Gli Dolomiti (The Dolomites)

The past two days have been a lot more focused on cycling and resting than the trip to date - which has been a nice change!

I picked up my travelling companion, Kalvin, from Milan airport, and we have been based in the Dolomites. Which is a World Heritage Site, by the way

Yesterday I did a ride down the mountain, along the river for an hour or so, then the 9km climb back up the mountain. The climb went well; I have realised that when I'm feeling fresh at the start of a climb I need to watch my power output and keep it within sustainable levels, otherwise my power profile graph tends to go in the opposite direction to the elevation - downhill.

In the afternoon I did some yoga on a terrace overlooking the mountains, had a quick dip in a lap pool, then decided to take the plunge and get naked so I could fully partake of the "spa". I spent some time in the steam bath, hoping it would help my cold. Unfortunately my cold has not improved. Although that may have something to do with being conquered by another mountain today ...

After my success riding the first 9km of the mountain yesterday, I decided to try to tackle the whole climb today. The weather was idyllic and I figured I may as well practice climbing mountains while I have the chance.

The route was called the Passo della Erbe, and I had read that it was scenic and not too steep, apart from a section just above the town we are staying in (San Pietro). That was true ... But the steep section was ridiculously steep (14-16% for tens of metres and the rest >10%) and a lot longer than I had hoped - it took me almost half an hour to get past this section to the easier part of the climb. And by this stage it was just survival mode, keep going pedal stroke by pedal stroke, counting down the km to the top.

I eventually made it to the top after two hours and 21km. My average speed was 11km/hr, which I was actually pleasantly surprised about. 1km can be a very long way when the gradient is >10%.

Happily the descent took me less than 1/4 of that time, even though I was riding like a grandma due to factors such as blind corners, oncoming traffic on a road only wide enough for one car, angular gravel, cow pats and potholes. At least I was warm with my Aussie team rain jacket on!

Luckily I managed to find a cafe in town that was still serving food at 2:30pm and I got the ham and cheese roll I had been anticipating on the descent. Recovery food European style!

The afternoon was spent resting and watching the Vuelta a Espana being fought and won on a mountain even steeper than what I had been riding!

Oh and there are cows here - with bells on! ��

Three Days: Five World Heritage Sites and One Mountain

ne of the things like to do when I travel is to visit World Heritage sites. In the past three days I have ticked five more sites off the list. Admittedly they have been brief visits but that still counts!

First was Albi, the city I stayed in on Sunday night. The whole historical centre of the city is a listed site. Some of the key components are the Pont-vieux (old bridge) built in the sixth century, the Sainte-Cecile Cathedral, built in the 8th century, and the Bishop's palace and gardens.

After a relaxing meander in Albi on Monday morning, I drove down to Carcassonne. However, while in Albi I was bemused by the school kids I saw sitting around in the mid morning outside their school, clearly on a break for an hour or so, openly smoking. Firstly, when are these kids actually in school?And secondly ... Don't get me started on the smoking. It is still ingrained in the culture over here.

So anyway, Carcassonne historical centre is also a World Heritage Site. It is basically a fortified town that is now solely a tourist area. They sell souvenirs and local food and crafts, you can take a ride in a horse buggy, etc. I justwandered the streets and saw the main areas. I was Ppretty tired and short on time by this stage, I think you would need to do a guided tour to truly appreciate Carcassonne.

I then drove to Avignon, where I stayed for two nights.

The next day was my sight seeing by bicycle day, I visited the Pont du Gard. This was great to see in real life and it gave me a better appreciation of the engineering feats of the Roman empire.

That evening I visited the historical centre of Avignon, which is also a World Heritage Site. Again I was quite tired and refused to pay more than ten Euros for entry to the palace and bridge. However I did see the church and palace facade in beautiful evening light and treated myself to a three course dinner in the square overlooking the palace.

The next day I packed up and left Avignon in the morning, and drove only half an hour up the road to Orange. Here I visited the fifth World Heritage Site, a Roman amphitheatre. This time I paid the entry fee and even took an audio guide. I learnt a lot about Roman history, but spent more time here than I had planned (1.5 hours instead of 30min!), which put my timing out for the rest of the day.

Next stop was The Mountain - l'Alpe du Huez. I figured that seeing as I was in the area I had to climb it. So I parked at the base, got changed, got on my bike, and rode to the top.

Mountains are really hard. I thought I was going well, but hit a few mental walls at the 28min mark, and again at 39min. At 48min I was under a delusion that I was near the top and may have a hope of cracking the hour mark. But no such luck - it was me who almost cracked. I had to ride the last km out of the saddle as my glutes / upper hamstrings were so sore I couldn't put any weight on them. I made it to the top but had to rest and recuperate (and then get cold) before making my way down. Another 20min frozen descent ... I really must wear my Aussie rain jacket next time, no matter how silly it looks, it is all I have with me.

Finally, I drove around and through lots more mountains and made my way to Turin, where I have been put up in luxury and fed delicious Italian food and Austrian schnapps by a friend who I met through work.

Avignon to Pont du Gard - sight seeing by bicycle

After two days of driving and sight seeing by foot, I was tired of walking and tired of being told where to go by the GPS navigator lady. Yesterday I did at least five laps trying to find the right motorway entrance, no thanks to some vague instructions from said lady.

So today I did some sightseeing by bicycle. It has the major advantage that when I get lost I can stop randomly by the side of the road, check the map, and turn around readily if need be. And believe me, it was needed.

Tips for planning a bike ride in an unknown place:
1. Use raceshape.com/heatmap to find popular Strava routes in your area of interest.
2. Map the course using Garmin connect online.
3. Upload to your Garmin.
4. Follow the course as you ride.

Simple and effective. However, you have to make sure Garmin connect plots EXACTLY the route as per the heat map. Don't make my mistake and assume that near enough is good enough. Because near enough today lead me down unsealed tracks, some of them covered in river stones.

I have done a surprising amount of off road riding this trip. Let's be honest, any amount of off road riding would have been surprising. Today I practised my cyclo cross skills on two separate sections, I would say 5-10km in total including a deviation due to GPS error.

It was a good way to travel though. The heat map lead me to quiet roads with little traffic. It was warm and sunny, with enough wind to keep the heat at bay and make things interesting. And I got to see Pont du Gard, a World Heritage Site and a Grand Site of France.

I also discovered that Mont Vontoux is relatively nearby - see the photo showing the view from Avignon. So I had to have the Vontoux Rosé with dinner :)