As I was assembling my bike in a hotel room in Dijon I tried not to look through the window to the depressing sight of the dark rainy morning. It was not a very promissing start of the tour. But once you dive into it, the rain is not such a disaster. Besides, it passes eventually, and in the case of this very first day of the tour, it passed before I hit the streets of Dijon.
 |
| The first few days were rainy. |
The nature of this tour became evident very soon. The cue sheets that I made according to the roadbook of 100 cols tour were leading me through the secondary roads that I would never find if I had navigated by the map. The route was winding among vineyards, forests and quiet little villages and was a pure joy to cycle. There were many climbs, but very nice, with fantastic long descents. Whoever traced this route really deserves a medal. Navigating with cue sheets was easy, and after I got the grip of it, very fast, although I had to check with the locals when the roadsigns were ambiguous or when road numbers had changed, or when there seemed to be a mistake in the cue sheet.
 |
| Fountains in the main squares of little villages were my major watering points - even if most of them had the sign "Eau non potable". |
First few days were rainy, but that couldn't spoil the great feeling that I had from the start. My strategy was to wait out the heaviest downpours under a tree in a forest, and to cycle through drizzle or light rain and let the wind dry out what the rain had wetted. It worked great and I even enjoyed it as a part of adventure. If I got a midday menu for a reasonable price, the day was made perfect.
 |
| Main course of my afternoon menu. You can't cook this on your stove. |
Having came from a country where Balkan behavior was not totally forgotten, I was pleased by the cultural manners of the French. From the ubiquitous "bon jour monsieur"'s and "merci monsieur"'s, polite and quiet conduct in public places, non-aggressiveness, gentle driving and respect toward cyclists, down to unobtrusive music in restaurants. I really could love living here.
 |
| I went through houndreds of nice little villages like this one. |
 |
| From my hotel window. |
Before the climb to Pas de Peyrol my front light slid from its bracket, fell on the road and cracked open spilling the batteries all over. I could find only three out of four batteries, so I couldn't check if the light was still functional. It didn't matter much for the 100 cols tour, but was essential for the Paris-Brest-Paris. The owner of the hotel where I stayed that night gave me the fourth battery to check the light. It was working, and morover, I could keep the battery for free. I mention this little incident, because it was the worst what happened to me during my five weeks in France.
 |
| View from the first serious pass on route - Pas de Peyrol. |
 |
| Here it is. |
 |
| After Pas de Peyrol. |
 |
| Down the Pas de Peyrol. |
 |
| Rocamadour. |
 |
| The second most frequent plant in France - after vine. |
 |
| Châteaux in every village. |
 |
| What will become foie gras. |
Days 1 to 7: 1032 km (min 131 km, max 166 km, average 147 km per day). Total: 1032 km.
15 cols: Brancion, Percée, Quatre Vents, Crie, Casse Froide, Nuizières, Croix de l'Orme, Cassettes, Croix de l'Homme Mort, Limites, Pradeaux, Entremont, Eylac, Pas de Peyrol, Bruel.
