Wednesday 09/18/2024 Lac d'Estaing, Col des Borderes, Col du Sulour, Col de Spandelles

 50.27 miles 8,077 feet

Tuesday 09/17/2024 Nice "Recovery" Ride Out to Lourdes

30.95 miles 1,729 feet

Google's Blogger sucks.

 Lourdes.  I was told that Lourdes is second only to Paris as a French tourist destination.  The faithful show up in droves.  People EVERYWHERE.  To Lourdes and from Lourdes was wonderful.  IN Lourdes was a mess. 

Super nice bike trail in the area.  The only problem is that it doesn't go on for enough miles.  Very enjoyable. 

More bike trail "action". 

The main church, I guess, at Lourdes?  It's where everyone seemed to want to be. 

Not sure if you can quite see them, but the owner of this house put up a bunch of little houses in the yard.  

Monday 09/16/2024 Moving Day Hourquette de Ancizan and the Col du Tourmalet

55.19 miles 7,805 feet 

Changing venues from Saint-Lary Soulon to Argeles Gazost.  Some folks took the bus to the base of the Tourmalet and rode from there.  Five of us rode from hotel to hotel--about 55 miles at 7800 feet of climbing.  

Sunday 09-15-2024 Col du Portet and Col d'Azet

48.31 miles 7,858 feet 

After a horrible day on the bike the day before, I was perhaps a little overly ambitious with the next day's ride.  But it was my last chance to do Col du Portet.  The original route called for a counter-clockwise loop taking in Col d'Azet and finishing with the climb to Col du Portet.  Jorge suggested doing Col du Portet first, get it out of the way, then do the easier Col d'Azet.  Made sense to me, so that's what I did.  

Col du Portet was not as difficult as had been advertised, or I just felt better than I expected to.  Still, 1 hour 49 mins to get to the top from the hotel.  Tadej Pogacar's time?  48 minutes.  

Little church in Azet on the Col d'Azet.  

Col d'Azet looking back at Saint-Lary and the climb to Pla d'Adet and Col du Portet--that little white line about a third of the way up that hill across the valley. 

Switchbacks on Col du Portet.  The first 8 kms are share by Portet and Pla d'Adet.  I expected the last 5 miles of Portet to be a nightmare. . . it was actually easier, to me, than the first 5 miles.  

At the top.

Climb data.  16 kms (9.936 miles) at 8.7% average.  

Linda atop the Col d'Azet.