Leinpfad parkrun

'Race': Leinpfad parkrun (Merzig)

Time/Position: 18.58 (2nd from 98)

The final piece in the complex three-week planning jigsaw, another German parkrun vaguely en route home. After the Tour stage, I was held up by roadworks and also a fairly complex route round Strasbourg to the German border. But I slept pretty well in the van despite parking in Merzig train station! In fact, the stadtpark (venue for the parkrun) had loads of parking and would have been perfect. I had a small but delightful breakfast at the very popular Tinnes bakery and then really enjoyed the friendly parkrun. I went better than expected after the rigours of the last week (last three weeks really!). It was a complex route from the park north to a little pond and mini zoo with animals, then back along the towpath it is named after, along the banks of the Saar. I couldn't catch the chap in front, but watched his movements closely as it wasn't always obvious where the route went. I broke the V55 course record fairly comfortably, somewhat surprising given it had been going for well over 300 weeks. The warm-down was equally memorable, crossing into Luxembourg for a delightful pootle through the Moselle vineyards from Remerschen and Schengen (a famous name indeed). Even better, I ended with a swim in the wonderful Baggerweier, removing a great deal of filth before the long final drive home.

Ballon d'Alsace

A perfectly planned trip to watch a key Tour stage and, as a bonus, do another iconic Vosges climb. The nomenclature hereabouts is famously confusing: I'd done the Grand Ballon on the way down. This was just the Ballon, which is generally agreed to be the first mountain ever climbed by the Tour. After a luxury night in Besancon, I was recharged, particularly because I dined on a knepfle and munster gratin, another heavy Alsatian lunch! My plan was to head up the climb from the east, convenient for the journey home, and for the stage as the riders were heading up it from the north. I parked in Oberbruck and took the cycle path to Sewen and the start of the climb. I packed a rucsac, ready for a longish wait, and luckily the climb is a fairly easy one. Some hairpins lead above Sewen to the Lac d'Alfeld. This is, I think, the name of the valley the route then takes a big loop around. Or it might be the Langenberg, I'm not sure. Anyway, after a few steep sections the angle eases and I powered up (by my standards), passing a fair number of other cyclists en route to watch too. It took me a while and a bit of moving around to get to the best viewing place - the Ballon being a huge plateau really. It was a brilliant stage with the field completely fragmented and the weather just about stayed dry. The descent was fairly extraordinary, hundreds (perhaps even thousands) of cyclists pelting downhill (almost all far faster than me) after watching a classic stage in the world's greatest race.

Crete de la Neige

Peaks: Le Reculet (1717m), Crete de la Neige (1720m)

Area: Haute Jura, France

Back to the tranquility of the Jura, in the spirit of returning home in gradual segments rather than in one huge drive (as I would have done in the past). As such, this worked brilliantly. After Semnoz I had the perfect river bath near Mesigny and eventually camped south of Lelex in the dark and quiet depths of the Valserine. These two hills are the Jura highpoints and I had pinpointed them as an ideal outing for M and I. They didn't meet the family criteria however (no swimming lake) so this morning I set out at a 'running' pace, heading upwards through thick and very steep forest. This wasn't particularly present, but eventually I emerged from the treeline and things improved considerably. Across an open upland area I could see the giant cross on Le Reculet. I made my way up to it, running slowly, and gained the main Jura ridge again. I think Le Reculet was assumed to be the highpoint of the ridge for years, hence the cross, not least because it is more impressive and stands alone. From it, I headed south directly and then negotiated several paths that lead through beautiful limestone scenery - copses and hollows - to the top of Crete de la Neige. Lovely nearby views although a little hazy beyond the Jura. I looked down to the Valserine and then headed off on a big extension, diagonally running along an excellent path which ultimately led to Lelex although took a surprisingly long time to reach it! After doubling back to the south I emerged at the familiar Valserine road just south of the village and trotted back to the van, driving to Besancon after breakfast. Just under 15k/960m in a relaxed 2.5 hours.

