Except for the car alarm going off on the street in the middle of the night for about 5 minutes, I think we all had a pretty good night in the Igloo Hotel. Bright eyed and keen to get going, we were rolling our wheels at 9 am as planned. No confusion on the route today as there were constant signs directing us to the Col de Columbiere, one of the classics of the Tour de France.
Beautiful forests along the way, cow bells ringing on the road side, an incredible array of classic European mountain chalets with exquisite wooden detailing, we were all grinning as we made our way out of Morzine and the immense terrain of Avoriaz, the largest of the European ski areas. As we had gained about 600 metres in altitude and 90 km distance yesterday from Geneva (375m) to Morzine (975m), the climb as we started this day took us to the ski area and Col des Gets, about another 200m higher (1170m).
From the top, we were treated to an exhilarating curvy downhill that only the Alpes can provide...screaming down through the mountains, sucking off the back wheel of the mate ahead, leaning into the perfectly banked bends and switchbacks, we flew down the road to some little village at 475m. Giddy with adrenalin, you'd think we had just had our first skydive or kayak ride through a class 6 rapid...we couldn't stop blabbering.
Through to the other side of the village, we connected with our main man, Hayden, the king of support drivers. Stripping off our wind proofs and helmets (no helmet laws in France), we began the first of the big climbs - the Col de Combiere which tops out at 1618m. A slight respite at the village of Reposoir about 1/3 of the way up, we mentally and physically endured the 12% climb right up into the cloudy mist at the top. Temperatures were cool which made for user friendly cycling and the riding times ranged from 1hr 12min to 1hr 40min with all managing a high spirit along the way. The painted writing is constant on the road surface spurring on legends of the Tour de France. The cafe at the summit was welcome to escape the cold mist outside, a hearty bowl of soup, cups of tea and coffee as waited for all to arrive, then donning all our warm clothes, we screamed down another wicked descent, drawing up quick for the herd of goats blocking the road and a couple of photos of the valley WAY below.
Bottoming out, regrouping, pedalling a short distance, then another climb up the Col des Aravis, topping out at 1486m from a 925m start. This one didn't hurt quite so bad as the gradient was easier on the legs and the front peloton of 6 accepted the pace set by Robina. All was fine until about 100m from the summit when she decided to burn us with a sprint that increased in velocity until she had spurned the 5 of us.
No time for a stop as there was a breeze which would chill us fast, we grabbed wind shells from Hayden and screamed down another unbelievable downhill to the town of Flumet, 15km and about 800m below. As we delve deeper into the Alpes, the village architecture becomes more pure and ancient with the smattering of newness that comes from the real estate game of the ski areas. The cow bells are constant, the hillsides lush after a verdant summer of growth, and the harvests have been, or are happening.
A left turn at Flumet directed us to the final 10km which took us to Megeve, a diversion allowing us the opportunity to visit Chamonix tomorrow for a trip up the Aguile de Midi and a tramp on the peaks. A meaty day under our belts, 94km with a couple of hefty climbs, the wine and laughs flowed easy with the inaugural presentation of the Col de Columbiere award which will be followed each day with intrepid interest...this adds to the Dummy award which was presented last night and passed tonight from Tom to Lindsay. Staying at the Hotel de Prairie, we are all looking forward to a quiet sleep sans car alarms.
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