The first part of this blog is noting & experiencing how Parisians get around & then the same for the people of the La Vellée de la Drôme. There were many paths, roads, rails & waterways to explore or visit in France. As a result, this is a long blog.
L'art urbain en bord de Seine.
Urban art on the banks of the Seine.
In a long tunnel that was reserved for pedestrians & bicycles.
"Launched in 2018, electric bikes make getting around easier. They are used for more than half the kilometers travelled on Vélib."
"At the peak, each bike is used more than 10 times a day on average during summer."
Here's one competing with scooters.
A Class I bike lane..
Eiffel Tower & Cathédrale de la Sainte-Trinité - Église Orthodoxe Russe.
We walked past this on Rue de Grenelle - I had to figure out what it meant.
La Bourse aux Vélos - "Are you looking for an inexpensive used bike that's ready to ride? You knocked on the good door. We regularly organize used bike markets, which are very popular with the public."
Corbonne, Drôme.
Mosaic instruction sign. Cars, bicycles & horses to the left.
A MASH motorcycle, makers of modern classics..
TGV sta. Valence. Photo by Nate.
La Vellée de la Drôme where the rural roads are idyllic for motorcycles.
Léoncel.
Saoû.
Gotta love the cigarette…
Vintage Peugeot motorcycle.
Montélimar.
Vintage motor assisted pedal bike.
These bikes were quite prevalent around Paris in the 1960’s.
Gîtes de Chantebise, Saoû.
On the main shopping street in the center of the town of Crest.
Not many scooters were seen on the roads of the Drôme.
This vintage one was in La Fontaine Minerale Cafe Restaruant. That’s my drink.
These rural roads are also idyllic to experience in a vintage auto like this Triumph Sprite.
In Montélimar we rented a FIAT 500 Hybrid with a standard shift.
We were told to pick it up across the street in the parking lot of the train station & were told nothing about the workings of the FIAT.
It took me the better part of a day to figure out that one lifted the collar on the stick shift to get the car into reverse.
These were a lot of road signs to take in.
We were headed for Miramande because it was “…listed among the most beautiful villages in FranceI” I had made this loop using Google maps.
Nate said, forgot doing the perimeter, there are a lot of little villages in the middle.
Luckily there was space to pull into.
Good thing the encounter didn’t happen a little further up…
Note the array of solar panels to the right of the farmhouse.
The FIAT 500 Hybrid didn’t use much petrol but the 19 litres cost about $34.50 then, now about $37. That’s almost $8/ US gal.
It took me a few moments to figure out where to place the locking gas cap.
We finally saw a bus on the road from the TGV from Valence to the CDG airport.
Off to recover her daughter’s backpack that was left at school, a few blocks away.
I’m guessing a ca. 1970’s mixte style frame.; “a direct appropriation of the French word meaning ‘mixed’ or ‘unisex". These are no longer common.
it was nice to have a bicycle shop in the village, “around the block.”
Merinos Cycles Saoû.
On my first ride on the MEGAMO E-bike rented from Merinos Cycles, the front suspension was too stiff. I rolled around the block to the shop & Côme quickly adjusted it to soften it before my next ride.
Right out the door on Route du Roc leads to hiking & mountain biking.
.17 miles down Route du Roc & bearing right at Gîtes de Chantebise, Saoû, is the road leading to La Forêt de Saoû.
Less than a mile on twisting, rocky, single track to here.
Nate’s pointing to Saoû.
The arrow is pointing to the entrance into the syncline of the Forét where the previous photo was taken.
The yellow triangle with the two circles designates a mountain bike trail. There are six noted here with many more that are not marked.
…to advanced technical.
Here’s an experienced 8 year old. His grandfather got off & walked here…
Other than that, we encountered no hikers or other bikes on three days of riding in, around & above the syncline.
"you are on a MTB-FFC SITEFRENCH CYCLING FEDERATION"
“Fédération Française de Cyclisme or French Cycling Federation is the national governing body of cycle racing in France.”
These vintage fellows were on e-road bikes.
Marsanne en Drôme Provençale.
North of Saoû there’s a lot of bicycles on the road climbing to high altitudes.
But, not for this guy. Photo by Nate.
This was the first day of biking. The altitude was about 2,000’. Between that & the incline of at least 14% my rental Maduro e-bike & I couldn’t make it.
The bike was nimble & didn’t weigh as much as my e-bike at home but the motor couldn’t handle it. Blame it on the bike.
Photo by Nate.
Luckily I was wearing Nate’s mountain biking shoes designed for flat pedals. They were easier to walk in than my shoes with clips on the bottom.
Mentioning walking, the hiking was superlative. Nate even bikes on this trail. Yikes!
Photo by Nate.
Walking up io SOYANS: UN VILLAGE PERCHÉ AVEC LE VEUX VILLAGE ET LE CHATEAU - site médiéval.
Translated the sign says “Caution - Dangerous safety risk of falls.”
Or by train. We learned from our TGV trip a year ago to sit down below. Getting our luggage to the upper level was difficult without help.
And, it’s nice to sit facing forward. We got all of this on this journey because Nate got the tickets.
Nate told me to stay here at the two stops to make sure that our luggage was not taken.
