La Chartreuse

[MooN]

Well Pete was always after ride reports, so I will post this one despite his loss. I am also half convinced that he was somehow responsable for the deluge of biblical proportions that hitus in the last couple of hours of the ride home 

A pentecost weekend ride with the usual suspects, not many ^pics as the group is not easy to persuade to actually stop.

Lunch stop on saturday, at St Amour, about half way between here and there and in my old stamping ground between on the eastern edge of the Saone plain North of Bourg en Bresse. 

We were staying two nights in a hotel (read "dive") in a place called Vezeronce, south of Amberieu en Bugey and the Rhone. BY the time we'd done with ethe aperitifs the sun was well and truly set

Up and out early on sunday morning and the first stop had us already at about 1300metres altitude oelooking the lake towards aix en provence

 

what seemed like almost endless haipins, made more exciting by the presence of cyslists, joggers (Mad I tell you!) and the odd kamikaze camping car who seem simply incapable of logical thought., took us all the way back down and around the lake for coffee where we were able to watch ( and generally criticise) people trying to back their boats trailers down the ramp into the water. 

 

 we ended up for lunch at a wee restaurant in the mountain village of Corbel, outside seating only and by God what a view from the table!

 

 

special foodie interlude for Pedro:

Pasta stuffed with fish, and lightly breaded... 

That evening we had a posh restaurant planned cos the hotel restaurant was closed ( I mean lets face it why be open on a bank holiday weekend when the town is heaving with tourists all dying for a feed...?)

so I got to eat Caillete de canard with peas and fresh Origan

Dos de cabillaud (Cod) roasted, white asparagus and broccoli purée with candied lemon:  

followed by Baba au Rhum but with Chartreuse liqeur in place of the rum.  All so very civilised and not a burger or a basket of chips in sight!

I fucking sulked at the prices though, 44€ for a bottle of Mercurey, 8€ for a glass of chartreuse to chase the coffee and the totalwas about the double of what we habitually pay for a meal out, around 50€ a head!  I'd rather have a steak- frites and a beer for 20€ thanks!

 

monday AM we were away at 9 and it was my turn to lead, I'd planned a route taking us across the Dombes wetlands to the saone, a coffee stop in Chatillon sur Chalaronne allowed me to pick up Bucks message about Pete) Unable to react fully as my head was in navigation mode and keeping the nutters in check and to a timetable takes all my powers of concentration. We crossed the Saone and A quick blat up the RCEA for 25km (Route Centre Europe Atlantique) which is always risky with a group as this is considered the most dangerous road in France, if not in europe) but the portionfrom the Saone westwards  is dual carriageway limited to 110km/h so it does allow you to cover some ground and is the only main road runing east/west ( which is why it carries ALL east / west HGV traffic) . Stopped in Cluny for Lunch which was burger and chips ( YAY!) and as we were waiting for coffee, it hit me, like a slap in the face with a wet fish, 

I struggled to get my head back in the right place to carry on leading the group. As we left Cluny, heading forAutun, the weather began to suit my mood and we were clearly riding into the heart of a dark place. The storm chased us all the way to Autun where I had to stop toallow my knees to stretch for a minute or two because I knew I couldn't make it all the way to avallon ( over 2hours) in one hit from Cluny and between the two Autun is the only place where there's a café still open. This allowed storm Pete to catch us ( I am more than half convinced that Pete, who would of course "have been there, weather permitting..." ,  Haddecided "I'll wet that French cunt!" so I've named it storm Pete. 

the last 2 hours of ride were a bloody nightmare, hammering rain that punched so hard it was like hailstones, lightning strikes both sides of the road and thunder you could hear over the wind and engine noise. by the time I got home I was soaked quite literally to the skin. Idon't believe any "waterproof" gear would have stood up to that and I have not ridden in such apalling conditions for at least 20 odd years. my riding gear is still not dry and I have only managed to dry out my helmet by dint of half an hour with a hair dryer, after having been on the radiator all day. The storm we rode through made national news that evening. 

Thanks Pete.  

[YamaHead]

Brilliant views there Chris....

[Marcel le Moose Fondler]

Beautiful place .

 

[Pedro]

Great views! Lovely food too, but 44€ for a bottle of wine is murderous!!! I’d rather have a burger too at those prices! I am spoiled though, nice wine is quite cheap here if you compare to the rest of Europe. 

Nice RT, too, I’m in a love affair with RTs. I keep telling myself they’re less good for twisty roads than a GS, not dirtroad friendly, less seat to foot peg space, but they just look really nice to me.

Pete would never make it rain, though. Maybe he was just having a pee 

[Buckster]

That posh meal looked more like duck than whatever “canard” is.

[boboneleg]

Great views Chris especially from up above the lake.

That food looks far too poncey for my liking. I’ve ridden through a storm like that on my way to the Pyrenees , it makes you question your sanity but you push on regardless.

[Six30]

Riding through that storm.... rugged individualism at its best ,

the view at the cafe ..brilliant.