Category: France

Spectating the Tour de France

As part of my trip, I had always dreamt of watching the Tour de France, and Stage 20 seemed like the perfect opportunity. The stage was set in the scenic hills of the Alsace region, making it an ideal spot to witness the action up close. I decided to cycle up the final hill of the stage and find a spot near the summit to spectate.

As I pedaled my way into the Alsace mountains, I noticed a steady stream of cyclists all heading in the same direction, with many coming over from Germany for the day to catch a glimpse of the race. The atmosphere was electric even before reaching the race route.

As I climbed the Col Du Platzerwasel, the road was already packed with camper vans, cars, and passionate fans, despite it being 11 am, a good 6 hours before the race was expected to pass. The climb was alive with cheers and EuroParty anthems blaring from speakers, creating a motivating and exciting environment.

Reaching the summit took me about 50 minutes, a far cry from the pros who later conquered it in under 20 minutes. While not classified as one of the highest category climbs in the Tour, the summit stood at an impressive 1187 meters, which is higher than the peak of Snowdon. I then descended about 350 meters to a section with a 14% gradient to watch the race from.

The anticipation rose as the caravan appeared, a colourful parade of floats tossing souvenirs to the cheering fans. After making friends with a group of Germans next to me, I was now in direct competition with them to catch anything being thrown our way. In the end I managed to catch quite a few souvenirs to remember my day by.

The sound of helicopters signaled the approaching race, followed by race official cars and motorbikes attempting to manage the crowd in order to make space in the road for the cyclist to pass. However, despite their efforts, and that of two policemen they couldn’t do much to control the enthusiastic 500-strong crowd from getting up close to the race.

When the riders finally zoomed past, I was taken aback by their size, looking much younger than expected. Jonas and Tadej, the top riders of the year, looked about 15 years old. Furthermore, being within touching distance to the race was a very surreal experience.

Cheering on the other riders as they conquered the hill brought joy and camaraderie to the crowd, with French stars Pinot and Alaphilippe receiving the loudest cheers.

After the race had passed, I cycled up to the finish area, where preparations were already underway to dismantle the course. The thrilling day concluded with a somewhat nerve-wracking descent alongside fellow cyclists, many of whom were quite drunk by this point.

None of us in the crowd had phone signal, likely due to the remote hillside location, this meant I didn’t know who’d even won till I’d set up camp that evening. Watching the race back I was trying to spot myself on the cameras and I think you can just about see the back of my head!

It was an unforgettable day, and a great conclusion to my time in France. It’s been a great and rather easy country to cycle through and I’d love to return to follow the race through the Alps one day.

Luxembourg, Germany and Eastern France

Over three days, I crossed four different countries, and what surprised me the most was the lack of fanfare at each border. There were no signs welcoming me to the new country on most occasions.

In just one day, I cycled across Luxembourg, stopping for lunch in the city centre park. The city’s architecture blended old and modern, with picturesque viaducts spanning the valley. The rest of the country was characterised by rolling hills and farmland, not unlike what I had seen in France and Belgium.

The following day took me into Germany, where I followed the Saar River for 85km before joining a canal path for another 50km. It was a monotonous stretch, with the industrial surroundings necessitating several breaks for food to pass the time.

Then, I arrived in Strasbourg, which turned out to be my favourite destination so far. Upon reaching the city during rush hour, I encountered chaos on the bike paths with commuters scurrying about. After a moment of rest in a park to catch up on some admin, I took a leisurely bike ride around the vibrant city. Strasbourg’s stunning cathedral and canal running through its heart gave it a unique charm.

Friday brought my first day of rain on this journey. The downpour persisted throughout the morning, forcing me to take shelter under a bridge to escape it. Luckily, my bags proved to be waterproof something I hadn’t checked before setting off for the trip, and as the afternoon cleared, I entered the picturesque Alsace region, cycling through many beautiful vineyards. I had a quick look round Colmar that evening and camped in some woods on the outskirts of the City, ready to take on the hills in the morning.

Northern France and Belgium

After arriving in Calais, I, along with two other cycle tourists, received a car escort out of the port, allowing us to bypass the queues and begin our journey smoothly. I joined EuroVelo 5, a long-distance cycling route from Canterbury to Italy, where I enjoyed the ease of riding along the well-maintained paved canal paths.

While the EuroVelo 5 continued towards Brussels, I opted to head south towards Douai. There, I found accommodation with Claire, who offered a much-needed shower and a quick tour of the City.

After she shared her food with me, we met up with some of her friends and celebrated Bastille Day for which the city put on a firework display.

The following morning, we visited a bustling French market and I stocked up on delicious cheeses to fuel me through the day.

After camping in a forrest on the Belgium border for a night, I crossed into Belgium traveling through some small Belgian villages, making sure to indulge in their famous waffles for sustenance.

Soon, I found myself back in France in the scenic Ardennes Regional Park, where a pleasant bike trail offered stunning views of the river Meuse and its valley.

Camping has been relatively straightforward, with most nights spent in peaceful forested areas away from the road. As for food, I relied on simple provisions, snacking on baguettes with Nutella during the day and having tinned protein (generally lentils or Beans), tinned veg, and some carbs for dinner.

Riding along the bike trails has been far more enjoyable so far than the roads so, I made my way back to Belgium to rejoin the EuroVelo 5 route, which will guide me through more new countries of Luxembourg and Germany.