Less Car, More Life

A few pickles between the Le Lot and Le Célé

After a nice rest day exploring Cahors, Cheryl and I continued our spring tour further up the valley of the Lot River. The middle Lot is a magical place of endless meandering and pretty villages with a variety of terrain to match.

Riding out of Cahors over the Devil’s Bridge

The Middle Lot is still navigable with occasional weirs and locks

The route out of Cahors immediately took us up a hearty 300m climb over a ridge, but the reward was a descent down to the beautiful Saint Cirq de Papopie. It’s a storybook medieval village perched on a rocky edge above the Lot. Our friend Dan had mentioned his time in this area and we thank him for the tip.

The route does not always hug the river and has some pretty decent climbs to connect the rugged and remote parts of the river

Apparently we were also on the Vagabond route…very appropriate.

Cheryl was fascinated with these mortarless stone buildings known as capitelles or cazelles, which are endemic to the region

Apparently tourism exploded in the town after a popular French television shown voted it the most scenic place in France in 2012. We can’t disagree with that call. It was sparsely visited the weekday we passed through and is really a beautiful spot.

We couldn’t pass up this prime view spot to picnic on some yummy quiche and veggies

Sometimes I do some further exploration while Cheryl minds the bikes and maybe reads a bit. « Oh no, you go ahead »

The ride from Cahors to Cajarc spans the Parc Naturel des Causses du Quercy from west to east. The villages are extremely tidy, with some restored houses, cottages, and farm buildings. There are also nice sections along the cliff walls, and the roads are not busy. We made it to the scenic village of Cajarc and our Logis inn (with dinner!) after a rewarding day of cycling, and I began to plan our next day.

Saint Cirq feels like a movie set. Picture perfect and so tidy

What’s this? Fossils on the canyon walls?

We love interpretive fossil trails. This was a nautilus from the old sea bed.

Many piped water taps have still been off for the « season », but we found most of the hand pump and twist wells delivered.

But the weather was starting to get tough. The next day a front was coming through with winds of 25mph and gusts to 50, and if we headed up the Lot route it would be right into the headwind. Yuck. We could shorten the day to account for the wind, but instead decided to head over the big limestone ridge to the next valley of the river Célé and the small city of Figeac.

Another interesting Komoot trail choice from our grocery diversion out of Carjac. But one of our mottos is “never
go backwards!”. It usually works out.

Inside the ruins of the Abbey Saint Pierre, parts of which date back to the 9th-11th centuries.

The ruins are atmospheric and the adjoining church has been restored and is still active.

I had picked a fairly direct route using my goto navigation App Komoot, and mentioned this to the friendly hotel host as I checked out. Good thing as he suggested an alternate route that turned out to be a gem. More climbing and longer, but it would take us deep into the scenic Célé river valley and keep us in the park longer.

The climb was quiet and the aspect of the huge limestone gorge that defines the Cele valley protected us from a lot of the wind, or at least made the ride alternate between headwind and freakish tailwinds off the canyon walls. But you can’t escape gale winds and the last 10k into Figeac were exposed and a bit hellacious, with grit blowing in our eyes and branches falling from trees. But we made it to town before the rain started to dump and salvaged a memorable day from a potentially mundane slog.

A power picnic lunch in Marchihac-sur-Célé. PB and banana on Wassa crisps

Cheryl demonstrating how to spread the peanut butter with the back of the wooden spoon, so it’s easier to clean -:)

We are always impressed with the French dedication to a proper and social lunch. Despite the increasing cold and winds, we watched behind us as they set up tables and laid out a spread of food.

Figeac is a pleasant river town with enough of a buzz on Saturday night for us to get rejected at our first Creperie restaurant pick, so we settled on a fast and casual burger place and a beer before we had a meltdown. We were very hungry and a worn out from the wind.

A 3 star village is always worth a stop.

Riding through the old town gate to find our second break stop.

This route is along one of the French Camino routes and we were surprised by the number of pilgrims/walkers we saw in this region. Almost no other cycle tourists.

And accompanying millstone. Our friend Nancy says you can tell what kind of grain was processed by the groove pattern.

Getting closer to Figeac, and the wind picking up.

Wind filtered Wisteria pedals in old town Figeac.

We wanted to get back to the Lot valley, so that meant going back up over the plateau of the river canyons on Sunday morning. But we are pretty strong now and Cheryl powered up over the two fairly steep climbs. Here’s the thing with loaded touring bikes, they are actually surprising easy on flats a gentle grades, even carrying 20 kilos or more. A 4 or 5% grade is pretty sustainable for longer climbs, but each percentage increase after that really makes a difference. Physics, gravity, and vectors. Over 8-10% and you may need to start serpentine S tracks across the road to keep on the saddle for a longer climb. You can even stay in the bike for short bursts of 12-15% grade, but it’s tough to sustain.

This climb indicates an average grade of 7%, fairly manageable.

Touring bikes are so much more sensitive to headwind and grade than a lightweight road or mountain bike. They fly downhills with the extra weight and often act as sails with a hefty tailwind. As we continued to push up some of the steeper hills, you can’t help but think about the extra junk in your bags; the two kryptonite locks, cable, tools, 4 spare tubes (really?), ground coffee, binoculars, a small backpack, a yoga mat…extra socks and shirts, and my biggest luxury, 3 pairs of footwear. The thing is we are living on our bikes for three months and really appreciate the extra gear at times and when we are off the bikes for house sits or city stays. So we press on with twice as much weight as we could manage for a short tour.

Goodbye Figeac. Very green and lush in this wet European spring.

A horse intrigued by the two bright things on wheels.

This is a popular hiking area with its limestone cliffs and jagged valleys.

And pilgrims are sometimes sharing the road with us.

Initial hazards of our descent back to the Lot.

Once over the climb we followed a Komoot route that took us down the side of a mountain on a rutted farm track that turned into a rocky debris blocked ravine and creek bed with steep edges. It turned a “10 minutes flying down to the river for our coffee/tea break” into an epic reconnaissance and stream forge that ranks up as our most memorable.

Hmm, Komoot is routing us down this muddy farm track. Better have some tea now as we discuss options.

It looks like only a kilometer or so down to the valley bottom and a paved road, and the alternative was way back and up, so we decide to go for it.

Hmm, the gps trail drops left down a rutted gorge blocked by tree so we decide to try to the farm field.

After a reconnaissance mission to the creek gorge on foot, we found a spot where we could maneuver the barb wire and get the bikes and gear underneath.

Cheryl followed determined not to turn back!

Resigned to walking the gear down the creek to a spot we could get up the embankment. That trail you see was blocked by a large tree fall and landslide.

Out of this pickle. A sense of accomplishment and amazingly no torn gear or flat tires as the area was littered with thorns and briars.

So we wiped off our bags and bikes, changed into our sandals, and put our soaked shoes and socks on our racks. Luckily, we were cheered up quickly as the remaining 35km up the Lot to Entraygues-sur-Truyère was peaceful and scenic. Our room for the night in Entraygues was up a big steep hill from town, which meant a bit of pushing. But the kind host was waiting for us at the door and offered to dry our shoes by the fireplace and gave us some fresh juice and cake. We would survive. And better yet, one proper restaurant in town was indeed open Sunday night, so that meant a bit of wine to warm us up.

Riding up the Upper Lot, wet shoes getting some air on the rack

Sant Partèm is the Occitan name for Saint Parthem. Occitan is still spoken in southern France, and bits of Spain and Italy

Saint Parthem had a bit of a hippy (baba cool!) vibe, including 60s and 70s music on a dozen mounted speakers from village end to end. We assumed it didn’t play all night?!

We entered another national park briefly.

We noticed the houses getting even fancier and were very well kept.

But that night set me (the travel planner) into a bit of a panic. I had planned that we would continue East on the V86 Lot route another 100k through the hilly Parc Naturel de L’Aubrac and then catch a local train north to get us closer to our booked train link to Paris. But I discovered part of that local train line was shut with replacement buses that don’t take bikes.

And the weather forecast was grim. Rain and lots of it the next day. No trains and no alternate routes out of this immensely rugged junction of mountains and river valleys. I explained this to Cheryl and she said, “Yup, we’re in a bit of a pickle.”

Le Lot route V86 continues and a somewhat mysterious sign about communities with burlesque names? Anyone?

Entraygues is dramatically located at the confluence of the Lot and the Truyère rivers. The Truyère is the muddy one.

Instead I decided that heading north to Aurillac was our best option, as from there we could catch a train over the highest parts of the Massif Central. But the routes would be tough, especially in a cold rain. We could try to wait the rain out a day, but that put our train travel on May 1st, a French holiday and the trains were very limited out of Aurillac. And there were flood warnings.

So we decided to ride.

Leaving the lovely and cozy Le Clos St. George. Its verandas and views would be even more stunning in better weather.

The rain was light as we started up the Truyère

The first tiny shelter for a yogurt and pastry. The cold rain had already soaked us.

How do I manage difficult days for my favorite (and only) client. First off, I try to note some of the difficulties of the day, especially climbing. But the key is to not overdo it. Don’t talk about too much. I knew this day was going to be extremely challenging, both mentally and physically. Our route climbed up and down short steep climbs up the Truyere and Goal rivers, up a steep ridge climb and finally up to the huge rolling plateau that separated us from Aurilliac. We are now better at eating something every hour and staying hydrated, but it’s hard in a constant and cool rain. And there were no real towns or villages for the entire route.

It was remote and a bit creepy as we headed further off the main routes and up the Gaul River. The hills and walls were flooded with oozing water and we didn’t see a car or person for quite awhile.

This tiny hamlet had a welcome little shelter and even a person who I was able to ask about our route onwards, gunshy from our Komoot mud and river adventure the day before.

Not a soul outside all day, even to hike the GR65 route. Hmm, maybe it was the relentless rain, cold, or flood warnings?

Finally up on the plateau after 3,000 feet of climbing, and the cows are in awe. Or dumbfounded.

The rain lightened up a bit, but never stopped.

Perhaps the worst part of the route was the main road we had to join for our plateau and descent. There was an option on quieter roads, but that added another 15k and 300m of climbing, and we decided that was even worse as we were cold and a bit shattered. So we decided to grit out our teeth for the direct route. It had speeds of 80-100km and was fairly busy with fast traffic and some big trucks, with no real shoulder. But sometimes you need to take some chances and we had some pretty bright clothes and lights. Thankfully the drivers were all pretty good, and the pavement was very smooth, so it was manageable but certainly not a segment we’d relish.

At the end of 30km of wet cold and steep climbs. Cheryl was a trooper but not loving this day. This is where we got on the busy D920 main road to Aurillac. No photos.

Boarding the train to Issoire the following day

But when we did finally roll into town and dripped our way through the lobby of hotel, there was not just relief, but a sense of accomplishment. We did it. It was over 1000m of relentless and occasionally steep climbing. And we could catch the train the next morning over the Massif Central to continue our tour. We were out of our little pickle. Happy travels!

