Today's ride was going to be a challenge. The planned route was about 48 miles with close to 3000 feet of climbing. A tough ride even by our demanding cycling habits. However, the biggest challenge was following the route through Epernay at the start of the ride. Planning the rides before leaving Vail is a substantial improvement over past trips - with ride planning a night before affair. However, navigating through town during rush hour was more than we could handle. After several course reversals in response to "off course" and failed attempts to reconnect to the route we just bagged the computer directions and headed south (thanks to iPhone compass). Fortunately Kim wrote out a list of towns we would pass through and followed the signposts one by one like bread crumbs in the forest.
Once the stress of traffic, blaring sirens, and urban congestion was behind us the landscape was miraculously transformed into rolling hills, expansive fields, and more moderate vehicle traffic.
Which came first ... the place or the product it is so famously know for. My guess is that the area was called Champagne long before the "Dom" invented the bubbly beverage several centuries ago. Having ridden many times in the Napa valley we are accustomed to seeing vineyard after vineyard and winery after winery. But that does not come close to the number of Champagne producers we passed in every direction. Who drinks all this stuff and how can they all stay in business? One answer is that Great Britain is the world's largest importer of Champagne. You would think that the U.S. would be a bigger market with four times the population, but much of what we consume in America is called Champagne but produced domestically whereas the Brits (BB - Before Brexit) could bring it across the channel without tariffs. Enough said but Kim is in "bubbly" heaven.
A "MEGA" Magnum
One of Kim's favorites if you are looking for the perfect gift.
Our riding "bread crumbs" led us here.
Which was the all important coffee stop. Hooray!
Espresso Grande for Two
Since pastry shops have been scarce we brought
a left over Napoleon - good but not great.
Does not take much to bring a smile to Kim's face.
Map Check - done heading south so time to turn east. The first 15 miles to Vertus
was semi-hilly but the second was pleasantly flat. Fields to the right of us,
fields to the left of us, into the valley we rode.
The river Marne.
Notice the flat ride smile on Kim's face, but the
best is yet to come.
One thing about canal routes is they give new meaning to the word "flat".
This path runs 45 KM from end to end. Yesterday we did the
western section from Dizy to Damery. Today we covered a good portion of the eastern section from Conde-sur-Marne back to Dizy
Not only are they flat, the path is paved,
lined with trees, and painfully peaceful.
Kim is obsessed with barges, which ply these waters in
every direction. Our next trip to France will definitely include some time
cruising the canals in a self drive barge.
The distance between locks varies by the
grade of the river, but each drop appears to be
about two meters.
Peaceful and serene.
Even the swans look happy.
Some of the water craft are conventional
powered cabin cruises. Since you have to go slow
enough to avoid a wake you could probably use
pedal power.
A must stop before heading home is a fresh baguette.
It is a capital crime to serve or eat day old bread in France.
So lunch was complete with fresh bread, salami, and pate.