Semnoz via Col des Leschaux

A noisy Bastille day evening with fireworks, coinciding with a heatwave and a France v Spain semi-final wasn't conducive to sleep in Saint Jorioz on the shores of Lac d'Annecy. But I watched the first half on a big screen in the neighbouring village and actually slept quite well after the festivities ended and the temperatures eased a little. It was nice to be able to stroll to the patisserie for a proper coffee and pastry in the morning before heading off along the superb 'voie verte' towards Sevrier in the Annecy direction. Here, I started climbing right from the lakeside up the very gentle slopes of the Col des Leschaux. This was perfection, an easy but long climb dictating a pleasant relaxed rhythm. It heads gently south on a lovely quiet road, remaining at a steady 4% throughout. The col is at a crossroads in Leschaux village, and after a gel I took the Semnoz road up hairpins to the west. This is, as expected, a complete contrast - more like a standard Alpine climb. Much steeper, much harder from the start. But the hairpins are very long and the gradient was still manageable, and I was feeling reasonably good. Dark clouds were gathering to the south, as predicted, and this added a slight sense of urgency as I certainly didn't want to be caught on top of Semnoz in a storm. They soon dissipated, and the hairpins ended too as the road heads north up gentler slopes to a final steep climax on the open meadows of the summit. Lovely climb: I believe the TdF has been up it just a few times and perhaps only from Annecy, which was the way I now descended. Although as cautious as ever, this was wonderful and I did get some speed up on the gentler slopes towards the bottom. It emerges, quite suddenly, close to the centre of Annecy which is obviously a very stark contrast! I ambled in to the famous view of the old town from Quai de Vicenza but it was incredibly busy so I headed towards the lakeside pretty quickly. Here, I picked up the wonderful voie verte immediately. Although also very busy, this was a perfect route back to the van. I decided to extend the day though, so had lunch near Saint Jorioz at a cafe actually on the cycle path. Thus fortified, I had plans to extend perhaps to Albertville or the Forclaz and felt great along the lakeside to Duingt. However, black clouds had now gathered in earnest at the southern end of the lake and very quickly gathered themselves into a very sudden and very violent storm. All hell broke loose for a while, with whirlwinds whipping up dust and loud thunderclaps. I sprinted back to the van which I reached just in time (albeit a little wet) after 68k/1300m. Within a few minutes it had passed but I was changed and driving north by then!

Aiguille d'Epaisseur

Peaks: Aiguille d'Epaisseur (3230m)

Area: Massif des Arves, France

The basic concept of the trip was set in stone: to do something worthwhile and interesting each day by alternating cycling and big mountain outings. But that involves a very fine balance: if you are to avoid a rest day, and the weather remains good, you have to be careful not to overcook things. I like to think this is where being 56 years old with nearly 40 years of experience comes in handy! So today I wanted to get among the high Alps, and had a few ideas like the Grand Galibier and others, but the Arves massif was new terrain for me and this option emerged as the front-runner, a stress-free 'randonneur' option. I slept well to the sound of the river near the hamlet (just an inn really) of Bonnenuit, aptly named given my good night's sleep. I crossed the torrent des aiguilles which comes down the tight valley I was hoping to explore, then headed up to the first objective, three beautiful original Alpine chalets. Here, the view up the valley starts to reveal itself. At Les Huiles, another chalet, the stunning three peaks become clear ahead, the central Aiguille particularly impressive. The valley is very well defined and I soon saw the hut nested on the lower slopes of the Epaisseur. I was up in good time (40 minutes or so) and there was a water source. I had, however, forgotten to pack food! That was a bit of an issue, as the slog starts immediately after leaving the hut heading broadly north-west. At certain points I did feel close to overcooking it (after the rigours of the last few days) and needed to rest occasionally. The meadows gave way to a rockier upper section where I started to feel pretty good again, and the last part is a more clearly defined ridge. The view was stunning: looking straight across to the three main Arves peaks, and across to the Meije and the Barre des Ecrins to the south. But the vertical interval had been substantial, 1600m, so I was depleted by the time I got back to the hut. I immediately ordered an 'aiguilles' omelette, served with local beaufort cheese and potatoes, and devoured it on the delightful terrace of the refuge, only later finding they only took cash. This small problem was overcome with an envelope - I later deposited the money with the artisan butcher in Valloire! A very enjoyable stroll back down the valley to the van (16k/1600m) where I freshened up with an invigorating river bath before driving to Lac d'Annecy with the heat building dramatically.