Cycling the Lot River. Clairac to Cahors.

Pushing up from a lunch break spot on the Lot River.

After our rest day in Toulouse we hopped on a regional train, a TER, and got a jump on a strong headwind day to Tonneins, which is on the Garrone River, the same river as Toulouse. The Lot River and the Garrone come together at the confluence just southeast of Tonneins, so we rode east to meet up with the Lot and head upriver.

Our first sight of the mighty Lot River, in Clairac.

The Lot ends where it meets the Garrone in the west.

Look at that river course. So many bends and horseshoes.

One of the allures of riding a river is that you tend to stay on fairly flat ground. But, if you want to ride some hills you get that opportunity when you ride up to the towns along the rivers which are mostly tucked up high and dry above flood level. Or, you take a route up onto a ridge above the river. Most folks would think that flat riding along a river is ideal, but it does get a bit dull, and our legs and rear ends appreciate the hill climbs and coasting downhill.

Another view of Clairac from the bridge on our way to a grocery store.

A quiet tree lined road. Our train ride did not deliver us beyond the wind, we had a gusty day.

Feeling like bridge trolls at our lunch spot. But it was sheltered from the wind.

The regional route Rich was following on his map was V86.

La Vallée du Lot à vélo, the V86, like many bike routes, takes you to scenic spots and through town on very picturesque and historic streets. What can at first seem like a gratuitous turn or two, ends up somewhere lovely.

Castelmoron-sur-Lot felt like taking a step back in time. We had much more of this feeling to come as we continued up the Lot.

The reward for a day of battling the wind? Indian food for dinner and a bottle of local white wine in Villeneuve-sur-Lot.

Porte de Pujols, the last bit of the ramparts that surrounded the city in the 14th century.

Crossing the river on our way out Villeneuve-sur-Lot. The Lot is known for flooding, these buildings look ready for it.

Use your imagination to erase the billboard and the bollards and you could be back in the 14th century. Oh and Rich, erase that bike tourist in your mind too. And the car.

Work continues on the Vélo routes, and the mapping app Rich uses, Koomoot, isn’t always completely up to date. Sometimes new signs will contradict Koomoot directions. We had one of those contradictions at a single track trail by a rail line. Koomoot wanted us to cross the rails on a road behind us and stay in the right bank of the river. We ultimately chose the single track.

The sign was brand new. I love the added on ‘camping’ sign.

It’s always such a mental boost to get to ride where automobiles cannot go. Bike touring is hard, but the rewards are fantastic.

V86 for the win. The new routing took us to le Moulin de Lustrac. A perfect spot for a snack break.

Built about 1296. Right around the time work was being done to make the Lot navigable by building dams, facilitating the movement of goods from Quercy to Bordeaux.

A very impressive set of mill buildings.

Who doesn’t love a door that opens to a drop into water?

Another cool old mill building at Monsempron-Libos. This one definitely has folks living in it. I wonder what it’s like to have water flowing under your house?

Another stunning historic building on the Lot. No idea what it is.

A bridge over the Lot with a sign showing the bends in the river.

Puy-l’Évêque is on the narrow neck of a horseshoe bend of the river, and our next night’s stay. Our sense of riding back in time got stronger when we went for a walk before dinner.

The narrow side streets are named for the trades that were practiced on them, street of tanners, tinters, etc.

Looking over the medieval buildings to the River.

Nearly a fifth of the residences are holiday homes. The buildings are beautifully kept up.

A stretch of nice weather, no wind, and a beautiful river to ride. We were moving each night, riding happily along, but moving always means unpacking and packing. It gets tiring. Especially with bike panniers. What a mess.

To this. All tidily packed up and at the grocery store to get lunch provisions.

It was quite cold that morning as we pedaled past vineyards and waved to folks walking the Camino de Santiago. One of the routes through France goes right along the route we were riding.

The route is well marked and takes advantage of parts of an old railroad line.

Riding along the old railway route through Castelfranc.

And back over the river to Albas. This agricultural area of the Lot is mostly vineyards, all in the Cahors AOC wine region.

Another beautiful place up on a hill above the river.

Which means riding up up up. But if you were cold this warms you up.

Rich added for scale by the big fake wine bottle.

The trail stayed above the river for a while. I’d forgotten how cold it was until I see I’m wearing my down jacket. And a wool sweater.

Near Douelle, a chateaux above the river. All of these towns were also ports for the shipping of wine along the river, headed to Bordeaux.

Lunchtime in Doulle, where a small park had a table and chairs for us to enjoy.

Approaching Pradines, yes, another town in a bend on the river. A view across the vineyards.

Our next stop was Cahors, where we checked into our hotel and immediately decided to stay another extra night. Our hotel room overlooked the famous Pont Valentré, a medieval three tower six arch bridge. We got to town in plenty of time to unpack, shower, relax a bit and head out to a chocolate shop.

I love the window display at L’éclat Du Noir. I look for the independent chocolate shops.

And Rich looks for the independent beer bars.

Our rest day was lovely, we walked around town, visited the Musée Henri-Martin, whose paintings we also saw in Toulouse, and had a vegetarian lunch. And napped.

It was a good choice of rest day, since it rained quite a bit.

Post museum, post lunch, on our way to a nap through the charming old streets of Cahor.

A scallop shell showing the way of St. James and the bridge in the background.

The view from our hotel room. The Best Western Plus Hôtel Divona Cahors.

The happy travelers and that amazing bridge.

Stay tuned for more Lot River. The cold wet European spring is certainly not super great for bike touring, but we’ll take cold over rain. Unfortunately, some rain is in our future. The highs and lows of traveling by bikes.

Feeling at home in Massat, France.

Massat with snowy mountains on a lovely spring morning.

Our cycling trip could be called the nooks and crannies of France. As Rich mentioned we have a few anchors we plan around, and a house sit in Massat was one of these anchors. It’s a great feeling to be flexible enough to accept a house sit in rural France, tucked up a valley near the Pyrenees. We were up for the challenge of how to get there, and how to spend a week there without a car.

We did not become immune to the beauty of the Pyrenees.

One of the cycling tricks we’ve learned is to ride through the traditional French lunch break, especially when we’re on roads instead of trails or bikeways. There is a rush of traffic just before noon, as everyone dashes to the bakery to buy bread for lunch, dashes home, or pulls over at a restaurant to eat lunch, but then we have the roads to ourselves for about an hour. So we either stop for our picnic lunch early or late, and pedal through the quiet time.

Enjoying a local craft beer in the town square of Massat.

At the brewery in Saint Gaudens we were told by the bartender that Massat’s own local beer, BIM, was very good, and that Massat had a lot of baba cools. He and Rich were conversing in French and English so it took us a while to figure out that baba cool is French slang for hippie. Fantastic! We’re San Franciscans at heart so we love hippies and the culture that comes with them.

Heading up the 150m/500 ft climb from Massat village over 2.7k/2 miles to our house sit. A curious local watches.

Our first days in Massat were sunny and warm.

Our wonderful hosts confirmed that the area did indeed have a lot of folks who lived off grid, and raised their own food, and helped create an easy going communal vibe. Like many small villages in France there was a lot of depopulation in the 1830s and 1840s. The thriving town of Massat went through crop failures and epidemics that saw the town shrink dramatically.

Always read the tourist information boards.

It’s not surprising that a hippie/back to the land movement saw Massat as a fantastic place to settle. It’s an idyllic place, with so many small valleys and farmland and houses that have been fixed up and maintained by French, German, and British, all with the underpinnings of a traditional French village.

We were certainly living the traditional life, walking or biking to town to get our food and wine.

And enjoying our lunch al fresco while the weather held.

There were hikes starting from our doorstep.

The trails wound past old stone buildings.

And homes reached on tracks that would possibly maybe accommodate a car.

Farm fresh eggs to buy, watched over by a dog who observed us in silence.

None of the map or trail apps we usually use are useful in this part of France, but our host pulled out her topographical maps and marked a few hikes for us in highlighter. We’re always happy to get off the bikes for a few days and work our hiking muscles.

These old troughs are always tempting for a drink, but most are marked non-potable water.

We had a day of sunny hiking, stayed in for a rainy day, and headed out again on a changeable day.

Between the topo maps and the local signage we got some good hiking in.

We’ve been seeing these upside down town signs all over rural France. It’s a quiet protest or reminder from the farmers about conditions for agricultural families, and the difficulties around farming.

Spending time in rural France as a tourist it would be easy to simply soak up the charm and not think about how life is for locals, especially those who make their living off the land. But the time we’ve spent in the Haute Savoie at our friends’ place watching the long hours their neighbors who are farmers work, and now having this time in Massat, we have a huge appreciation for the hard work of farming. My sister in Colorado raises cattle so I have a good idea of how hard the work around food production is. Our hosts had a wood fired hot tub and after getting it heated up, which took about four hours, we’d sit in comfort and watch the sun go down. Across the valley we could hear the farmer getting his sheep moved to a new pasture with the help of his sheepdog. At times like that we are really reminded of our privilege. Just as when in the Haute Savoie the farmers will be haying at 9 in the evening to get ahead of predicted rain, while we relax on the terrace. Farmers and those of us who depend on farmers – everyone – are more closely linked than many of us acknowledge.

The wood fired hot tub, and Rich, who never met a hot tub challenge he wouldn’t accept.

Our French countryside week included two cats and two donkeys to care for. The donkeys were easy since they were grazing and only needed a daily check in and carrot. One cat we barely saw as she was super shy, but the other, a three legged charmer who couldn’t use the cat flap and never passed up a lap sitting opportunity, was a constant source of amusement.

Oh, a lap. This cat was in heaven with the two dogs off traveling with their humans and all the laps to himself.

Or preferably, on a human. A warm cat and a wood fired stove got us through a few cold days.

Some books and chocolate within reach, and the kitty and I were as happy as we could be.

Before we left our house sit we needed to replace the wine our hosts had graciously offered up. They told us that if we needed to replenish the seemingly limitless 5 liter boxes of local wine to go to the wine shop in town and the proprietor would sort us out. Although we didn’t empty the boxes we wanted to be good house sitters, and we were curious about the shop, so we did coast down to town on our bikes.

So many local wines, beer, and spirits. A treasure of a shop.

And some caskets for bring your own bottle.

The friendly owner knew exactly who we were, he is friends with our hosts, and sorted us out with two new 5 liter boxes of wine, one red, one white.

After a stop at the grocery store it was back up the hill with ten liters of wine. Rich did the toting.

We did one ride towards Col de Port, it was a grey day and misting. I turned around once it got cold but Rich pressed on until the rain and cold turned him around too. The area is loaded with road cyclists, so many beautiful views and small roads.

The other donkey, less friendly but still adorable.

