France! Part Duex
France! again!
Continuing our quest to make up for lost travel time, we are headed back to the Alps for another Tour de France. In 2018 we booked a trip with Alpine Chaingang and had so much fun we are doing it again. This time, Matt will be biking while Jo rides the van and eats baguettes. Two people we met on the trip in 2018 — Phil and Eileen — are also returning this year. Eileen will be enjoying the non-biking route with Jo.
Starting with a red-eye flight to Zurich on Friday, we will connect to Geneva and spend the night before meeting the group on Sunday. From there, we stay in a swanky chalet in Courchevel for six days of biking adventures. The route each day will include roads used by past or current Tour de France stages, and three days will feature the Tour itself (stages 10, 11, and 12) — including the ever-popular caravan. I’ve been meaning to stock up on random office supplies, very sharp magnets, and gummi snacks.
While the chalet will be our main base, one night will be spent in the town of Les Deux Alps in order to better access Alpe d’Huez, a famously difficult and popular climb for cycling enthusiasts. The last time the Tour de France included Alpe d’Huez was when we were there in 2018. But this year, the Alpe d’Huez stage (stage 12) is on July 14th, which is Bastille Day. This is the French equivalent of the Super Bowl on the 4th of July. Should be nuts.
Once we conquer all six days of biking, we will head back to the Geneva airport and connect thru Frankfurt en route to Chicago. We’ll have two weeks to chill until our next adventure… Peru! (But that’s another blog)
Flight leaves Friday. Biking starts Monday. Stay Tuned!
Safe travels and have fun! Excited to follow along.