A Lap of France

[SamD]

Part 1 - The Long Rambling Prelude

Unconventionally, this ride report begins a couple of weeks before the actual ride. Towards the end of July I took my 800GS to Vines for it's 12000 mile service before embarking on my trip to France. As fate would have it, I was the first person to arrive on the Saturday morning of my service which left me with my choice of loan bikes for the day. Now to me this seemed like an opportunity to try out something a little bigger and, what do you know, there was a lovely white 1200GS available.

Armed with the keys to the beast, I set of on a little trip around Surrey/Berks/Bucks on a range of different roads to really try to get a feel for the bike. It's worth pointing out that, at this point, I had absolutely no intention of changing my bike this year. However, after 4 hours and a hundred and fifty or so mile later I was smitten and thoughts of changing had entered my mind. On returning to the dealer, it turned out that my 800 needed a little more time (like a couple of days more time) to fix the weeping rocker cover issue, with that I called my long-suffering wife to ask her to come and pick me up. Now, Vines is a good 45 minutes from my house so I found myself with time to kill, and that only means one thing - trouble. Expensive trouble.

To cut a long story short I ended up signing on the line for a 2010 R1200GS 30 Years GS Edition with pretty much every gizmo going. Better still I could pick it up the following weekend!

A long, dragging week followed, but eventually the day arrived and I was the proud owner of a new bike.

Even the kids liked it

So, there I was - 1 week from a 2200 mile trip around France with a need to run the bike in AND have it serviced before I went. Well, faced with that situation I did what every good biker should do and went to Wales for a cup of tea on the Saturday and bimbled around Oxfordshire on the Sunday.

Running in mileage complete, I was off to Vines for a service on the Wednesday and was finally all ready to embark on my first European trip on a bike complete with Touratech head guards

 

[SamD]

Day 1 - London to Strasbourg
So the day had finally arrived - my first trip to France on a bike. In my short time as a motorcyclist, I've done quite a lot of stuff. I've been to Africa, done an Ironbutt, and travelled all over the UK, however I'd never ridden in mainland Europe at all. This trip was to put that right in a big way - a losely planned route of 2200 miles through France, Switzerland, Germany and Italy. My only firm plans were to be in Les Houches (near Chamonix) on Sunday evening to meet my parents, and to be in Cannes on Tuesday evening where I'd booked a hotel. Everything else was to be decided as I went depending on how I felt at the time. For day 1 I'd set myself the target of reaching Strasbourg and finding a cheap hotel for the night - a journey of some 550 miles. I was booked on the 9:20 train from Folkstone, so set off from home a little after 7am. The weather was beautful and the ride to Folkstone uneventful and I managed to get on a train a little earlier than planned. To my surprise I was the only bike on the train so spent a quiet journey through to France

I arrived in France to a lovely sunny day and made good progress down towards Reims where I broke for a typically French lunch in the town square. Looking for somewhere to leave the bike I was cheered by the typical French attitude of just parking them on the pavement, and left it next to this rather wonderful specimin

Reims seemed to be a very nice little town, plenty of hussle and bussle and definitely somewhere that I would like to spend a bit more time at some point.

After lunch, I cracked on along the autoroute towards my target. There's a real sense of having travelled some distance when the place names and signs start becoming German! I reached the Etap just south of Strasbourg in the early evening where I checked into my prison cell style room and had a very bizarre dinner consisting of a burger between 2 large blinis with 2 fried eggs on top. Still it was all very tasty and left me feeling full and tired. Unsurprisingly I slept the sleep of the dead that night which was just as well as the hotel backed on to an express train line

 

[SamD]

Day 2 - Mountains and Tunnels
After a wonderful nights sleep in the cell, I was all set to head for the hills - well mountains actually. My destination for the day was Les Houches. Les Houches sits a little down the valley from Chamonix Mont-Blanc and is the location of my brothers ski appartment. My parents were due to be there for the week, so I was headed to meet up with them and spend a couple of days in the mountains.

I left Strasbourg and headed over the German border - well I couldn't get this close and not enter another country after all - before heading south towards Switzerland. I tried to keep off of main roads where possible, but ended up on the A35 into Basel. Now, for a main road this was a real treat. The tunnels as you enter Basel are glorious - a nice way to hear the engine and exhaust note of my new bike that's for sure. After successfully negotiating Basel I headed down towards Lake Geneva with an idea to stop off in Montreux for a view of the lake and a mid morning cup of coffee. On the way I passed through Gruyeres and got a good view of the amazingly pituresque lake

and a strage exhibition of painted cows - this one was my favorite

I reached the outskirts of Montreux and found a spot to park the bike and geta nice view of the quite simply stageringly large Lake Geneva

The weather was warm and the mountains were calling (and I had no Swiss Francs!) so I didn't stick around too long before getting back on the road.