We loved our house sit near Massat. Spending a week in a renovated stone farm house, lighting fires to stay warm, and cooking all of our meals in is such a wonderful break when we’re bike touring. The house was cozy and comfortable, and the area is stunning. We both agree that for us living in such a rural area is not something we want to do. Although we used our feet and bicycles for our week there, for the long haul you would need a car. We saw locals on bikes and e-bikes, which is great, but the closest major town, Saint-Girons with the fantastic Saturday market, is 27 kilometers away. And, as we discovered when we left our house sit on Saturday, hundreds (if not thousands!) of locals drive to Saint-Girons for that market. It made for a not so fantastic ride down the valley. French car drivers are quite good around cyclists for the most part, but a few encounters with impatient drivers on that ride down were enough to put me off. One challenge of living off the grid in a rural area is having to get to things in your old car or van.

Hello 60k ride to Boussens to catch a train.

Once we got to and through Saint-Girons and its market day crush of cars we got onto the rail trail to Boussens. Ah, rail trail. Separated from automobiles, catching glimpses of life as you pedal by and through towns: a garden party here, a Boules tournament there, hawks and buzzards soaring overhead. And it was slightly downhill all the way to our train. Yes it’s a bit stressful for the planner having to get us 60k in time for a train, but we made it.

Our train started at Boussens, and ended in Toulouse. That’s our favorite situation, no rushing on or off with all our panniers and bikes to wrangle.

This building is a Toulouse treasure. It’s the city hall, the opera, and where a series of stunning paintings by Henri-Martin are displayed.

The artist is known for his large scale works adorning public buildings- where else would this fit?

His work is described as having a melancholy, dreaminess and mystery.

Leaving a house sit is always a bit of work, we always want to leave the house squeaky clean for the hosts to come home to, and make sure all the animals are where they should be with sufficient food and water. Add the travel day to that and we decided a rest day in Toulouse was a good idea. We had spent a day in Toulouse but there was definitely more to see. It was a treat to have a full day to walk around Toulouse. Another French city that is working hard to make itself a pedestrian, public transportation, and bike friendly place.

Like this construction site! It’s an expansion of the Metro system.

And this street being brought into the modern word of bike and pedestrian friendliness.

Great cities don’t happen by accident, they have to be created and modernized to tame car traffic and let folks live a happy life without needing cars for every trip.

The small winding streets of Toulouse are great to walk.

The happy Travelers and the Garonne River in Toulouse.

A map! It’s fun to see the spots where we’ve stayed. Our house sit is the far right heart on the lower line of hearts. Flirting with the Pyrenees indeed.

Into the Pyrenees (and out of Carcasonne!).

People frequently ask Cheryl and I how we plan our travel filled trips and lives and it’s sometimes hard to explain. But let me try. Basically we start with a rough 6 month plan defined by our major goals and travel legs to and from continents (i.e SFO-Asia, Europe-America) We adjust these plans as needed for any Visa issues and always work around a desire to see family and friends for holidays or special occasions like weddings.

The broad and jagged Pyrenees are a stunning sight in early Spring.

For example, last fall, we blocked out a 3 month spring window in Europe that would be dedicated to bike touring before returning to the US again for a wedding in June. We also wanted to spend more time in Asia. We had no visa issues for Malaysia or Taiwan, but on the European continent, we are subject to the visa-free rules limiting us to no more than than 90 days in the Schengen zone. (Most of the EU – Ireland + Norway and Switzerland)

Cheryl descending one of the many climbs in the foothills of the French Pyrenees.

Then we factor the weather. So for a bit more warmth, we headed south first from Geneva to chase the European Spring. And winter in Asia is generally a bit cooler, as it was in the rainier season of Borneo. Add to that my desire to work on my French and we further refined our cycle touring itinerary. France, and lots of it!

The citadel of Carcassonne is stunning and constantly appears wherever you at in town.

The next ingredient in the travel planning mix is some house sits. We love house sitting and wanted to work a few breaks in during our spring bike tour. Cheryl had been dilligently looking for sits while we were still in Asia but we didn’t find good matches until we had already set off down the Rhône. But due to Cheryl’s excellent filtering and immediate responsiveness to opportunities, we finally found good matches, and now have two one-week house sits in April. These sits formed the basis of our plans in Southwestern France.

The magnificent view of La Cité in Carcassonne from our house sit veranda

Château Comtal, a 12th-century castle within La Cité.

La Cité has some charming streets and cafes, but is pretty touristy with the requisite splash of tackiness.

The first sit was in Carcassonne; famous for its massive UNESCO world heritage medieval city and citadel that overlays a site dating back to Greco-Roman times. It’s one of the most picturesque scenes in France. We were both excited as neither of us had been there before. We were also very glad to be over our pesky colds by the time we rolled in to meet our American Ex-pat hosts.

The sit was in a large house ca. 1930 with a beautiful indoor/outdoor cat and we had a nice dinner out with our hosts at the base of the nearby La Cité. We almost always meet our hosts and often spend the evening prior to learn the ropes of the house, pets, and area. It’s one of our favorite parts of housesitting.

Cute draft horses, complete with adorable fly guards, can take you around the Citadel.

They had mentioned in our video chat that the area was not very bike friendly, but to be honest, we often hear that from folks, but then find it later to be ok. But as we departed the pleasant Canal Du Midi path from Castelnaudary for local roads outside the city, it became apparent that they were right. Where were the nice bikeways and lanes popping up all over other French cities in the past 10 years?!

This rather sad buffered bike lane ran exactly one block near the train station.

Not an inspiring walking environment on many of the newer roads around Carcassonne.

Cars on the sidewalks always tells us a lot about the priorities of a place. This was typical of many neighborhoods in Carcasonne.

As we made our way around the “new” city (La Bastide), our Komoot bike directions had us on a 3 lane traffic filled perimeter road.”“Seriously Komoot, this is the best route!!?“ Not a bike lane or facility in sight. We did eventually find a few sad and neglected stretches of bikeways on side roads, but indeed, Carcasonne is not a bike town. Not at all. It amazed us how the vibe of transportation varies in cities by the priorities set by planners, culture, and of course, the infrastructure. We’ve especially noticed stark differences in SW France, as some places seem stuck back in the 1970’s. It especially struck us on our day trip into Toulouse. Toulouse has controlled access to the city core, wide sidewalks, abundant transit, and lots of bikes. We liked it so much that we are going to spend a few nights there as we head back north.

Toulouse had a car problem too in the 1950s, but now Place du Capitole is a vibrant pedestrian space. (With a garage underneath.)

We expected to see some of the nicer streetscapes of France in Carcasonne, like this Dutch style intersection in Toulouse.

The Pont Neuf in Toulouse only one has one lane for car traffic, wide bikeways and pedestrian space, and a dedicated bus lane.

Perhaps the city administrators in Carcasonne didn’t apply for federal or regional money. But most likely here, the overwhelming presence and management of 3 to 4 million annual visitors to the star attraction dominated the transportation planning. Get the traffic and tour buses through. It’s also very windy, including the week we were there. It was not pleasant and to be honest, didn’t make you want to be outdoors at all. Perhaps the allure of the automobile is explained a bit.

Lovely outdoor spaces in charming Toulouse where cars are kept at bay. It was also windy in Toulouse, but more protected by its sinuous old grid.

Again, for some, Carcasonne could be magical, and it does have some nice areas along the Canal du Midi and river. But as car-free walkers and bikers, it was not as enjoyable as so many other places we’ve been in France. It didn’t have a village feel, and cars seemed to be everywhere, and the core of the “new city”, Bastide Saint Louis had almost all roads open to fast moving and aggressive cars with narrow sidewalks. Certainly, we enjoyed our time relaxing in the spacious house with the cute cat, but the City itself did not make our top travel lists.

Carcasonne train station is undergoing a much needed renovation to add accessibly between platforms, but it’s not always easy to squeeze in elevator shafts in old stations. We planned for extra time when we left to transfer our bikes and bags up and down the stairs to access the platforms.

You should come to Carcassone, but probably just to visit the ancient La Cité. And since it gets millions of visitors, perhaps an early morning or late afternoon/evening would be best. (Rick Stevees concurs -:) As I noted, our visit to was also influenced by the near constant presence of winds, often blowing 20-30mph+; so cafes and outdoor dining options were less while we were there. We were starting to hypothesize that the La Cité fortress was not really built for defense from marauders, but for the incessant winds! It was nice inside the walls -:)

The first TER train from Carcassonne to Toulouse made about 10 stops and had 6 bike hooks. Crowds varied but we just held onto our bikes and leaned or used door jump seats.

Changing trains in Toulouse was easy with low boarding TER trains and elevators to platforms

The IC train (14143) to Lourdes had reservable spaces under a luggage rack. Perfect to store our bikes without panniers. Our assigned seats were automatically in same car with view of bikes. Nice work SNCF!

Millions visit and make pilgrimages to Lourdes every year and the city has streets lined with places to buy religious goods and dozens (and dozens!) of big hotels. It felt a little like Catholic Disneyland to us.

As soon as we left the station in Lourdes, we were struck by the sight of the immense basilica, Our Lady of the Rosary.

But soon we were rewarded with our first views of the high Pyrenees and the endless backroads in the foothills.

But the first climb reminded us both that the Pyrenees are quite rugged and the roads steep in places, like this 12-15% grade outside Lourdes. These are not the Alps.

Based on our second sit, I looked for a good route from Carcassonne in the central Pyrenees. I started from the intriguing V81 regional route which shows up on Komoot when you select bicycle touring mode. Since we only had a week, I had TER train plans to Perpignan and daily cycling routes mapped from the Mediterranean side on the East. But a few days prior, I noted massive headwinds were predicted in that area (like 20-50 mph) which make the thousands of feet of climbing and valleys even more miserable. So I revised last minute and we headed west by train to Lourdes, where more favorable (and less) wind would likely greet us for the week. And that it did. We are blessed with our freedom right now and do appreciate it every day, but you need to be flexible in plans and comfortable that it will all work out. We always learn as we go.

Dramatic skies in Tarbes, just minutes before an epic lighting and hail storm! We had made it to our hotel for the evening just in time -:).

Typical small church in the Haute Pyrénées.

We always love to see nice signage reminding drivers to give cyclists at least 1.5m when passing. And French drivers are pretty good at honoring the law. Mostly.

A break in the weather at Lac de la Arrêt Darré

So wet set off by train from Carcassonne with a good transfer in Toulouse. We had to squeeze a bit on the first TER train and leaned with our loaded bikes near the door as the bike hooks were virtually full and impossible to use with our gear and the modest crowds. But the French are pretty easy going and helpful, so it was fine. Our second train from Toulouse to Lourdes was an Intercity and we actually had reservations for two of the three bike spaces. It was a modern train set with low boarding and leaning space for bikes and straps to secure them. Heavenly! We actually got to sit in our seats and enjoy our lunch and coffee/tea -:).

Mesmerizing layers of stone and mortar walls.

Route 81 from Tarbes did indeed take us up on a huge plateau with very dramatic views and weather.

Before a cold rain descended on us at the end of Day 2 to Galan.

Few services out here, but wait, what’s this?! An automated boulangerie!

