Morning View: (Sunny morning in the south of France...finally.)
Aveyron & Cantal - Auvergne & Midi-Pyrenees)
Woke at 11am after a bit of an up and down night. Need to get out of here. Exec decision to not buy food for two days as I have been because..
A) I'm leathered and can't carry the weight
and
B) it seems I can buy stuff along the way instead. I can't be carrying tuna cans up mountains now when I'm pre-exhausted
and
C) last few days have proved I can keep going with little food in me in the daytime; caffeine and sheer bloody-mindedness to finish. So super-hog calorie items like peanuts and high energy like dried fruit. I can tank up on ice cream on route (yea, yea, wouldn't that be nice).
<moan>
My right hand feels like you get when you wake up and it feels very weak or pins and kneedles - but just all the time now.
I can walk like a 'drunk guy' but whole legs feel sore especially knee areas.
Yes I'm not glad I'm here!
</moan>
1:15pm set-off from Aurillac after mini-shop/eat.
With Montpellier probably 2 days away and this being the 7th day it is frustrating but may have been a tall order to have done 10 to 20 miles more per day, each day, so far.
Direction Millau D920 (Not rodez as out of the way.)
Yes sometimes you have to be a mad Englishman and soak your top. I did feel all tom cruise-top gun "slowly walking". with all those old ladies watching me (or do I mean hanks?)
Longest downhill yet. You have to do that one before u die! But get t-bars on bike.
Montsalvy @3:23p really nice town.
Some architecture for those inclined:
Mountains!!!!!
"Love made sweet and sad the same."
(OK Forget the long downhill comment made earlier. Below Aces-it)
There is a huge temptation when doing a 7% 7 kilometer (e3.5 miles) drop to just let go and enjoy it.
Which I did......but.... "With" my breaks on in sheer terror!
Wow!
(Kd Lang never sounded so good, covers album or not.)
Nice bridge! To end that downhill madness.
Weird junction D920 disappears briefly, but continue and go right over bridge and see sane signages.
Fast food! Two raw eggs,peanuts and dry fruit(coconut&banana luxury!)
Soak-watered my top again for extreme cooling.
Old ladies watching.
Again.
(Hey, There are good tips in it!).
Espalion 920 bends 90 degrees!
Briefly towards rodez but not.
I was down there. Yes. Now after a huge hill climb I'm up here!
Zoom in to above pic. Central are castle ruins. Sting lives there.
At this stage any mode of transport other than a sodding bike looks hijack-able....no keys!
D28 (Not D904)
Lassaic (a few hills before it again!)
D28 joins D911? (N88)
Severac -> Back D28
Long winding scary forest with a full moon!
It's weird isn't it flogging ones self across France.
I wonder (other than deep thought) what I'm getting out of this self-flagellation...
..and...
..how...
..if.. it will have changed me?
If I can do again what I just did today (purely a piece of string on the map inaccurate) I will border Montpellier or be there if less hills on that last run (rumoured).
Beach anyone?
Finished @midnight.
Close to goal location for the day. I realise I'm a total Masochist.