In the early afternoon I rode the start of the Col du Grand Saint-Bernard from jsut south of Martingy and then headed across the mountains towards Chamonix. This was my first real time in mountains on a bike and the road was simply stunning. Perfect weather, perfect roads and a pretty perfect experience.

I arrived, buzzing with adrenaline in Les Houche in the mid afternoon and spent the rest of the day sat on the balcony with several cold beers watching the world go by

The apartment is just opposite the main lift in Les Houches which is a haven for mountain bikers in the summer so there was plenty of activity

 

[SamD]

Day 3 - The Hills are alive with the sound of...

...1200 GS Exhaust! Spent most of today blasting around the local area and seeing a few of the sights. We are heading out on a family holiday to the area in the winter so I went to check out the accomodation that we've booked and to get a feeling of the area. In the early afternoon I took a ride up in the gondola from Les Houches to get some of that fresh mountain air

After a bit of wandering around we took a train down to the town of Saint-Gervais for some lunch. The gradients that this train negotiates are immense!

Had a lovely meal in a little restuarant in Les Houches of Snails and Confit du Canard

 

[SamD]

Day 4 - More mountains, Italian Drivers and HEAT

Today's plan was to head to my prebooked hotel/prison cell in Cannes. The route would take me through the Mont Blanc tunnel, into Italy down to the coast at Savona and along the riviera back into France. I had an idea that I might pop into Monte Carlo on my way (which I really wish had just stayed an idea.)

The Tunnel is only moments away from my brothers place so I reached it pretty early on a grey and damp French Alpine morning. I was completely unprepared for

a) quite how much the tunnel would cost - 23,20 Euro
b) quite how HOT it would be in the tunnel
c) quite how slow the speed limits in the tunnel are (min 50km/h max 70km/h)

10 minutes after I'd entered it, I exited the tunnel to a bright and sunny Italian Alpine day. On the route down towards Turin, there were countless other (far better!) tunnels and hairpins to negiotiate, and it was the epitome of the perfect motorbike ride for me. I was struck by the difference in the appearance of the hillsides in France and Italy. In France they are largely bare and natural, nice to look at and pituresque. In Italy they are terraced, cluttered, worked and a lot less picturesque. It's amazing how two countries so close can be so different.

Hitting Turin was a culture shock - for the first time in days I was surrounded by other traffic, and worse than that Italian traffic. Now, don't get me wrong, I like Italians, but their driving is horrendous. Too fast, too close and too impatient - it seems to me that everyone in under the impression that they are piloting a Ferrari! Turin succesfully dealt with I headed down towards the coast. Lot's more interesting driving encountered along the way!

Eventually I was back in France, and following through with my plan to go into Monte Carlo. Now, if anyone reading this ever considers going to Monaco on a bike, then DON'T. Especially not on a hot (35+) day. The roads are chaotic, there are people everywhere and there's very little to see once you get there. It rates amongst the most dissapointing place I have passed through. I took one obligatory picture and moved on towards Cannes.

I reached Cannes in the late afternoon and checked into my centrally located Etap hotel (with underground parking for the bike!) and went for a wander. Cannes is a beautiful place, full of beautiful people. Event the ice cream sellers are a cut-above!

I spent a fair amount of time sat in a sea facing cafe with a few beers and a bit of food watching the world go by.

Beer induced sleep came quickly and early.

 

[SamD]

Day 5 - Destination Millau

Today I made the decision to head towards the Millau Viaduct. I've been fascinated with the structure since seeing it on Top Gear years ago, so as I had the opportunity I thought I'd go and see it. The days riding was more of the same, lots of tunnels, lots of ups and downs, LOTS of bridges and some stunning descents. The ride was pretty uneventful and left me with a lot of time to think - always a bad idea!

The main thoughts that I had relating to this trip were

1) I am not keen on travelling alone. It's so much nicer to stop and talk to a travel companion, the incentives to stop for a long lunch are greater and having someone to shoot the breeze with in the evenings is much more pleasurable.