Success, tapped my credit card and et voila, a Pain Au Chocolat, even in a tiny Pyrenean village. Vive La France!

Full rain gear drying out a bit as we rode onto our Chambre D’Hote.

A nice warm homemade dinner at the friendly Le Clos de la Bastide in Galan.

Lourdes is a huge pilgrimage site for Catholics and Our Lady of Lourdes is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary recalling her apparitions in 1858 in the grotto to Saint Bernadette Soubirous, a fourteen-year-old peasant girl. The spring at the grotto is said to have healing powers, so millions come every year to seek its healing properties, often near the end of their lives. Although we didn’t go inside or see anything up close due to all our gear, the scene around the Basilica is quite unique and you can’t help but be touched by people’s faith.

Galan was a sweet little village in which to spend the night.

The cycling from Lourdes was immediately spectacular and sensually rewarding on a balmy spring day. And unlike some of the busier Eurovelos, the regional routes tend to have fewer cycle tourists, especially this early in the season. I like to compare the Eurovelos to National parks and local routes to State parks; Often just as spectacular with way fewer crowds. A big front came through late in the first day and it went from 77f/25c to 40f/4c in about two hours with hail the size of marbles. It coated the ground and changed the mood dramatically as we set out the next day back in a late winter feel. The storm continued a bit the next day and we battled a bit of cold rain, but it also cleared enough to see freshly coated mountains across the horizon. A memorable day of cycle touring, as so many are.

Our third day in greeted us with sunshine and spectacular views of the Haute Pyrenees. The V81 bobs and weaves in and out of valleys and over smaller ridges toward the bigger peaks across the entire French side of the range. It’s a great route.

Although the V81 route was well signed and Komoot kept us on track (mostly), we’re constantly looking for a good picnic lunch spot in the next village.

We settled on this bench behind a church and a bit out of the wind. ok in a pinch.

Endless rural valleys, and a lot of up and down. Almost no one in sight.

After Tarbes, lodging along this route is pretty sparse as you only go through a few major towns/villages, but this is where Chambre D’hôtes come to the rescue as you can find lodging, dinner, and breakfast along with a great local experience and family hosts. Many of the apartment rentals in this region are more seasonal for summer or larger places with 2 or more bedrooms, which make them unpractical and poor value for an overnight stay. Another option is to duck off the route a bit to find lodging as we did near Montrejeau. In summer, more people certainly camp as well.

Lodging on this stretch of the V81 is limited this time of year, but we found a great little apartment (€55) for the night in Montréjeau. Laundry, cooking in, and bike storage!

The impressive Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges Cathedral. A site with layers of history dating back to a Roman Colony of 30,000 people. It later became a pilgrimage stop on the way to Santiago de Compostela.

Up the hill and through one of the three old city gates. Car access is limited and most people park down in the valley.

The ornate organ inside the basilica is considered onw of the best classical organs in Europe.

Sun and coffee break outside the Basilica. We fill our stainless steel thermoses every day with coffee (me) and tea (Cheryl) as cafes and stops are few and far between in this rural region.

A lending library and artistic bench. Even the smallest villages have charm and peacefulness.

We lucked out when it was lunch break on this bridge construction project over the Garonne as the resting workers were fine with us passing and saved us 10km of extra peddling!

After successfully charming the construction workers, we continued on in warming temperatures that gave us a taste of summer here.

Cheryl thrilled to sample more artisan chocolates at 9 am from Aztek at the recently opened Halle Gourmande in Saint Gaudens.

My new favorite from the same food hall, a “Jésuite” pastry.

But our six days of cycling was magical, especially as we are stronger now and the climbing is a bit more rewarding, not just painful. We both feel great after being sick for a bit. And Cheryl is now back to her champion climber status, although one or both of us still have to hike-a bike a few relentlessly steep sections. No shame in pushing a 30 kilo bike load. We are indeed carrying a lot of weight for three months of activities, and three seasons. (often all in one day). We keep discussing what winter gear we can mail back to the Haute Savoie, but then winter rears its head again and we’re glad for all the gear.

The Pyrenees have a good craft beer scene and I was thrilled to chat and taste at the friendly Brasserie Artisanale D’Ariege-Pyrénées in Saint Girons. Opened since 2005, it’s still fairly small, but excellent.

More rolling hills and mountain vistas to explore.

Saint-Girons was our final stop before our next house sit and is a lively and friendly market town on the Salat River.

The weekly Saturday market in Saint Girons is not to be missed. A huge sprawling market of fresh foods, music, crafts, and anything else you might need.

Up the valley to our house sit during another unusually warm spring day in the mountains.

Another day, another UNESCO world heritage site!

Getting excited to reach our next adventure in Massat, but more on that next post!

So we are now at our second house sit near the small village of Massat, where we are experiencing the magic of spring in the Pyrenees and plotting our further adventure on our bikes. More on that from Cheryl soon. Happy Spring!

Fleeing the storm, from Montpellier to Béziers and up the Orb River.

In Montpellier. Rich feeling better, Cheryl coming down with the Spring French Cough.

The wind we battled down the end of the ViaRhôna bike route and the edges of the Carmargue and salt marshes of the sea did not let up as we approached Montpellier. As we turned inland the wind blowing across the bridge over the estuaries almost knocked me over.

Being San Francisco cyclists, we know crosswinds. The Golden Gate Bridge crosswind has knocked over many an unsuspecting cyclist, so I was ready for this exposed bridge. It’s quite a feeling on a loaded touring bike to be hit with a crosswind so hard you feel as if you can just lean on it, tilt at a motorbike in a curve angle, and still stay upright.

L’Arbre Blanc (White Tree) housing tower on the Lez River in Montpellier.

It seriously looks like a rendering, we stopped to marvel at the design. So unique.

Coming into Montpellier we felt the city buffer the wind and saw this completely unique building. Sou Fujimoto led the team on this stunning design, as our architect friend Gisela clued us in. She’s our go to with building questions. It also clued us in that we were close to arriving at our hotel for a two night stay.

Calm plazas and beautifully lit up buildings.

Why, I wondered, looking at my photos, were so many of Montpellier at night? Oh yes, we had holed up in our hotel room for almost an entire rainy day. We had breakfast at the hotel and ate the lunch food we’d bought and not eaten the day before. A kettle and mini-fridge kept us happy. We finally emerged in the evening to find dinner and admire the city. For years we’d been referring to Montpellier as “the city of tomorrow, today”, from a trip in 2018 when we marveled at the new tram system. Now we got to marvel at how bicycle and pedestrian friendly the city is as well.

Unicorn on a monument. Haven’t seen that before.

Headed out on one Montpellier’s fantastic bike lanes before the rain started.

Something that made it so nice to bike and walk around Montpellier were the concrete curbs protecting bikes lanes and also keeping cars from changing lanes approaching intersections. You knew if a car was turning right by which lane they were in, no possibility of swerving at the last moment. That’s a nice feeling for those of us not encased in tons of steel. We were off to the train station to spend the worst part of the storm on a train. If the train was running. The wind and waves along the coast where the tracks run were causing delays but our train did leave, only 30 mines late. Seeing so many other folks with bikes was worrying, since the train technically only takes six bikes. But as you can see from the photos with a collaborative attitude extra cyclists can squeeze into almost any space. Thank you SNCF for not be sticklers for rules.

It’s dumping with rain, but we’re cozy on a train busy with other cyclists.

A big group of Irish cyclists riding a pilgrimage to Lourdes were also on the train. The wind was so strong it was unsafe to ride, especially on lightweight road bikes.

Rich spends a lot of time planning our routes, booking accommodation, and figuring out train rescue hops, like this one. We took this train to Béziers. Where? That was our question too. We didn’t have high expectations and knew nothing about Béziers but it turned out to be a lovely place to spend one night. France is loaded with small cities like this (population 80k), that are firmly off the foreign tourist track. There is an August bull fighting festival here that attracts one million visitors over five days, but we wondered where they all stay as hotels are not abundant.

Way too much mayonnaise in the sandwich!

Rich in front of the Pont Ferroviaire de l’Orb. His third favorite aqueduct in France. Favorite, Pont du Gard, second favorite Pont-Canal du Briare across the Loire River.

Cheryl on the Pont Ferroviaire de l’Orb which carries the Canal du Midi over the Orb River.

Another picturesque bridge, Pont Vieux. The city has done a great job restoring the bridge and linking it to the Cathedral via new plazas, walkways, and elevators.

View of Cathédrale Saint-Nazaire from the bridge.

Dinner at Les Bons Amis. We might have both felt a bit under the weather, but not that bad as the local wine still tasted so nice!

Ready to ride the canal du Midi. Off we go.

Made it all of 2 kilometers before our first stop, at Les 9 Écluses de Fonseranes. Yes, a flight of 9 locks on the Canal du Midi.

A view back to the cathedral. At another stop where we added to our bikes the little flags we bought in Montpellier.

Hello, we are Americans with an affinity for France.

The little flags were Rich’s idea. What is the first thing you wonder about tourists? Where are they from? Sometimes you can tell, sometimes not. So, in order to answer that question for all the folks we cross paths with – little flags. Do we wish we’d gotten them earlier? Yes! Have we noticed folks noticing them? Absolutely. It might be confirmation bias on our part, but we do think they make folks friendlier and car drivers nicer. Rich has his on the front of his bike, and mine are on my back. We inform folks coming and going.

Lunch near the Abbaye de Fontcaude, which was closed. Saved us from having to decide if it was worth stopping to go inside.

Cazedarnes. Vineyards everywhere you look. This is the Languedoc region.

And this is why it can take me so long to catch up with Rich. I’m constantly stopping to snap pics.

After a fairly short day riding, and a night in Cessenon-sur-Orb at a Chambre d’hote where Rich put his French skills to the test, and where we failed to convince the other couple at dinner, from the Vichy region, that Paris is actually quite bike friendly, we headed out to a gem of cycling – La Voie Verte Passa Païs (the Passa Païs greenway) which stretches a total of 237 kilometers and first follows the Orb River.

Yup, stopped again. Not tired of vineyards yet.

Rich admiring the view and waiting for me.

We saw a few other cyclists on their road bikes, this must be such a popular local road, it’s beautiful.

My French road sign language learning program is going well.

Another picturesque stone building and another stop to take a photo.

Roquebrun, another gorgeous town we get to see. It’s so easy to pull over for a photo when traveling by bike.

600 folks call this town in the Occitanie region home.

In summer there are kayakers and canoeists, but wine production is the main economy.

After Roquebrun the roads starts to climb. Rich amuses himself by taking photos of his newly flag adorned bike as he waits for me.

The geology along the Orb is eye catching.

Little Black Greeter Kitty of Vieussan. We pulled over up the road and they came running up for cuddles.

A serious embarrassment of views along this route.

I like the simplicity of the signs telling you which river you are crossing.

A yellow bridge over the river Orb and toothy mountains.

