part 2

An early start from Briancon today heading across few more mountain passes on the way to Valberg :

• Col d’Izoard
• Col de la Cayole 
• Col de Vars

We decided to start with a ride up to the Citadel on high which was great. Already up to 24 degrees we needed to keep moving. So glad I took the mesh jacket, later in the day it topped at 33 degrees, even at altitude in the ski towns. 

A shorter mileage today due to the slower switch back  passes. The Izoard (the Lizard as we  called it) started off with hairpin after hairpin as we climbed up .. really tight stuff, but then eventually topped out to amazing alpine forest area and river valley just as two fighter jets came screaming through the valley right past us at low level followed by the boom and scream of the engines …  I nearly fell off  ! 

In the afternoon we were up and over the Cayole. This was quite a narrow single track pass quite hard on the suspension and traffic, mostly bikers but then on the descent the road follows the river and an amazing balcony road. The final part of the ride Brayf’ had researched well and chose a sublime red rock gorge loop back in to Valberg with some sheer drop balcony sections. A bit scary, but great fun. I just closed my right eye and didn’t look down ! Can’t wait to replay the go pro footage and have another look. 

• Gorges du avian
• Gorges de Daluis

Night stay at: 

Hôtel Blanche Neige, 

10 AVENUE DE VALBERG 06470 VALBERG

Very basic small room in quiet closed up ski town. 

Not much option for food.  Clean room descent breakfast. 

Ideal for one overnight stay to break up the RdGA.

Parking on other side of road, but very safe with cameras. 

The planned route.

YouTube Video Playlist. Select Menu of rides from top right in player.

Routes des Grandes Alpes .. part 1

After doing our good deed for the day helping a Dutch biker get his Harley Road  King started after leaving his lights on and flattening the battery (my £60 Halfords booster really does work even on a HOG), myself and Mark had a fun day riding the first leg from Lake Annecy to Briancon. With a climb up Les Saisies first before joining the RdGA at La Clusaz.

Cormet de Rosaland was shut due to road works, we had suspicions but had a great time riding up the pass to the cafe at the end. Incredible switch back views as we climb up then back down to Bourg Saint Maurice for a spot of lunch then pick up the Col de l’Iseran via the river valley before the ascent up 2700 metres. 

As we topped out on the pass we came across a barrier blocking the road .. though possible to pass. Eventually after seeing other bikers go around the barrier and go for it we consulted with a couple of lads driving Caterham cars decided to go for it too only to find a rock slide and concrete barriers. No problem for bikers but how those Caterhams squeezed by I’ll never know!

Later in the afternoon we were up and over Col du Telegraph for more amazing switch backs and views before riding the twistiest of them all .. Col du Galibier before finishing up in Briancon for the night. Great days ride .. wow my wrists ache now!

Night stay at:

Hotel Restaurant de la Chaussee

4 rue Centrale , Briançon, 05100, France.

Very good with Bike Parking Garage. Recommended. 

The planned route.

YouTube Video Playlist. Select Menu  of rides from top right in player.

On to Lake Annecy

To start our epic ride down to the French Riviera via the Routes des Grandes Alpes we took the tunnel having ridden down to Folkestone on Friday afternoon via the Cotswolds with the usual filtering around the M25 for an hour our so. An early Saturday crossing we were delayed due to the Lamborghini club cocking up their queue, got themselves split up and the staff were trying to get them back together on the same carriages! 

Anyway, we soon found ourselves on the A26 with a slight diversion to visit Vimy Ridge. I’d been here before on my Harley back in 2006, but Mark hadn’t. It was good to re-read the history of how the Canadians took this ridge in 1917, and see the preserved trenches and bunkers. Later, after a brief stop at the very impressive Laon cathedral, high on the hill and dominating the city view, and then a fantastic ride through wonderful French countryside in the Champagne region we rolled into our hotel around 6pm for our stay in the Foret de Orient at a great hotel in Rouilly Sacey. A refreshing swim in the pool followed by a few beers a steak for me and a dodgy sausage for Mark.

Night stay at:

Domaine de la Forêt d'Orient - 5 Route De Géraudot,

 Rouilly-Sacey, 10220, France.

Useful location in the forest between Calais and Annecy.

Chosen because of scenic roads to ride through Champagne and Chemin de Dames.

Stayed here before, but not if you are on a low budget. 

Great pool, restricted with their Restaurant choice and prices. 

Love the setting though, worth the extra IMO.

On Sunday we had a good ride down into the French Jura region on some very agreeable roads stopping a few times including Champagnole and then Mijoux near La Dole mountain before the good stuff with the Alps in full view ahead. We hit a diversion in a little town called Lelex that split us up for a while as we headed up high into the hills on a single track road, met up later and had a good ride in to Annecy. Another  hot days ride, we earned our beers on that one!

Night stay at:

Hotel des Marquisats Annecy

6 Chemin De Colmyr, Annecy, Haute-savoie, 74000 France

Great location 15 minute walk from old town. 

Room was a bit dark and small so I upgraded mine to a Lake View and balcony for extra 15 euro, 

Mark was happy with his room though.

Good Breakfast, ideal biker hotel as used by other bikers staying. Very safe parking.

The planned routes.

YouTube Video Playlist. Select Menu  of rides from top right in player.