Day 1 – ViaRhôna – Arles to Avignon
Well, after surviving the mountains and given a few days of rest at the beach, we are no longer saddle sore and were missing the cycling 🚴♀️🤪. So… we’ve decided to ride all the way back to the mountains along the Rhone initially, then over the Jura mountains north east of Lyon via, yes-you’ve guessed it- another col ‘Col du Chat’, before heading across the Beaufortaine and the Cormet de Roselend.
Today we started in Arles, in the Camargue, an amazing ancient and medieval city. Our hotel room overlooked the Roman amphitheatre and the ancient bullring. We arrived late in the afternoon in torrential rain but, just a short stroll in search of dinner, took us through narrow, winding cobbled streets in the footsteps of Van Gogh.
Our cycle took us along the banks of the Rhone, winding around vinyards and ancient villages. By the time we reached Avignon the skies had cleared and the Pont d’Avignon and Papal Palace rose majestically over the Rhone.