A frequent problem we have is the lack of benches along cycling routes. And benches in the shade are even rarer. We’ve learned to head into towns where you can usually find a bench by the church, or in a shady old town street.

Old town narrow streets in Olargues. Must be a bench here somewhere.

And there was. Of course as soon as rode out of town there was a lovely park with picnic tables as well, but our old town perch had atmosphere.

The park with tables looking back at Olargues. We’re now following Le Jaur River to the west.

This section of the Passa Païs is on an old railroad right of way. There is ongoing work to the route so not every bridge is bike ready yet, but enough are that you avoid most descents to and climbs out of river or creek valleys.

Oh yeah. Look at that dip we got to avoid. Bridges go over.

As I mentioned, the route is still being worked on. At some points you are routed off the rail trail. Obviously the planners are doing their best to keep us off busy roads, but occasionally that means very quiet, very steep roads. Lumpy, as Rich calls it.

This road was car free, which was good, since I was grumpy. A 10% grade will do that.

Distract myself with the sweeping views.

Rich found a bench with a view of one of the bridges our climb probably avoided.

Wild lavender growing out of the hillside.

The day from Cessenon-sur-Orb to Labastide-Rouairoux was beautiful and varied. We had lovely smooth roads, newly constructed rail trail, quiet small roads, and stunning views and villages. It was a tougher day than we anticipated since it was a long climb, gentle most of the way but still up for 20-30k. It’s more tiring to ride long flattish days since you are in the same position on the bike, using the same muscles, hour after hour. We were thrilled to crest the pass of the route and through a long tunnel – avoiding the very highest ridge – and coast into Labastide-Rouairoux, which is a former textile town. The rail route we were riding had brought wool to the town and taken fabric away.

The long tunnel which delivered us to the valley of the Thoré River.

The tunnel meant a change of valleys, and a dramatic change of climate as it was now exposed to the moisture from the Atlantic. Suddenly it was green and lush.

After a fantastic night at Chambres d’hôtes Residence Le Petit Paradis, with great dinner time conversation and a delicious breakfast, it was back on the trail.

I was sad that we didn’t get to town in time to visit the textile museum.

An old mill on the River Thoré. This mill valley started to remind us of the coal valleys of Wales.

As Rich had been promising me the day before, our start was 100% downhill.

Looking back towards Labastide-Rouairoux. Our friends who know Wales will understand our comparison.

Ah, nothing like coasting downhill on a rail trail. Me in the rear screaming “I love bike touring!”.

So green again. But spring had not come to this area.

We went from vineyards to dairy cows. It felt like a different country.

Artists had been hired to create works along the trail.

Rich didn’t even have to wonder where I was – squirrel!

Artistic underpass – Droit dans le mur? Straight into the wall?

Lunch in Caucalières. A table by the river.

And a few Easter chocolates to keep us going.

Next stop, Castres. We both love that Véloccitanie branding.

The outskirts of Castres. I do love a French gate leading to a chateau. This huge chateau was in the midst of office parks, an interesting juxtaposition.

Castres! Where we would spend two nights, still trying to get over our chesty coughing colds and hoping for the wind to calm down. That’s l’Agout River. So many rivers.

We had a great rest day in Castres. A visit to the Goya Museum, a small but mighty and well curated place.

French burgers. A tried and tested rest day cure. For whatever ails you.

Best photo to capture the day of riding between Castres and Castelnaudry. It was a lovely ride, much along the canal du Midi but I just wanted a nap. Yay for the nap loungers.

We spent two nights in Castres and two nights in Castelnaudry. We have a house and cat sit in Carcassone so we had some time to bumble along and take it easy, which was great since neither of us were yet up to full speed.

After a good night’s sleep, out for a walk. Écluses de Saint-Roch, a four flight lock on the canal du Midi.

The basin, carved out of the canal to make a port and regulate the water supply to the locks. It’s also a popular spot for folks to rent boats to cruise the canal.

Castelnaudry is the home of Cassoulet. Delicious. Super filling and very rich.

Leaving our AirBnB which is in an old convent turned language school.

Each old lock keeper’s house had these distance signs.

Still impressed with the views of the Pyrenees.

More good bike route signage and branding.

And a sign explaining all the work to re-shade stretches. So many new young trees were being planted, it was great to see.

It’s good to know that future generations will have rows of trees like this.

Bench! In the shade! On the canal du Midi. We’re getting close to Carcassone.

Phew! That was a lot of photos. Rich is way too busy travel planning to find time to write, he proofs and adds and corrects details. It’s not easy to move so much in an area that’s not ramped up for travel season yet. It can take him a long time to find a place for us to stay where we can also find dinner, and has a bed big enough to fit a big tall American. But we made it to Carcassone alive and well and ready for our house sit. And mostly but not fully recovered from the French Spring Cough.

The Via Rhôna. From the Alps to the Mediterranean Sea by bicycle.

Le Grau-du-Roi, our first real sight of the Mediterranean after two days of salt marshes around the Carmague.

The Via Rhôna. We started with snow, rain, and hail, and ended about 800k later in sunshine and wind.

Each heart is a place we stayed on our ride down through Southeastern France.

When we start a specific EuroVelo route, or any other point to point cycle tour, we always assure each other that we can absolutely take a train boost if needed. I’m happy to report we didn’t take a train, bus, or taxi for the ViaRhôna. We rode the entire way. The blue dot is us in Montpellier, our 15th night since leaving our friends’ house in the Alps. We spent two nights in Lyon seeing friends, and two nights Uzés to have a needed rest day.

Day two of riding. All rain gear was used. We were glad the rain was never sustained, but just occasional showers or hail.

Still smiling in the face of dicey weather.

South of Lyon the route is still undergoing some work and much is labelled “Itinéraire Provisoire”

In some spots even Rich needed to push his bike. Or as the kids call it – hike a bike.

The one stretch we might recommend skipping is between Lyon and Vienne. You can take a local TER train for 30 minutes out of Lyon. The cycle route was mostly on street, with some narrow bike lanes, poor pavement, and quite a bit of diverting around industrial sites, mixed with off street trail riding. We’re not purists who insist on riding every kilometer, and more realistic about having a good (and safe) time, while not suffering TOO much. There will always be enough accidental or incidental suffering on a bike tour, so, if you can skip some known unpleasantness- go for it. That said, it was rideable and ok if you want to do every km of the route.

But, this historic bridge across the river at Givors was beautiful. We would have missed that via train.

And missed this! As a long time and avid Tour de France watcher Rich appreciates riding through the historic stages of le Tour.

Our first night after Lyon was in Les Roches-de-Condrieu, at a small hotel called Hotel-Restaurant Le Bellevue. A decent hotel above a fantastic restaurant, as are many in the Logis network of locally owned lodging.

Bare vineyards. We’ve never toured this early in the year.

Another view of the Rhône River from our little balcony (good for drying laundry) at the Bellevue.

Yup, being those folks who snap photos of their food. Fantastic pumpkin soup.

Didn’t snap a photo of the main, but here’s dessert. My Black Forest inspired cake and Rich’s artistic layered confection avec use crème glace

Usually we seek out something casual and simple for dinner, after a hotel breakfast buffet and a picnic lunch. But, when in a small town with not many close by options we sometimes choose the hotel restaurant; especially in France. I am always impressed and grateful with the way the French approach food. Even in a restaurant like this, which I would consider fancy and upscale, the service is lovely and straightforward. No attitude, no showy or flashy flourishes, just good service and delicious food.

Well fed and riding along the river, day two past Lyon.

Andancette. We’re riding along the borders of the Drôme and the Ardèche regions. It’s warming up. Jackets off.

If cool old bridges are your thing, the Rhône is a great river to ride. Many of the suspension bridges date back to the 1880s

Tournon-sur-Rhône where the Passerelle Marc-Seguin is a pedestrian and bike only bridge.

Even when exhausted it’s great to go for a walk after dinner.

Leaving our bike friendly Gite Le Pied Du Géant in Tournon sur Rhône. And a strong tailwind is finally blowing!

Monday morning on the bikes on the Rhône. Such an amazing experience and much more fun than Monday morning staff meetings.

Dramatic view from Valence of the Ardeche mountains. We went into town to get lunch supplies.

The route crosses the river quite often.

Which means you get to ride across these stunning bridges.

Stopping on a bridge for a photo is not always an option, but we got one.

Montélimar was night 3 past Lyon, and as we headed there we had peek a boo views with Mont Ventoux all day. Mont Ventoux is the stuff of Tour legends, and its white top can be mistaken for snow when it’s only its bare limestone 1,910 m (6,266 ft) elevation.

Bicycle themed decor along the route is always appreciated.

Lavender fields not yet blooming and blue shutters. Still beautiful.

Riding by Avignon. We crossed the river and went right by.

We did stop to admire this ancient communal laundry. I’m always fascinated by these.

Riding towards Théziers, we’re in the Occitanie region. It feels very Mediterranean.

Riding by Montfrin. We ride by a lot of beautiful villages. If we stopped at all of them we’d never get anywhere.

At this point we veered off the Rhone and EuroVelo 17 to visit a famous Roman aqueduct, the Pont du Gard, and spend two nights in Uzés for a rest. Regional routes V66 and V60 take you to the Pont du Gard and Uzes mostly on a beautiful route and rail-trail.

Remoulins, and an Allée of Plane trees. Getting close to the Pont du Gard.

No self respecting civil engineer could pass up the opportunity to visit this marvel built in the first century AD.

In the summer folks canoe under the aqueduct in the Gardon River.

We followed the rules and walked our bikes across.

Our two night stay in Uzés was very relaxing. We cooked in one night, walked the small and fancy old town by daylight and night, visited the cathedral, and walked by the Gardon River below town.

My street at night, this black cat seems to think.

It’s a beautiful old town, very fixed up.

At the cathedral, a campanile, the Tour Fenestrelle.

A view from our walk out of town. Gotta keep the legs used to hiking.

Pathways wind around outside the city walls.

Loaded up in the courtyard of our apartment.

Sometimes staying in old town with touring bikes is a pain. But this ground floor flat worked out perfectly and was beautifully restored.

We rode back down to the Rhône and rejoined EV17 through the Tunnel voie verte Beaucaire. It really felt like a change of climate and zones, as if once through that fairly short tunnel we were in a drier much more Mediterranean climate.

Sunshine? Time for my wide brimmed helmet hat!

Our next stopover was Arles. Famous for its association with Van Gogh and a stunning Roman amphitheater and coliseum, and visited by many tourists every year. Rich had booked us a hotel out of old town – much easier with loaded touring bikes – and since we assumed that once at our hotel we might not have the energy and enthusiasm to walk back into old town, we did a bike through visit. During a busier season I would not recommend visiting old towns with big loaded bikes but Arles was pretty quiet on this Friday afternoon in late March. So we biked around and admired town and the sights for a few hours before heading to our hotel.

Easter chocolate acquired. On to the famous sights.

I love how the coliseum is right in the center of town. And, how folks had built homes inside the walls at one point.

