The Heart Of France - SPT18055

What a week! Thank you girls, for your good mood and your cooperation! And thank you Ginia for putting this group together. And all you others thanks for joining. It was a pleasure guiding you! Ursula and Laurens Our lovely ladies from Colorado who took the inaugural e-bike trip last year are back, and they have brought LOTS of friends for a ride through central France! Day 8: Figeac - Rocamadour Our last riding day :-( A lot of questions like every morning: - What is the weather like? Answer: look out the window, than you know for the next hour what it will be. - how many miles have we to do? Answer: miles and kilometers are nearly similar. - have we a lot of climbs today? Answer: no, this planet is all flat! So girls, put your rubbers on. Little man in action? Let`s roll! Day 7: Viellevie - Figeac Along the Lot we move westward. Tasty wines thrive at the Riverside. The river was an important transport route linking the Auvergne and Cahors to the wine trade centres of Bordeaux. We reach Conques, which lies hidden in a side valley of the Lot. Nonetheless it is known for its Abbatiale Ste-Foy, an impressive church-historical work of art. Day 6: Laguiole - Vieillevie What a day!! A beautiful cycling day is ahead of us. In the morning we got the chance to visit a "fromagerie", where the "Tome" is produced. Afterwards we`ll leave Laguiol on small farm roads.The well-known Aubrac cattle graze on the pastures. It is a bit hard to say good-bye to this beautiful landscape. We first roll down into the gorge of the Truyère before we reach the Lot. The pilgrims called the valley of the Lot “Le premier sourire du Midi” – ‘The first smile of the South’.  Authentic villages, medieval castles, Romanesque churches, historic town centers characterize this day. and just in case somebody forgot - dinner is at 7 p.m. - :-) :-) Day 5: Bigose - Laguiole We had to leave our beautiful Gite d`Etappe. The solitary mid-mountain landscape of the Margeride massif now transforms into the region of the southernmost volcano of the Auvergne, the Aubrac plateau.  The decaying houses of gray basalt stone show the century-old architecture of the region. The typical breed of the Aubrac cattle, with their big, brown eyes, are everywhere out on the meadows. They are not only delivering the delicious meat but as well the treasured milk for the "Tome", the famous cheese of the Aubrac area. As everywhere else on this planet, landscape forms the character of the people living there. The locals here are used to solitude. They don`t speak so much. And when, than only if there is something important to say. Day 4: Le Puy - Bigose The weather was not so good this morning. The girls were also a bit tired. But all hopped on the bikes. We had to climb high above the Allier river this morning and at lunch in Saugues some wanted to load the bike. But after lunch they`d changed their minds. They all climbed up the plains of the Margeride and arrived after 90 km still chatting in our Gite d`Etappe. Day 3: La Chomette - Le-Puy-en-Velay Rolling hills, green meadows and quiteness acompanies us to the Lafayette castle. We cycle along the partially several hundred meters deep Allier gorge which is dramatically cut into the surrounding plateau. Langeac is an authentic market spot on the Allier. Le Puy, meaning the summit, dazzles us with its peculiar rocky needles and many interesting legends. We are in the Central Massif. The landscape is volcanic and characterized by gentle hills, forests and pastures. Le Puy-en-Velay the "Tuscany of France" is today's destination. Day 2:  Clermont-Ferrand to La Chomette