Galibier-Telegraph ride

It had to be the Galibier today. I did it in 2011, but from the shorter, easier side. One of my main objectives this trip was to do it in full from Valloire, or perhaps from the lower valley. In the end I went for a compromise, partly because my van camp was on top of the Col de Telegraph to escape the heat. After a quick breakfast, I warmed up with the easy descent from the Telegraph to Valloire and then got to work on the long climb up the Galibier. This is steep out of the village itself, an epicentre of global cycling, but then the angle eases for the distinctive first section along the valley of the Valloirette river. I was feeling reasonably good and greatly enjoying the new scenery unfolding, particularly the Arves massif to the right, which you can't properly see but which started giving me ideas for tomorrow! Ahead the road just drags up, mostly fairly straight but with the looming headwall gradually giving an indication of what is in store. Then Plan Lachat is reached and the alpine meadows suddenly give way to a right turn and vicious kick upwards as the angle and character of the climb changes completely. From here, the Grand Galibier blocks the valley and the road heads up a series of hairpins while the col becomes visible high on the right for the first time. I was still feeling quite good, and loving the TdF ambience as ever, with each kilometre marked. Above, a statue of Pantani and wonderful high mountain views all around (some of the peaks are very accessible from here). At the top of the hairpins the route kinks left and embarks on a very long but fairly gentle uphill drag below Le Rabel, on which I felt good although it was beginning to get quite hot. I passed a few people on the final hairpins and had a quick chat with a chap from Dorset as we reached the refuge below the summit. At this point, one kilometre from the top, route barree! A sense of disbelief among the cyclists, of which there is a constant stream. There was nothing for it but to enact 'plan b' - through the tunnel (cyclists banned) to do the last bit from the Lauteret side I'd done all those years ago. We waited for the green light, then 'allez' through the 300m tunnel and into the incredible scenery and bright sunshine on the other side (which in many ways is more spectacular despite being shorter and easier). I did the last km with the Dorset rider and we took photos on the col, a shrine of cycling and a mythical spot. It was misty when I was here in 2011. Then it was down and back through the tunnel before the long but restful descent to Valloire (going around half the speed of Pidcock's famous descent). I had an energy bar then felt great for the reascent to the Col du Telegraph, deciding there and then not to stop at the van but to descent all the way to St Maurice du Maurienne. I had a panini and drink and then embarked on the full climb up the Telegraph, now at low altitude and in the full midday sunshine. This quickly became fairly desperate and I really struggled. The surface is not great initially, it is quite busy and also quite steep and despite its reputation as the Galibier's barely relevant little brother it really hit me hard. After about 5k I was resting after every mile or so and ran out of water fairly quickly. Still, a memorable day: over 70k and 2250m or so of elevation.

Pointe des Aravis

Peaks: Pointe des Aravis (2325m)

Route: Villet-Pollard VF4C/D+, West Ridge

Area: Chaine des Aravis, France

It's been a long time since I last did a full-length Via Ferrata but I thought it would be a good 'active rest day' option when I noticed this route when cycling up the Aravis yesterday (in the same way that I used to alternate cragging with mountaineering). Technology has moved on since Tim and I did some of the most famous Dolomite VFs in the 1990s - you don't just clip a couple of slings nowadays! I hired the lanyard for a tenner in St Jean after the ride, then drove to a superb campsite in the car park used for the route, near the top of the col. After another thunderstorm it was a delightfully cool night (lovely sunset) and I headed out refreshed quite early in the morning. Not early enough, as it happened, as a large guided party was just setting out on the route when I arrived! The guide showed me a way I could get ahead of them and this worked well, just a few minutes and up a short scramble to the first proper section, all of which were named which was a nice touch (the route was straightforward and very well equipped, but 700m long). Donjon des 2 niches turned out to be a steep corner, and after a few more sections an escape was possible. I was stuck behind another party so briefly considered this but decided to return and was glad I did as then came the mur du bon geste, a superb rising traverse to a steep section. This was followed by a bridge suspended over a big drop, then up to the slabby dalle aux lapiaz where I dispensed with the ironmongery and climbed the rough limestone. Finally, the angle relented and the traversee des jardiniers continued the line along a large horizontal break. In fact, the entire line was less contrived than some via ferratas, as it was really a natural rising traverse up the south face of the Borderan. The escape was easy and after a short break I moved across to look for any kind of continuation path up the obvious west ridge coming down from the main peak. Given the desirability of a rest day, I should probably just have descended and relaxed, but the ridge was so appealing and the weather so wonderful that I continued. After the storm, the clarity was extraordinary with fabulous views across the col to the Dent du Chatelet and its neighbours. I was tired for the steep and narrow initialy path but this led to the ridge (steep to the right, wooded to the left). At a little spur, it traversed left to gain a huge area of slabs very reminiscent of Carnedd y Filiast. They were gentle but the best line across wasn't overly obvious. I went for a rising break (upright, they were very shallow) to round a little crag and make my way up steep grass to the ridge. The Pointe des Aravis itself is just a bump on the ridge, a spur really. The main peak was the Aiguille de Borderan but at this point, running out of water and energy, I made the sensible decision to call it a day with a view to keeping things going. Indeed, the Galibier was on the agenda for tomorrow! It was also getting very hot (the VF had been in the shade thank goodness). I descended back to the ferrata and easily located the descent path which actually took longer than I'd expected.