“The clearing and restoration of the Roman monuments started in August 1822. This major decision taken by the city council was to remain a main objective for 100 years. This meant the compulsory purchase of the houses built, both inside the building and onto the façade, then their demolition.”

It’s easy to explore by bike. Dead end? No problem.

After Arles we had one more night before reaching the Mediterranean, in Aigues-Mortes. Unfortunately, Rich was developing a nasty cold, complete with a hacking cough and burning sinuses. And, to make the final part of the ViaRhôna even more painful – the headwind gods decided to pay us a sustained visit.

The most unusual bridge over the Rhône. It was bike and pedestrian only and obviously a favorite of local taggers.

So, filing this under you never know what you don’t know: France still has bullfighting. The arena in Arles hosts bullfights in the summer. I shouldn’t be surprised that this activity traditionally exists in France as well as Spain, what’s a border, really. France has a law protecting bullfighting as a long standing cultural tradition. From what I can find online it seems that the bulls are no longer killed. So there’s that.

Black Carmague cows, or steer, or maybe young bulls?

The white horses of the Carmague are semi feral and we did see some roaming ones. This one is behind fences.

This stretch of the route is very poorly benched and exposed. Nowhere for tired bike tourists to sit and have lunch. So, a rather unsatisfying stand up snack.

Flat. Marshy. Very windy. Water on both sides. Beautiful but not a super fun ride on this windy day.

Heading into Aigues-Mortes for dinner. It’s a fascinating old city, but we were tired, Rich was sick, so we only did a quick walk around before and after dinner.

Aigues-Mortes is an old walled city with fortifications dating to the 13th century.

Rich didn’t get much to time to rest up, as we could have stayed two nights at Aigues-Mortes but the hotel was a bit overpriced and we knew that after the headwind a rainstorm was coming so we wanted to press on to Montpellier and spend two nights there. So, out into the wind it was. Oh, and the train spur to Nimes from here was not running due to work.

Aigues-Mortes by day. It’s on the Canal du Rhône à Sête.

La Baleine sea salt production. Those are salt piles behind Rich.

Greater Flamingos. We didn’t think we’d see them on this trip as they mostly stay further east in the Carmague. Head down into the wind I’m pedaling along and glance right…hit the brakes! Flamingos!

And finally, the Mediterranean Sea. It’s hard to capture how windy it was this day. The sand was blowing and we had to be careful to not let our bikes get knocked over when we parked them.

Hold on tight to that bike and smile! Ignore the head cold that is coming for you too.

Across the sand dunes is La Grande-Motte, a seaside resort and port built in the 1960s and 70s with a unique pyramid architecture style.

Happy that we will soon turn inland towards Montpellier for a rest day.

With the Via Rhôna complete, and two more months of bicycle touring ahead of us – what do we think of the Via Rhôna? I enjoyed it, the river isn’t as wild or beautifully stunning as parts of the Loire, nor is the route as complete. Parts are definitely still under development. But, with a route passing through so many municipalities there must be so much negotiating and planning behind it. Certain areas were so well marked with fantastic new protected lanes and intersections, loads of benches and rest areas for weary cyclists, and other stretches had almost nothing beyond an occasional sign.

The happy travelers ready to pedal inland, get over our colds, and out of the wind.

I think the Carmague is a place I’d like to return to with a car. Apparently the mosquitos get thick during the summer and then you wish for wind, but the bird watching is fantastic. As we were pushing along into the wind I did slightly envy the visitors in cars, but I know, that as always, we have a more up close experience from the seats of our bikes.

Well that was a transition. From Malaysia to bicycle touring in France.

That’s a little tiny Rich, headed into a rain and hail storm along the Via Rhôna.

Be careful what you wish for. How many times in Borneo and Kuala Lumpur did I wish for cooler weather? We swore to each other we wouldn’t complain about any cold weather when we reached France and were reunited with our touring bicycles.

What does the transition look like? It looks like this at first.

And like this. The sorting and decision making.

But we get to this. Loaded and ready to ride downhill in the cold. Wearing all our cold weather gear day one.

Rain trousers not only keep you dry, but make sitting down anywhere super easy. Wet bench? Who cares.

Follow the Via Rhôna signs for 815 kilometers.

I would love to report that we kept to that promise to not complain about the cold, but we did not. I would also love to say it was easy once we rolled out on two bikes with four panniers each. It was fantastic but not easy. It took some getting used to.

The bare trees and grey skies make dramatic landscapes.

Tabac stop for chocolate milk. A good riding snack and the only place open Sunday afternoon!

Sheltering from hail in a farmer’s yard.

After a morning ride through Switzerland, back to France. Borders still resonate with us, especially when crossed by bike.

Yes, I’m on this ride too! Wet weather and thick gloves make pictures hard to take. Riding away from our first night stay in Valleiry.

The route has lovely pavement in stretches.

Pasty and tea break. We can usually count on churches to have benches.

With bare trees you get a better view, like of this rail bridge over the shockingly blue Rhône River.

Sometimes the chateaus hide behind corners and you don’t see them unless you look back.

The Rhône River and a backdrop of snowy mountains.

Another chilly morning in Chanaz. Day 3 back on the bikes. Those oven mitt looking things are my new bike sleeves, to keep my hands warm. Made in France.

It’s not easy to get back in the groove of bike touring. After months off the bikes it’s a bit painful to ride day after day. But, the best way to get into bike touring shape is to bike tour. So, on we go.

I like the signage. It makes you feel welcome.

Getting to closer to Lyon where we were meeting up with friends. (Hi Justina and Joe!)

I’m a bit far behind Rich at this point. So, just taking photos of the scenery.

The cliffs are dramatic, and the stone buildings echo the colors of the mountains of the Rhône-Alpes region.

A community oven in an old stone building.

Across the street, a water tap which was much appreciated as most are still turned off for the season.

The bridges across the river are majestic.

More pastries, best raisin swirl we’ve had, and the weather is warming up.

Well placed picnic table. View of the river and a chateau.

Small bottles of delicious white wine. I love this country!

Rolling out of Jons. I just noticed how my rain jacket complements Rich’s panniers. And his mine.

Riding into Lyon. Looking forward to seeing friends, and happy the weather is warming up.

One last break along the river before getting into Lyon proper.

Someone in the Jean-Macé neighborhood is filling in cracked sidewalks with mosaic tile. Gorgeous.

I got to sit and tour Lyon via streetcar. Very relaxing.

Rich creating an accidental face at the EuroNews building near the Confluence in the 2nd Arrondissement in Lyon.

Colorful view of the Vieux neighborhood from the Musée Cinéma et Miniature. Well worth a visit of several hours.

Sunset over the Gare de part Dieu. From our Ibis hotel room if we opened the double paned windows we could hear the platform announcements.

The happy travelers even happier with friends. Thank you J&J!

The biggest impact of starting a bike tour is how pleasantly tired we are at the end of the day. Oh the sleeping is fantastic. Such deep sleep. Hiking in Wales last summer we met a guy who was powering up a hill with a loaded backpack on. Are you training for something, I asked him? No, just tiring myself out so I’ll sleep, he said. That’s us this week. So tired I can’t find many words for this post. More later from the Via Rhôna south of Lyon.

Is Kuala Lumpur Walkable?

Although we’ve spent a lot more time in the peaceful countryside over the past three years, we still love cities. We know the potential benefits of proximity and convenience. We love efficient transit and the embedded health gains offered by traveling on foot to a myriad of urban destinations.

Petronas towers in KLCC. Where can we walk from here?

So after our Borneo adventure, we decided to return to Kuala Lumpur (KL) after 10 years and spend a week soaking up its multiethnic mix, food, and smattering of sights. It’s changed and grown a lot, and mostly for the better on the transit and walking front.

So this post is about our brief experience getting around only by foot and metro for a week. First. we choose to stay in a centrally located high rise apartment complex in the KLCC (city center) that had pools, gym and was close to two major transit lines. The amenities at KL apartments and hotels are nice, and relatively affordable. And pools and a gym can be an effective way to avoid the heat of the day.

Fenced and hemmed in on a major street. It’s often single file and one way jockeying. The newer sidewalks are better.

Sidewalks are often used for other uses than walking.

But the food in KL is awesome, such as this curry laksa, and great food courts hidden away in shopping centers and office buildings

It’s key to note that as KL has proudly developed from a swampy tin mining village over the past 100 years into a city of over 2 million, in a region known as the the Klang valley that has over 7 million people. Its human scaled grid of walkable Kampungs has mostly been replaced and overlain by a network of developments, asphalt and slip ramps and arterials designed to move people around (almost) solely by automobile. This is a very different trajectory than some other Asian cities such as Hong Kong or Tokyo that have had layers of transit systems functioning for over a hundred years and never lost their core walkability. It’s much smaller than Bangkok and has developed much later when the automobile has been king.

The 57th floor sky pool at the Ascott Star was an experience and great way to beat the heat. We were not suffering this week.

Buildings are often wrapped in one or two additional asphalt lanes for “local circulation”

Masses of people fighting for measly sidewalk space near the Petronas Towers.

Did I mention the food? Old school KL open air Indian Food at the Sai Hills Corner

Pedestrian pain by design. A ridiculous 15 second crossing at the major intersection of Jin Sultan Ismail and Jalan P Ranlee in KLCC.

This continued mega development has been masterminded by leaders, designers, and developers that see a vision of auto-only travel. But there are changes afoot as the realization that moving EVERYONE in a car is not possible with the sort of real density being built in much of KL, and especially the KLCC. We noted at least a dozen new high rise buildings under construction in the core. And they are big and tall, and often have a mall or retail.

As somewhat overwhelming and dystopian it feels at times, I think it’s really an amazing city center as the lack of a grid makes a random, somewhat circular pattern of buildings swirling around the hub of the city at KLCC Park and the beautiful Petronas twin towers. And you can walk on most streets and get between sites via transit and foot. But it’s not always easy. Cars are always first priority.

But to be fair about walking, we have to talk about the heat. My god the heat! It’s hot most of the time and only mildly dips in the evenings and early mornings. The lowest temperature EVER recorded in KL is 64F (18C), a temperature our native San Francisco barely exceeds on average day! March starts to get hotter in KL and it topped out at 95 (35C)for much for our stay. It did cool off the last few days and some rain and cloud cover kept it to 32C/89F which makes waking more bearable from midday onwards. With full sun, the vast stretches of asphalt and concrete heat up and limit the cooling possible at street level, even into late evening. But anywhere with trees is pleasant and notably cooler.

Cars blocking both ends of a bus stop in KLCC.

Crossing the Saloma Link pedestrian bridge, a beautiful and critical link between KLCC and Kampung Baru that opened in 2018.

Crossing the highways and Klang River to Kampung Baru.

Walking through Kampung Baru makes you appreciate the immense urbanization that has occurred in the rest of KL.

Old school Malaysian life in Kampung Baru.

More people walking and biking in this human scaled and gridded neighborhood.