2) Attempting too many miles on a trip like this forced me to take major routes more often that I would have liked purely to "get the miles done". Fewer miles would have allowed me to stop more often, take smaller roads, get lost more, and generally be a bit more relaxed.

Anyway, enough of that. I stopped for a quick lunch in the town of Nimes and headed towards Millau, aiming to arrive mid afternoon.


The Viaduct first comes into view as you descend a fantastic twisty road (the D809) and it's simply a breathtaking sight. It really is a massively impressive feat of engineering and construction

I reached my hotel (an Ibis) in the centre of Millau in the middle of the afternoon and took a walk around the town. It's a quaint little place with lots of nice little cafes and quite an impressive fountain

I had a lovely meal in a little cafe in the evening with a nice drop of Rose to go with it

 

[SamD]

Day 6 - North or bust

By Day 6 of this trip it was starting to feel like time to go home so I took the decision to head north towards Orleans. On leaving the hotel to get my bike, imagine my surprise when I discovered that it had multiplied overnight!

I was parked next to a French plated 30 Year 1200GS! Sadly, I never met the rider

The riding today involved lots of hills (up to approx 1500 metres), lots of Viaducts, and even more tunnels - I genuinely lost count they were so numerous!

I stopped for lunch near to the geographical middle of France at Saulzais-le-Potier. I spent a bit of time lounging in the sun enjoying some peace and quiet - pretty blissful really.

The rest of the journey was pretty picturesque through rural central France, ending on the edge of Orleans at another Ibis hotel.

Spent some time catching up with my email in the evening which was more of a challenge than it should have been due to the French keyboard!

Had another lovely dinner with some lovely Saucisson to accompany

 

[Rabbitson]

Looks like a nice trip and a very nice bike!

 

[SamD]

Day 7 - Homeward bound

So the time had come to head back to the UK. I had a train booked for early afternoon so I set off early from Orleans to Coquelles via the centre of Paris.

Now, I don't know if you've ever ridden through Paris in rush hour, but it brings a whole new meaning to every man for himself - it was brutal. Unlike most UK cities the traffic wasn't moving particularly slowly, it was densely packed and fast moving with people serving from lane to lane in order to find some more space and get a bit further ahead. Riding past the Eiffel Tower and La Defense made it worthwhile, but it's not an experience I plan to repeat quickly!

I made the Eurotunnel just after midday and got on a train just before 1pm. There were lots more bikers this time, and it was good to hear peoples stories of where they'd been and where they were going

I arrived back in the UK at 12:30 to be faced with the worst traffic I have seen for a long time. There was pretty much nose-to-tail traffic from the M26 to Heathrow, and 30mph variable limits in place so it was slow progress filtering through the chaos.

So, to summarize a great first trip into Europe for me- 2200 miles in total and a nicely run in bike. Next year I'll do things a bit differently and get a bit more off-piste, but you only learn these things by giving it a go

 

[Norm]

That's some sat nav you have there Sam.
Glad to have helped.

 

[Aidan1150]

Nothing ventured nothing gained. Just give it a lash.

Nice one Sam.

 

[Deleted account Cooperman]

Great report

What an opportunity to get out on a new bike

A few observations:

The number of people I have met this year complaining about the standard of Italian driving is amazing
Having company on a trip is beneficial (depending on the company )
I spend enough time in traffic jammed cities in normal time without searching them out on my hols

Nice bike

 

[cherokee]

nice

nice report buddy,iv just come back fro Arles sur tech just south of perpignan and to be honest having to do two,500 mile days to get there and the same back kicked the bollox out of it for me,infact sitting at 80 hour after hour is mind numbing,wont be doing that again like ever.......but looks like you had a great first trip and well done because it takes some balls to set off on your own on that kind of trip............

 

[Buz]

Good report Sam, sounds like you had a great time and decent weather, cant believe how quick the week went and I wasnt riding through Europe

 

[Hairnet600]

nice one sam

expensive holiday lol

 

[Ash]

very good young man

 

[Dahoum]

Great bike - great report

tx for sharing

 

[Nobby]

A good read. glad people have the balls to just getup and go

 

[Mr K]

Very enjoyable read: Haven't crossed the Channel on the bike for a good while now. You've reminded me about the food, wine and beer ....oh! and the roads.

 

[franco]

Nice report, agree with what you say about travelling on your own. OK for a weekend blat, but nice to have someone to share a beer with of an evening. Funny how Cannes looks nice in your photos, I hate the place and never go there
Thanks for sharing