And other issues wear you down. The ubiquitous forecourts, now even more essential for ride hailing trips, dominate the streetscape. You must cross or share the space with moving cars, And slip, frontage, and garage access ways define the pedestrian environment. As a lifelong advocate (and sometimes designer) for better walking environments, KL offers a huge opportunity. Sidewalks come and go, curb heights are massive (perhaps for storm drainage?) and pedestrian crossings few and far between.

But from what we’ve experienced in our brief week, you CAN walk in a lot of KL, especially in the city center (KLCC) and adjacent dense neighborhoods.

What else do you do in KL for a week? Get a haircut at the mall!

Mass rail transit started late here, but is now starting to change the center of gravity of movement. We especially loved the new Yellow line which opened in 2022, and has excellent design standards for comfort and station access. The older lines (such as red and blue) are have lower capacity and get packed at rush hour; even requiring guards to monitor and control platform crowding from the mezzanine or concourse levels. Clearly, people want to take transit or are choosing it over the congestion and cost of car ownership. But capacity and design have not matched road building to date; but with two more metro lines being built and set to open in the next 10 years, things may get even better.

There is some tropical randomness and greenery at street level which keeps things interesting and cooler. This is Ficus racemosa, the cluster fig. Edible. Macaques eat this and humans make it into chutneys.

The City leaders are now recognizing that walking trips are essential in the core and in station areas. But outside the center neighborhood, most areas are still designed as disconnected nodes of business or residential developments with masses of parking.

Bikes are decorations only in most of KL.

Bukit Bintang is another refreshingly human scaled neighborhood.

The 1km pedestrian skyway links a few malls and buildings south of Petronas Towers. It’s nice to have a somewhat cooler walkway, but not a great overall solution to lousy streets.

The inefficiency adds cost to everything and may be an extra reason why KL is such the labor draw. It’s one of the few places in Malaysia where you can live and work without a car. Car ownership is a huge burden on a striving lower and middle class. All of the Borneo cities we spent time in had virtually no public transit and were fairly spread out. With modest wages; car transport and maintenance is a huge part of the monthly budget.

Some riverside amenities- like the mist cloud- make taking a walk more appealing.

Interestingly enough, scooter culture is small in Malaysia. It’s hot, distances are far, and there is a long rainy season. It’s also further along the development scale than its neighbors like Thailand and Indonesia, where scooters are still huge. But an average car costs 5-10x more than a scooter.

This is a disease all over the developing and developed world. Many cities and suburbs in the United States lack a good walking environment and culture, so I’m not singling out KL or Malaysia, for a unique deficiency, just noting that it could be so much better with some real focus on pedestrian access, comfort, and connectivity. Wider sidewalks, more crosswalks, and more trees and canopies. New buildings need proper pedestrian access. Pedestrian signage and more dignity for pedestrians. It won’t be easy as most of the built environment of KL was really (and sometimes comically) built 100% for cars.

The colorful steps to Batu Caves – part natural wonder, part Hindu temple

Sure, it’s really touristy, but at least we could take the metro here!

But we enjoyed our time in KL and managed to do everything we wanted by walking and metro, except our airport Grab trips (you can take a train from KL Central to the airport!). You need to be patient, plan your walking as early in the morning as possible, and navigate on the shady sides of major streets. KL is not going to crack any top ten walkable cities list soon, but we hope when we return again in 10 years that it has realized even more of the promise we saw on this trip.

Perhaps a Taylor Swift Fan on the MRT in Singapore?

This super friendly superfan from Bangkok was ready with smiles and friendship bracelets!

After leaving KL, we got to spend part of a day in Singapore as we connected late back to Europe out of Changi Airport. We had originally planned to spend a few days in Singapore, but the Taylor Swift effect was strong and hotel prices crazy surrounding her 6 sold out shows. The only shows in SE Asia.

The beautiful Park Royal Hotel in Singapore doubles the green growing potential of its site with vertical gardens.

Singapore is a testament to dense, but livable urbanism. It’s eminently walkable and pedestrian friendly, with very little traffic. It’s achieved this by famous green design and a transit first policy. KL should strive for some of the success of its tiny neighbor.

Enough tine for a fix of delicious Chicken Rice at the Maxwell Street Hawker Center.

The Singapore National Gallery is worthy of a half day exploration and made these layover travelers very happy -:)

So it’s goodbye to Asia for now. We’re now back in Europe and have started our late winter bicycle adventure…more on that soon…

Kuching Sarawak. Nine days in the City of Cats.

The view from our hotel room of the Sarawak River.

Kuching, the city of cats, was the jumping off place for our Batang Ai rainforest adventure in the previous post. Friends who know Borneo well (hi Ruth and Gary!) had said it was a nice relaxing city, and so it was. Rich booked us a newly renovated river view room at the Hilton and we settled in for nine nights, with two nights off in the rain forest in the middle. Kuching means cat in Malay, and that was enough for me. Cats, here we come.

Let’s go find those cats! This cat themed trash can looked like a good place to start.

Kitty? You in here? The pedestrian bridge across the river made for nice walking, although it didn’t really connect through to the promenade on the other side of the river.

The big trees along the river shade a lovely promenade leading to the dramatic pedestrian bridge, and it’s a popular destination day and night. Lunar New Year celebrations were still going on so there were loads of visitors, and the city had a fun and busy vibe.

Certainly the Cat Museum was a good place to find cats, right?

A bemused Rich as we realized the cat museum looked like the house of a cat fanatic. Minus actual cats.

The Cat Museum had cat everything, but no actual cats. This is a museum that would be a waste of time for travelers with fewer days to spend in Kuching. But Rich and I had a good laugh at the silly and kitschy collection, wondered how the “museum” ended up in the City Council building, and how it kept going. Our ticket price of about 60 cents was well spent, we figured, and on we went to explore more of this City of Cats.

There were plenty of cats represented in art and decor around town. Wire sculpture of a cat.

Even cat lights along the river. I appreciate a city that leans in to its shtick.

The chefs at a restaurant on the promenade not only fed this cat, but also gave it shelter from the rain with a cat and dog themed umbrella.

Searching for cats was fun, but couldn’t occupy all of our time in Kuching. It was still the rainy season in Borneo so we had some cloudy and wet days which was fine with us, the rain keeps the heat down. We try to walk as many places as possible, heat be damned, and walk we did. The Spring shopping mall was only 3 kilometers from our hotel, so we got out early one morning and headed off. We knew we would be facing some not wonderful walking conditions, we’d seen that much from our trip in from the airport. Kuching lacks public transport, with one bus line that makes a big loop around the city with arrival times every two hours, and lacks good pedestrian infrastructure. Things like cross walks and pedestrian lights are far and few between.

Sidewalks mostly exist, complete with raised tactile paving for those with vision problems.

Kuching is a very green city. The walking on this overcast morning was pleasant.

You see interesting things when you go on foot.

And then you get to an intersection with no ped crossing. It was Sunday morning so not a lot of car traffic, fairly easy to dash across.

And the sidewalk vanishes just short of the mall.

We don’t set out to find flaws in cities, but when we try to live our usual lives, walking, biking and taking transit, we realize where the weak links are. That makes us think about what it’s like for people who live in Kuching. Without frequent public transportation from the outer areas to the riverfront and commercial areas, people need to own cars, or use Grab rides to get around. Owning a car is a big financial commitment no matter where you live, and much of the money spent on automobiles is money that is not spent at local businesses – a point transit activists make everywhere. As for walking for transportation, we saw barely any other folks on foot once we left the riverfront commercial area. Like no one.

Walking to the nearby Borneo Cultures Museum, the building at the left, was fine.

As tourists we can stay near attractions we can walk to. But we see the car dependency, such as the big parking lots near attractions like the Borneo Cultures Museum- which is a fantastic and well curated museum. We joke that if you don’t see the entrance you can assume it’s closest to the parking lot.

The Borneo Cultures Museum was newly built and opened in 2022 – great museum.

A display about the traditional Iban weaving known as Pua Kumbu.

It was good to go to the museum before our trip to the rainforest stay at the Nanga Sumpa Lodge. The introduction we got to Iban traditions at the museum was a good first step, we had questions to ask our guide, and were introduced to the Chief whose photo appears in the museum.

My chai at the museum cafe, the gift shop was also well curated.

Since we didn’t see orangutans at Nanga Sumpa Lodge, it was off to Semenggoh after we came back to Kuching

Semenggoh Wildlife Center is a 1,600 acre/653 hectares forest with a population of semi wild orangutans who are fed to supplement their wild diet. The acreage is not enough to support the animals with wild naturally occurring food. Founded as a sanctuary for rescued orangutans, the center has an established population with babies regularly joining the group. Visitors are let in morning and afternoon for the feedings of sweet potatoes, bananas, coconut, papayas, oranges, sugar canes, pineapples and hard boiled eggs. There is no guarantee that the orangutans will show up, they may just stay in the forest eating naturally growing fruit, especially during g fruiting season which it was. Thankfully the draw of food was enough to tempt out four the morning we went.

A reserve worker headed out to the feeding platform with a basket of food.

Staff on the platform watching for orangutans. The workers make whooping noises to let the apes know food is available.

Humans waiting patiently for the orangutans.

Here comes a momma and baby, and her toddler aged offspring.

There are no blasé visitors when the apes swing into view in the forest.

Semenggoh is about 20 minutes south of Kuching by car, 30 minutes north will get you to the jetty at Kampung Bako to take a boat to Bako National Park, which is on a peninsula reachable only when the tide is high enough for the boats to get through. For both of our trips we hired a driver we met on our rain forest adventure and he dropped us off and picked us up from both visits.

It’s a fun way to start the day – feels a bit survivor-ish.

We were super lucky to share a boat with Katherine and Chris (hello you two!) from Seattle, and we all hit it off so well we spent the day together hiking and marveling at the wildlife.

The rock formations are the result of erosion stripping away sedimentary rock to leave the thick, resistant sandstone behind.

A forest on top, highlighting the blue sky.

The park is very well run, with check in at the registration desk, overnight accommodations with reservations required, and well marked trails and maps. And the animal viewing! Really amazing. As our driver Ali said, Bako is for animals. Proboscis monkeys, silver leaf monkeys, and macaques. We also saw a flying lemur sleeping the day away in a tree, and a pit viper. And adorable bearded pigs.

Oh yes, no swimming at Bako due to saltwater crocodiles. Photo by Katherine.

We first saw a proboscis monkey spotted by Rich. Katherine’s photo- much better than mine.

No shortage of trails. You would have plenty to do with a two night stay.

The trails are well marked but tiring with the up and down and heat and humidity.

Our first beach. There should have been a monkey warning sign. We were quickly joined by a macaque who was certain he could bully us into feeding him.

The monkey took this for an invitation. Oh! Backpacks. Must mean food.

I am patient. I am persistent. I am monkey.

Katherine looking at shells. Monkey waiting.

It was so nice to have people to share the hike with – so glad we met!

After lunch Rich, Katherine, and Chris headed out for a second hike and I stayed behind to read and mind the extra gear, and watch macaques marauding the cafe.

The view from Bako to Santubong Peninsula.

Back on the boat after a successful and happy day.

Spending a week plus in one place means you get to do the little things that might not be on the top of your must do list. From our first day in Kuching we saw the little boats plying the river. Although the lovely pedestrian bridge crosses the river, you cannot go directly right from that bridge to the waterfront promenade. So, we took a little boat. A tambang (motorised water taxi).

The short boat ride took us across the river to Kampung Boyang, which was a fun glimpse of what most of Kuching probably looked like a few decades ago. A botanical garden and The Brooke Gallery at Fort Margherita, which told more of the history of the English dynasty of White Rajahs who governed Sarawak for 100 years. It’s a fascinating bit of history with colonization overtones, but one which is remembered with what seems to genuine respect for the Brooke family. Of course, both museums dedicated to the history of the Brookes are funded by the Brooke Foundation, so there’s that.

Signage for the sights- I love the hornbill mascot.

We certainly found enough to do, and enough good places to eat, to make our time in Kuching very enjoyable. It was a bonus that our hotel had a newly renovated gym and a big swimming pool(about to be renovated). Mornings were spent exploring, Lunch out, afternoons were at the gym and pool. Then it was back out for a walk and dinner.

Delicious thosai lunch at Ceylonese Restaurant Sdn Bhd. We also had dinner here twice, once with Katherine and Chris which was great as we ordered a lot of different items.

The Granary Kitchen + Bar, one lunch and one dinner. Lunch was a local menu and dinner was western.

And every day started with the fantastic breakfast buffet at the Hilton.

Rich buying our lunch, steamed buns, from Kuching’s youngest business man.

I’m still stunned by the green landscape, even in the city. Any land gives rise to a dense green.

We’re in Kuala Lumpur now, so glad we had such a good long stay in Borneo. Even with over three weeks there is still a lot more fun to be had. Did we adjust to the heat and humidity? Not really. It’s hotter here now in KL and it’s quite draining, even three weeks on. We’re just not hot weather folks. Mild San Francisco weather for 30 years will do that.

Borneo. Our places stayed: Koto Kinabalu, Mt. Kinabalu Park, Mulu National Park, Miri, Kuching, Batang Ai National Park, Kuching again.

Three Days of Discovery in the Rainforest of Ulu Ai

Although we are fiercely independent travelers, there are times and opportunities that can be missed without an organized tour. And we really wanted to learn a bit more about the indigenous cultures of Borneo and get deeper into the jungle.

Cruising the Delok River about 5 miles from the Indonesian Border

It was about a 4 hour drive from Kuching to the Batang Ai Lake Boat Dock

Cheryl and I both have degrees in Anthropology (+my engineering and her creative writing) which fuels an endless desire to dissect and understand what we can about local cultures and customs in a rapidly changing world. So we picked the Batang Ai 3 Day Experience led by the award winning agency out of Kuching, Borneo Adventure. It was a great choice.

A chance for coffee and tea while our guide bought much of the supplies for our trip at the large Serian Daily Market

We awoke early on our departure day with a sense of excitement as we really didn’t know what to expect of this tour, and it required some thoughtful repacking, drybags, and consolidation of our gear, with the excess being left at our hotel in Kuching. It was also still the rainy season here, so rain was likely, and tons of rain a possibility. The drive was nicely broken up by a market stop and early lunches, but we were definitely ready to board the longboat for the nearly 2 hour trip to the community and lodge. Despite some steady rain as we drove, the boat trip was mostly dry.

Across the massive 24sq km Batang Ai Lake

After an hour crossing the Resevoir in some light rain we hit this massive log jam! It seemed impassible to us?!

The front boatman was impressively strong moving logs aside as the driver in the back worked magic with the outboard motor to get us through. This logjam is almost always here and a result of currents and erosion around the reservoir basin.

Arriving at Nanga Sumpa Lodge, which had recently been renovated and reopened.

Settling in on the great open veranda above the river, always ready with my binoculars.

The river was raging and mud colored the first day up but had magically cleared up and dropped enough to swim by the next morning.

The arms of the massive Batang Ai lake seemed to stretch forever and it was a dramatic shift in terrain and ambiance as we transitioned to the original Delok River. Although the lake/reservoir was pleasant and scenic in its own right, I couldn’t escape the artificial feel and haunting thoughts of the wild rivers that used to flow below. Thousands of Iban people were displaced by the construction of the dams and inundation of the valleys in the 1980s. On the upside, the reservoir provides a good amount of local clean hydropower. But it is what it is and we were here to support and get a glimpse of modern Iban life that still exists in the rivers above the lake. And it’s still a fascinating and unique community.

Life is only on the river here, our boatmen dropped a local downstream.

Our room was pleasant, airy and did cool down at night. There is electricity only from 6:30pm to about 10:30p to charge devices. Headlamps and charging blocks really help.

The “Ruai” or common area of the long house at Ulu Ai at a very quiet time. It was often full of families and kids socializing and playing games, and we later joined the kind chief and his wife for some rice wine and conversation.

Many handmade items are for sale outside each families personal space. We bought a few beautifully woven baskets and decorations. It’s appreciated but not required. The lodge and tours also provide many local jobs.

This bridge over the Sumpa confluence connected the lodge to the local community. This little guy wanted to come over and visit.

The lodge is located at a small confluence, of the larger Delok, with a calm side creek, the Sumpa, which can be used to safely store longboats in time of high water or floods. All the remaining dozen or so longhouse communities in the remote Ulu Ai are located similarly. The lodge itself is rustic with three forest rooms with bathrooms, and a few more rooms sharing a bath. It was nice to be barefoot in the lodge for three days, and felt natural. Meals are simple but tasty communal affairs, although Cheryl and I had the lodge to ourselves the second night, after four young Germans had departed.

Many longboats are still paddled/pushed for local trips and fishing, but motors are key for longer trips, especially to the primary school and health clinic downstream.

Our first short trek introduced us to the long house community as well as the layout of the village above the river. Good birding too along the way despite a local teenager cranking some afternoon music -:).

Wooden long boats have flat bottoms to handle very shallow water sections on the river. It’s magical to cruise through the jungle.

This larger solar array had been installed just a few years ago for more constant electricity to the community. The pandemic accelerated the solar installation and arrival of satellite internet for remote learning for the kids.

After a nice trek around the community and then dinner, we headed back over to the bridge to the longhouse and meet the chief and his wife. This was a genuinely enjoyable experience and the chief was very down to earth and friendly, understanding a bit of English and facilitated by our guides native Iban and local dialect.

Our jungle trek was remarkably dry despite lots of rain the days prior. These forests are made to handle rain.

Paul, our fantastic guide for three days. His community relationships and understanding of the flora and fauna were impressive.

Each family has a local farming plot to grow rice and other crops, as the government and conservation efforts have mandated the transition from the traditional swidden (or slash and burn) agriculture to protect critical habitat.

We are very conscious of the voyeuristic aspects of this type of tourism, but felt Borneo Adventure’s unique and 35+ year relationship at Nanga Sumpa is positive and synergistic for all involved. It’s also very small scale. Their jungle tours are not for the faint of heart, but perfectly blend adventure with enough comfort for most travelers looking for a unique experience. So we didn’t take any photos of our interactions or the community as we walked around. Google the Nanga Sumpa longhouse if you want to see more photos to get an idea. And read this excellent article (thank you Gisela!) on the reconstruction of the long house after the 2014 fire: article here.

A Nanga Sumpa resident heading to her farm plot. Farming here is not easy.

A bit of rubber is still extracted by the locals for use.

A local chief’s burial jar in the jungle with tributes of coins and cigarette butts. The grave is a way to protect and retain the land.

The second day began with a river crossing to trek for a few hours through the jungle and the hope to spot an Orangutan. There are over a thousand Orangutans in the Batang Ai National Park and adjacent preserves, but this buffer area of living Iban communities is outside the parks. However, a census/review done by WWF and other agencies in 2016 estimated about 250 Apes call this area home. This resulted in increased conservation efforts and even more desire to have the local communities coexist with this population. We were pleased to see some of our significant regular donations to WWF at work and having an impact on policy and life on the ground. It has seemed to push back the logging and palm plantation encroachment as well. At least for now.

The waterfall swimming spot deep in the jungle was a place of exotic travel dreams.

The friendly boatmen double as talented jungle chefs and prepared a delicious local meal over a wood fire for us to enjoy.

Chicken, bamboo sticky rice and assorted veggies hit the spot with a giant kettle of tea.

Cut plastic chairs serve double duty in the longboats and on the beach -:).

Heading back down the river: cool, full, and refreshed. Everything is on the river.

Many tourists want to see ancient cultures as they imagine them to be and seem to expect wildlife steaming out of the forest in all directions. Our brief experience brought to life the fact that life in the modern Borneo jungle is a delicate balance between preserving wild habitat, traditional cultures, and providing adequate economic and educational opportunities to thrive. It’s not an easy life. But the communal ways and semi-subsistence living was real, as were the dozen of kids joyously playing in their river paradise every afternoon (it was a school holiday week). But there is a constant mix between residents and the « outside world » After primary school, kids now go off to secondary school in cities and villages hours away (And board there). And others go off to work opportunities for years, some retuning later and some not.

A final search for Orangutans yielded some fresh nests, but alas, no viewings. We saw dozens of nests in our treks as Orangutans move constantly and build a new tree nest daily. An amazing adaptation that requires a lot of intact habitat.

If you want to have the opportunity to see more wildlife, including deeper into Orangutan habitat, Borneo Adventures offers 4 and 6 day trips. The four young Germans we met our first night had done the extended 4 day trip and did see an Orangutan and a Civet. Wildlife viewing is a crapshoot. But no worries, we did see Orangutans a few days later outside Kuching at the Semenggoh wildlife Reserve, a 1600 acre rainforest with about 28 orangutans. It was amazing to piece together the wild jungle experience with actual viewings.

Three of the four semi-wild orangutans we saw at the Semenggoh Wildlife Reserve. There is a small baby clinging to momma.

Posing next to Ritchie, the massive 145kg dominate male in the Semenggoh community.

Nanga Sumpa in 2024 was fascinating. But travel is a snapshot in time. It was undoubtably very different in 2014, before the old longhouse burned down and internet. And what about 2034? Will cell service reach here? Will the young come back and continue to support the community and longhouse way of life? Will wildlife be thriving or will there be more encroachment by logging companies?

Morning life on the River as two women head upstream.

Great memories (and great coffee and tea).

This was an amazing and memorable experience for us and we will cherish the glimpse we got into a completely foreign way of life. We only hope we left some positive vibrations in return. And although we didn’t see any orangutans in the wild, we saw lots of other unique flora and fauna, including some beautiful birds. And just knowing these amazing human-like cousins are still thriving in these jungles will bring a smile to my face for a long time to come.